SEVENTEEN's DK gets emotional during heartfelt farewell to fans ahead of enlistment
SEVENTEEN's DK has shared a heartfelt message to fans as he began his mandatory military service on Sept. 8.
On the Weverse platform, the K-pop idol addressed the CARATs on the day of his enlistment as an active-duty soldier in the Army.
“Finally, it’s today. I’m really going to the military now! I’ll be healthy and come back safely. I’ll miss you all so much. Thanks to all your support, I’ll get through it well. And I’ll make sure to do well and come back so I can grow even a little more,” he wrote in Korean.
He also reminded the fans to take care of themselves while he is away for military service.
"To our CARATs! Always make sure to eat well, stay happy, and above all, have fun and try not to get stressed! Even from the military, I’ll be cheering hard for our CARATs and thinking about you a lot. So CARATs, stay strong—I’ll stay strong too," he added.
"I’m really going to miss you all so much," he added. "Take good care of yourselves. I'll be back safely."
On Instagram, he shared photos of himself sporting a buzz cut with the caption, "I will come back safe and sound."
The day before his departure, DK went live to say a tearful goodbye to his fans.
“I turned on the stream to tell you I’d serve well and return safely, but I don’t know why I’m crying,” he admitted. “I think the tears are coming because it’s finally starting to feel real. It’s not that I’m afraid of enlisting—I just know how much I’m going to miss you all.”
Before DK, Vernon began his military enlistment on Aug. 20.
DK, whose real name is Lee Seok-min, is one of the 13 members of SEVENTEEN. He is also included in the BSS sub-unit with Hoshi and Seungkwan.
Three members of the group are currently enlisted in the military. Wonwoo is expected to return in January 2027, while Woozi and Hoshi are expected to return in March of the same year.
Jeonghan completed his military service last June. On the other hand, The8, Jun, and Joshua are exempt due to their foreign citizenship, while S.Coups was exempted due to his past knee injury.
The group last visited the Philippines in March as part of their "[New_]" world tour.
