BTS’s RM on writing
In a candid Rolling Stone interview, BTS leader RM said he’s contemplated writing a book but feels intimidated by the world’s great literature, telling fans he’s ‘too shy’ in the face of so many great texts (x.com). The interview sparked notable online discussion and engagement among readers and fans (x.com).
RM said he has thought about writing a book, but told Rolling Stone he feels “too shy” to do it because there are already “too many great texts and writers.” He said he writes diaries instead. (rollingstone.com) The comments came in a Rolling Stone interview published April 14, 2026, as the BTS leader discussed reading, memory, and what he wants to leave behind. In the same conversation, he said the interview itself would serve as “another record” he could revisit when he is older. (rollingstone.com) Rolling Stone said the interview was conducted in mid-February at Hybe headquarters in Seoul, South Korea. The magazine released it as part of an eight-cover BTS package tied to the group’s return and its new album, *Arirang*. (rollingstone.com; rollingstone.com) The timing matters because BTS is back together after a military-service hiatus that began in 2022. Hybe told shareholders in October 2022 that the members planned to fulfill South Korea’s mandatory service and reconvene as a group around 2025. (hybecorp.com) RM and V were discharged on June 10, 2025, according to Billboard, one of the milestones in that reunion timeline. BTS’ official profile lists RM among the group’s seven members, who debuted in June 2013. (billboard.com; bts.ibighit.com) RM’s remarks also fit a long-running public image built around reading, writing, and curation. Past coverage has repeatedly linked him to book recommendations and literary references, while Rolling Stone’s new interview shows him describing literature less as a credential than as a standard that makes him hesitate. (soompi.com; rollingstone.com) In the same April 2026 interview, RM framed his work in broader terms, saying he tries to express “universal things” and spoke about “fighting demons” while rethinking BTS’ identity. That made the book comment read less like a retirement plan and more like another note in an ongoing diary. (rollingstone.com) For now, the closest thing to a book is still the record he said he is already keeping: interviews, lyrics, and diaries written in the shadow of the writers he admires. (rollingstone.com)
