Popular 3rd Gen Idol Surprise Announces Military Enlistment…While Heading To Base
One of the parts of being a K-Pop fan that is almost impossible to avoid as a fan of boy groups is military enlistment. All Korean men, bar those with exemptions, must serve in the military for at least 18 months.
While it is a duty they must complete, it is something fans do not look forward to due to the pause in activities.
Fans often make a big deal of it if an enlistment date is found out early, constantly bringing it up, sometimes to the idol themselves. This might explain why a popular idol completely surprised fans with notice of his enlistment.
In 2012, B.A.P debuted under TS Entertainment as a six-member group. Through the years, the group has remained popular with fans, even during a lawsuit with their former company, and through a line-up change.
Most recently, and likely due to a restriction on using the name, B.A.P’s active members have promoted as Bang & Jung & Yoo & Moon while member Zelo served out his enlistment. The group released Curtain Call in 2024 and performed several concerts.
On May 19, KST, member Jongup went live on his Instagram while traveling in a car. The idol surprised many fans when he stated, in English, that he was going to the Army.
someone please tell me this isn’t jongup military announcement
dawg is giggling while the whole fandom is freaking out 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/tl6Bs1nyPf
— Bling ⁵ .ೃ – B.A.P is back ➣ (@bling_05) May 19, 2025
As it turns out, this was his official announcement! Jongup was actually en-route to the base where he would begin his service. It was officially reported the following day, with the news that he would be an active duty soldier also shared.
Fans have shared well-wishes, along with surprise over the idol’s chosen way of sharing the news.
JONGUPPPPP 😭😭😭😭😭😭
There's so much to take in but u probably announced this in the most Jongup-way possible 😅
Serve well my dear Uppie', & always take care of ur health! Will be looking forward to ur return 💚#ServeWellJongup#문종업_건강하게_잘다녀와@jongup_official https://t.co/FaggxlMoYN
— JessJess (@jesshoisang) May 19, 2025
babyz: screaming crying throwing up at the thought of jongup being gone for two years
jongup: 🙂 I’m going to army 🙂🤣🤣pic.twitter.com/Gbo2eOWytA
— Young, Wild & Tired (@tadahits4memes) May 19, 2025
he literally pulled a sungjin from day6 and honestly that's very jongup of him lol https://t.co/FFA9adDe0X
— Jay ✨ seeing OOR, SKZ, & ATZ (@smiley_yibo) May 21, 2025
Jongup’s expected discharge date is in November 2026. We wish him a safe service!
