In a strong testomony to music’s therapeutic potential and the rising affect of celebrity-led philanthropy, BTS member Suga has donated 5 billion gained (roughly $3.62 million USD) to determine a therapy heart for youngsters with autism spectrum dysfunction (ASD) in South Korea. The donation, made in partnership with Seoul’s Severance Hospital, stands as one of the important particular person celeb contributions to youngsters’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 power 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 technique 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 lively involvement within the challenge, 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 reinforce communication and social interplay in youngsters 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 often visited the power on weekends, carried out music classes with youngsters—usually taking part in the guitar and main rhythm workout routines to assist them categorical themselves and join with others. Medical workers concerned in this system famous noticeable progress within the youngsters’s emotional and social responsiveness over time.
Reflecting on the expertise and his motivation for the initiative, Suga shared, “I realised that music generally is a highly effective option to categorical emotions and talk with the world. It made me pleased to be a part of the therapy course of for youngsters with autism. I’ll preserve working in order that extra youngsters 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 all over the world—often known as BTS ARMY—mobilized to lift a further 200 million gained (roughly $145,000 USD) in help of the middle. Severance Hospital confirmed the surge in donations after including a devoted possibility 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 world 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 youngsters’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 important infrastructure but in addition reshaped public discourse round autism care in South Korea.
The Min Yoon-gi Therapy Middle is poised to turn into a number one establishment in autism remedy, mixing medical analysis and personalised 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 position 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.
