RM
While BTS’s SUGA caused a stir by driving an electric vehicle while drunk, BTS member RM posted an intro to the album on social media and quickly deleted it, drawing attention.
RM shared a post on his Instagram story on August 7, “더 지니어스 커뮤니티스 25 베스트 앨범 오브 2024 소 파 (The Genius Communities 25 Best Album of 2024 Sofa)“.
RM’s second solo album “RIGHT PLACE, WRONG PERSON” was also proudly ranked among the top 25 albums of the year by The Genius, an American music media outlet.
However, the post was quickly deleted. The reason why he deleted the post is unknown, but many analysts claim that he may have been aware of the commotion caused by SUGA’s drunk driving revelation the day before. It is highly likely that RM posted the message while he was serving in the military without knowing the news that happened during his daily routine.
SUGA was charged with a traffic violation (driving under the influence) on August 6. According to the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul, SUGA fell while riding an electric vehicle in Hannam-dong, and the officers patrolling nearby found him on the ground, but after a blood alcohol test, SUGA’s blood alcohol level was at the level of license cancellation. As a result, his license was revoked and he was fined.
Shortly after the incident became known, his agency Big Hit Music stated, “SUGA rode an electric scooter while wearing a helmet on his way home after driving drunk on the night of August 6. He fell while parking after driving about 500 meters, and was fined and had his license revoked following a breathalyzer test by nearby police. There were no casualties or property damage in the incident, and he returned home under the responsibility of the police,” with SUGA also bowing his head, saying, “I violated traffic laws without realizing that it was impossible to ride an electric scooter while drinking.“
However, as it was discovered that the mobile device that SUGA was driving under the influence of alcohol at that time was in the form of an electric scooter, contrary to his agency and its explanation, criticism arose that SUGA, and the agency, had wanted to reduce the matter and had explained it away. Contrary to the agency’s official stance, it was also known that the police had not yet taken any action, emphasizing that he was in a hurry to cover up the matter and move on.
In response, the agency explained the context of its statement that it had ridden an electric scooter in its official position, saying, “We were in a hurry to announce the position without carefully considering the various circumstances.” The agency said, “During the additional verification process, we recognized that the classification may vary depending on the performance and specifications of the vehicle, and the extent of liability for the accident may also vary. As some have said, there was no intention to narrow the issue at all. We apologize once again for not being able to examine the situation more closely and for speaking too quickly. If the investigation agency decides to classify the product in question in the future, we will faithfully assume our responsibilities accordingly.”
Regarding the police’s initial statement that they had revoked SUGA’s license and imposed a fine, the agency also apologized, saying, “Neither we nor SUGA understood that future proceedings were still ongoing and mistakenly believed that the case was closed. Given the seriousness of the matter, we apologize for the misinformation due to an internal communication error.”
Journalist: Shawn
Translator: Shawn
Source: Korean Media , SNS BTS
