“Nation's pride”- Fans react as BTS gets recognized as South Korea’s National Heroes while Jin’s ‘Running Wild’ sets the tone in election broadcast

BTS was reported to be recognized as historically significant figures during the latest South Korean presidential election on MBC. The Republic of Korea witnessed one of the crucial days as the early presidential elections were held on June 3, 2025.

MBC’s broadcast focused on the 2025 election's exit polls, showcasing the historic events that occurred since the country's liberation in 1945 through the countdown. In particular, an excerpt from Kim Gu's 1st liberation anniversary speech was displayed.

“We have entered an era where our entire nation is stepping onto the global stage,” he said.

What caught fans' attention was the usage of a snippet drawing parallels between Kim Gu and the K-pop group to reportedly depict the important figures of the past and the present. The snippet showed BTS on a global platform, with group leader RM's 2018 United Nations speech.

Watching the group being recognized for their work, fans swelled with pride, mentioning the times BTS inspired them through their music.

"Nation's Pride," a fan wrote on X.

"They didn't plan a Festa content drop today but we still got something so cool. BtsxArmy always winning," a fan added.

"Kings for a reason!! BTS not only paved way for kpop, but whole korean culture!!" a user reacted.

In particular, fans highlighted the message behind RM's words at the 2018 UN General Assembly.

"Namjoon is not only BTS leader but a world leader. He has been leading millions of people across age, nationality, ethnicity with knowledge, wisdom and love," a fan commented.

"A powerful message about National identity, Unity & the importance of individual voices In shaping the future. RM is a lover of his country, really good to see they edited him side by side with a historical figure who had a vision of a unified Korea," another fan commented.

"NAMJOONS SPEECH AND JINS SONG. BTS TRULY ARE THE FACE OF SOUTH KOREA," a user stated.

Fans were proud to see Jin's solo track Running Wild play as a motivational tune for encouraging the citizens to vote during the presidential election.

"Regardless of its usage for politics, I always think Running Wild has romanticism and huge optimism for the future in its sound," a netizen mentioned.

"member's music becoming the OST for SK elections was not on my Festa bingo card," a fan wrote.

"Joon's UN speech being shared during elections, Jin's Running Wild being used to encourage voters. The impact goes crazy!!" a user wrote.

---

BTS’ RM's speech mentioning Baekbeom Kim Gu gains attention amid MBC's 2025 election broadcast

In 2018, BTS won multiple awards at the Edaily Cultural Awards ceremony. The group was honored with the Best Concert Daesang, the grand prize. During the acceptance speech, Kim Namjoon added a quote by the liberation activist Kim Gu, talking about the impact of culture on the audience.

Amidst the mention of Kim Gu and the Dynamite singers on MBC’s 2025 election broadcast, fans recalled the Edaily Cultural Awards ceremony speech.

“Kim Gu, who said, ‘The only thing that I desire is the power of an advanced culture.’ I think that culture is the strongest intangible power, more so than any physical power, & it has the ability to break down all barriers,” RM said in the award ceremony speech.

Additionally, during his speech, RM also highlighted one of the oldest forms of musical theatre in Korea, which is called "guk-euk." He spoke about the cultural impact of guk-euk in his journey of making music.

---

In other news, on June 3, Jin was also seen casting his vote for the 2025 presidential elections. The Super Tuna singer reportedly appeared in a neutral ensemble to cast his vote at the Hannam-dong voting booth.