In a robust testomony to music’s therapeutic potential and the rising affect of celebrity-led philanthropy, BTS member Suga has donated 5 billion received (roughly $3.62 million USD) to determine a remedy middle for kids with autism spectrum dysfunction (ASD) in South Korea. The donation, made in partnership with Seoul’s Severance Hospital, stands as some of the important particular person superstar contributions to kids’s psychological well being care within the nation.
The “Min Yoon-gi Therapy Middle,” named after Suga’s start title, held its official groundbreaking ceremony earlier this week. Slated to open in September 2025, the ability will provide a complete vary of therapeutic providers—together with language, psychological, and behavioral therapies—particularly tailor-made to younger sufferers with autism. What distinguishes the middle is its pioneering integration of music into remedy, a way co-developed over the previous seven months by Suga and Dr. Cheon Keun-ah, a number one pediatric psychiatrist at Severance Hospital.
Hospital officers praised Suga’s energetic involvement within the undertaking, emphasizing that his contribution prolonged far past financial help. Since November of final yr, the artist has labored intently with Dr. Cheon to co-develop “MIND” — an acronym for Music, Interplay, Community, and Variety — a brand new remedy mannequin that leverages musical components to boost communication and social interplay in kids with ASD.
Throughout his necessary army service, which he accomplished on June 21, Suga served within the social welfare sector and used his off-duty time to volunteer on the hospital. From March by way of early June, he commonly visited the ability on weekends, performed music periods with kids—typically taking part in the guitar and main rhythm workout routines to assist them categorical themselves and join with others. Medical employees concerned in this system famous noticeable progress within the kids’s emotional and social responsiveness over time.
Reflecting on the expertise and his motivation for the initiative, Suga shared, “I realised that music could be a highly effective strategy to categorical emotions and talk with the world. It made me completely happy to be a part of the remedy course of for kids with autism. I’ll hold working in order that extra kids can reside as members of society.”
The announcement of Suga’s donation was met with an outpouring of public help. Inside simply 24 hours of the information going public, followers around the globe—generally known as BTS ARMY—mobilized to boost an extra 200 million received (roughly $145,000 USD) in help of the middle. Severance Hospital confirmed the surge in donations after including a devoted choice for the “Min Yoon-gi Therapy Middle” on its official web site. The response was so overwhelming that the hospital has since made the donation web page a everlasting fixture and is now working to allow international contributions by way of worldwide transfers.
Suga’s initiative is being hailed as a landmark instance of how artists can harness their affect to foster significant, long-term social change. By championing kids’s psychological well being and introducing an progressive remedy mannequin that fuses medical care with musical expression, the BTS star has not solely contributed in constructing very important infrastructure but in addition reshaped public discourse round autism care in South Korea.
The Min Yoon-gi Therapy Middle is poised to turn out to be a number one establishment in autism remedy, mixing medical analysis and customized care with a artistic, compassionate contact. It’s a legacy rooted not simply in generosity, however in imaginative and prescient, empathy, and the enduring energy of music.
What do you consider Suga’s highly effective gesture and his function in shaping psychological well being care by way of music? Share your ideas with us on X @CelebMix! For extra updates in your favourite artists, music-led initiatives, popular culture tales, and film information—keep tuned to CelebMix.
