RM's APEC CEO Summit Speech Uplifts K-Pop's Status, Inspiring Fans
RM, the leader of the group BTS, delivered a keynote speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) CEO Summit, becoming the first K-pop artist to do so and drawing global attention. At the event held at the Gyeongju Arts Center in Gyeongbuk, RM gave a 10-minute lecture on the theme of 'The Cultural Industry and K-Culture Soft Power within the APEC Region (from the Creator's Perspective),' proving the status and cultural influence of K-pop. RM's speech was a symbolic event that showcased his role as a cultural leader beyond just a K-pop artist, and his every word garnered enthusiastic attention from fans worldwide. In particular, this speech is significant in that a K-pop artist stood on the stage of a global economic forum to deliver an in-depth message about the cultural industry. Through this speech, RM looked beyond the present of K-pop to its future, sharing insights into the importance of the cultural industry and the role of creators. His courageous actions are expected to inspire many more K-pop artists in the future.
The APEC CEO Summit keynote speech by RM has elicited explosive reactions from fans around the world. Fans, using the hashtag '#HistoryMakerRM,' expressed their pride and emotion towards RM through social media. In particular, fans in the Middle East actively shared Arabic speech videos with the message 'SO PROUD OF YOU NAMJOON,' demonstrating their keen interest. They were deeply moved by RM's mention of 'Greetings to ARMY around the world' during his speech, repeatedly expressing their gratitude and showing the strong bond of the fandom. Korean fans expressed their pride by describing RM as 'Imagine the heart of a parent who has such a son,' and acknowledged his leadership and influence with witty comments like 'Namjoon for President!' In this way, RM's speech became an opportunity to form a global community that shares cultural pride beyond a simple fandom.
Fans also lavished praise on RM's excellent speaking skills. Along with evaluations such as 'Really professional and oratorical,' there was an outpouring of reactions like 'Perfect even in his humility' in the part where RM mentioned that 'Meeting the BTS members was the greatest luck.' In addition, in the passage where RM expressed his gratitude to the fans, saying 'ARMY was the force that broke down those barriers,' comments such as 'I feel rewarded for being together for 10 years' and 'I'm so proud that we supported the right person' added to the emotion. RM's analogy of K-pop to bibimbap and his explanation that 'culture is like a river' garnered great response for beautifully expressing the essence of K-culture, with positive reactions such as 'To be able to explain our culture so beautifully' and 'Perfectly expressed the essence of K-culture' being the main response. Among Western fans, there was analysis that 'Now K-pop is not just music but the core of cultural diplomacy,' and expectations that 'RM's speech will be an opportunity to break down prejudices against Asian culture' also appeared.
RM's heartfelt appeal, 'There are creators all over the world. Please help them,' resonated especially among creative fandoms such as fan art creators and fan fiction writers. RM's mention of the difficulties and importance of creators on the global stage of the APEC CEO Summit was interpreted as encouragement and support for various creative activities that had not received attention. One fan artist expressed deep emotion, saying, 'RM represented the voices of creators on the world stage,' and another fan spoke about RM's broad perspective and warm heart, saying, 'It's touching that an idol thinks not only of fans but of all creators.' RM's remarks demonstrate that the K-pop fandom is growing beyond a simple consumer to an active creative entity, and is expected to have a positive impact on the overall creative ecosystem. This will be an important driving force for K-pop culture to develop into a richer and more multi-layered form.
The part where RM recalled in his speech that 'BTS could not have dreamed of what it is today when it first left Korea 10 years ago' deeply moved fans who have been with BTS for a long time. Comments such as 'As a fan who has watched them since their debut, I don't know how touching this moment is' and 'They started in a small practice room and now they are giving speeches at the World Economic Forum' showed the challenging journey and remarkable growth of BTS over the past 10 years. One fan expressed special pride by collecting and posting photos of RM speaking at various places, including the UN General Assembly in 2018, the first Korean singer to do so, as well as the White House and the Museum of Modern Art. These fans' reactions prove that BTS has established itself not only as a simple idol but also as a cultural envoy who promotes Korean culture to the world and as an existence that gives dreams and hopes to many people. RM's speech can be said to be the culmination of the overwhelming emotion created by BTS's 10-year journey.
I believe that RM's APEC CEO Summit speech is a historic event that shows that K-pop has firmly established itself as a global soft power beyond a simple music genre. In particular, RM's message for creators in his speech and his emphasis on the flexibility and inclusiveness of culture by comparing K-pop to bibimbap were very impressive. This suggests that the potential and influence of K-pop can be extended not only to musical success but also to respecting cultural diversity and promoting mutual understanding. The spread of the hashtag '#HistoryMakerRM' around the world has become an opportunity to increase the pride of the entire K-pop fandom beyond RM's personal achievements, which will contribute to further solidifying K-pop as a global cultural phenomenon. RM's speech suggests the direction that K-pop artists should take in the future and can be evaluated as delivering a meaningful message that once again emphasizes the importance of cultural diplomacy.
Source :https://blog.naver.com/newscake/224058060672
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