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Thank you, Mr. Secretary-General, UNICEF executive director, and all the excellencies and distinguished guests from all across the world.
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My name is Kim Nam-joon, also known as RM, the leader of the group BTS.
It is an incredible honor to be invited to an occasion with such significanceThe quality of being important or meaningful. for today's young generation.
Last November, BTS launched the Love Myself campaignA planned set of activities intended to achieve a particular goal with UNICEF, built on our belief that true love first begins with loving myself.
We've been partneringTo work together with someone to achieve a common goal. with UNICEF's End Violence program to protect children and young people all over the world from violence.
And our fans have become a major part of this campaign with their action and with their enthusiasm.
We truly have the best fans in the world.
And I'd like to begin by talking about myself.
I was born in Ilsan, a city near Seoul, South Korea.
It is a really beautiful place with a lake, hills, and even an annual flower festival.
I spent a very happy childhood there, and I was just an ordinary boy.
I used to look up at the night sky and wonder, and I used to dream the dreams of a boy.
I used to imagine that I was a superhero who could save the world.
In an intro to one of our early albums, there's a line that says, "My heart stopped when I was maybe nine or ten."
Looking back, I think that's when I began to worry about what other people thought of me and started seeing myself throughFrom one side to the other their eyes.
I stopped looking up at the night skies, the stars.
I stopped daydreaming.
Instead, I just tried to jam myself into the moldsA standard pattern or type that people are expected to follow (figurative). that other people made.
Soon, I began to shut out my own voice and started to listen to the voices of others.
No one called out my name, and neither did I.
My heart stopped, and my eyes closed shut.
So, like this, I, we, all lost our names.
We became like ghosts.
But I had one sensoryRelating to the physical senses (sight, and that was music.
There was a small voice inside of me that said, "Wake up, man, and listen to yourself."
But it took me a long time to hear music calling my real name.
Even after making the decision to join BTS, there were a lot of hurdlesdifficulties or problems that prevent you from achieving something.
Some people might not believe, but most people thought we were hopeless.
And sometimes I just wanted to quit.
But I think I was very lucky that I didn't give it all up.
