South Korean President Moon Jae-in tweeted a congratulatory message for BTS after they won the 2021 “Artist of the Year” award at the American Music Awards (AMAs).
Korea’s soft power: President Moon celebrated the K-pop band’s historical AMAs win by congratulating and thanking BTS on his official Twitter account on Nov. 22.
- BTS became the first Asian artists to win AMAs’ “Artist of the Year” award in its 48-year history. They also took home the trophies for “Favorite Pop Song” and “Favorite Pop duo or Group.”
- According to the Korea Herald, President Moon wrote in Korean, “We send big congratulations and appreciation to BTS for winning the Artist of the Year title.”
- Moon went on to cite scholar Joseph Nye’s praise of South Korea’s economy, democracy and “soft power” — a term Nye coined — at a Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) conference the month before. “Korean culture is dominating the world and it is boosting the country’s national status and diplomacy,” he said.
- The president ended his tweet by rhetorically asking, “I think you can have your pride and confidence in yourself this time around, right?” in reference to a speaker at the CSIS conference who claimed that the South Korean mindset carries a feeling of weakness, according to UPI.
- BTS replied in Korean on their official Twitter account thanking Moon for his congratulatory message and expressing pride in K-pop’s success on the global stage.
