In 2010, the year he turned 16, he was performing as an underground rapper named Runch Randa. Sleepy passed his contact details to producer Bang Si-hyuk, and he became the first member of BTS. The year he turned 19, he debuted as leader of BTS, a group trained for three years by Bang Si-hyuk.
The breakthrough yearThe year he turned 21, he appeared in February on tvN’s Problematic Men and drew attention as the youngest “brainy” cast member, with an IQ of 148. A month later he released a track with Warren G, followed by RM, his first mixtape under his own name. At the end of that year, Spin placed the mixtape on its list of the 50 best hip-hop albums, the first time a Korean artist appeared on it.
In 2016, he put the solo song “Reflection” on the second full-length album Wings. In 2017, he released “Change” with the American rapper Wale, and in November changed his stage name from Rap Monster to RM.
The year he turned 24, he spoke on the UN General Assembly stage in New York in September, urging listeners to love themselves and speak up in their own voices. It was the first time a Korean singer had spoken there. A month later he released a second solo mixtape, mono., which reached No. 26 on the Billboard 200, the highest ranking for a Korean solo artist at that time.
In 2020, he donated 100 million won to the MMCA Foundation to help distribute art books, and at the end of the year received the Arts Council Korea’s Art Patron of the Year award. In 2021, he donated 100 million won to the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation to preserve and restore cultural heritage held abroad.
In September 2022, he donated another 100 million won to the same foundation. Part of it went to the conservation of a hwarot held by LACMA. In December, he released his first solo studio album, Indigo, and became an MC of tvN’s Alsseul-injab. Indigo rose to No. 3 on the Billboard 200, the highest ranking for a K-pop solo artist.
In December 2023, he enlisted in the Army. In 2024, while serving, he released the second solo album Right Place, Wrong Person, made in advance. In May 2025, he won Favorite K-Pop Artist as a solo artist at the American Music Awards, and in June he was discharged from the 15th Division military band.
In 2026, he was appointed the National Museum of Korea’s first global ambassador, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art announced a collaborative exhibition with him as co-curator.
RM (born Sep 12, 1994) debuted on Jun 12, 2013, the year he turned 19, as leader of BTS, and became known on Feb 26, 2015, the year he turned 21, when he drew attention on tvN’s Problematic Men for his IQ of 148. His first solo studio album, Indigo, came out in 2022, the year he turned 28.
Ages are by calendar year (the year minus the birth year), birthdays aside.
Before debut, he performed as an underground rapper under the name Runch Randa. After seeing him, Sleepy passed his contact details to producer Bang Si-hyuk, and he became the first member of BTS.
Source 04 · Wikipedia (Korean) · RM · opens in a new tab Based on Wikipedia; not confirmed in news reports.Held a showcase for the debut single “2 COOL 4 SKOOL” at Ilji Art Hall in Gangnam, Seoul. The title track was “No More Dream,” and the group had been trained for three years by producer Bang Si-hyuk.
Source 01 · TenAsia (Korean) · RM named singer of the month · opens in a new tabSource 02 · Maeil Business Newspaper (Korean) · Debut showcase · opens in a new tabSource 03 · Maeil Business Newspaper (Korean) · BTS debut · opens in a new tabAppeared on the first episode of tvN’s Problematic Men. His IQ of 148, top 1% on a nationwide mock college entrance exam and self-taught TOEIC score of 900 as a middle schooler were reported, and he drew attention as the show’s youngest “brainy” cast member.
Released a collaboration with the American rapper Warren G.
Source 07 · TenAsia (Korean) · Mixtape announcement · opens in a new tabSource 08 · Sports Donga (Korean) · Rap Monster on his first variety show · opens in a new tabHis first mixtape under his own name.
Source 07 · TenAsia (Korean) · Mixtape announcement · opens in a new tabSource 08 · Sports Donga (Korean) · Rap Monster on his first variety show · opens in a new tabThe mixtape RM ranked No. 48 on the U.S. music magazine Spin’s list of the 50 best hip-hop albums. It was the first time a Korean artist appeared on the list.
Source 09 · MyDaily (Korean) · Spin best hip-hop albums · opens in a new tabIncluded the solo song “Reflection,” which contains sounds recorded on site at Ttukseom, on the second full-length album Wings. He had first shown his abilities as a producer on The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever.
Source 10 · OSEN (Korean) · BTS preview show · opens in a new tabSource 11 · Joynews24 (Korean) · Wings press conference · opens in a new tabSource 12 · Starcast (Korean) · BTS studio · opens in a new tabReleased the track and music video for “Change,” made with the American rapper Wale, free on official social media channels.
Source 31 · News1 (Korean) · Rap Monster releases a track with Wale · opens in a new tabAnnounced the name change through the official fan cafe. He had used the name Rap Monster since 2012.
Source 13 · News1 (Korean) · Stage name changed to RM · opens in a new tabSpoke on behalf of BTS at UNICEF’s Generation Unlimited event at UN Headquarters in New York, urging listeners to love themselves and speak up in their own voices. It was the first time a Korean singer had spoken at the UN General Assembly.
Source 14 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · UN appearance · opens in a new tabSource 15 · Segye Ilbo (Korean) · BTS at the UN General Assembly · opens in a new tabIncluded the title track “forever rain,” themed on rain. It reached No. 26 on the Billboard 200, the highest ranking for a Korean solo artist at that time.
Source 16 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · RM on ambivalent feelings · opens in a new tabSource 17 · Newsen (Korean) · mono. at No. 26 on the Billboard 200 · opens in a new tabDonated 100 million won to the MMCA Foundation to help distribute art books.
Source 18 · News1 (Korean) · 100 million won to the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art · opens in a new tabNamed a winner in the individual donation category of the Arts Council Korea’s 2020 Art Patron of the Year awards.
Source 19 · Digital Times (Korean) · RM’s influence · opens in a new tabDonated 100 million won to the foundation, to be used to preserve and restore cultural heritage held abroad.
Source 21 · Maeil Business Newspaper (Korean) · Art as an investment · opens in a new tabSource 20 · Newsis (Korean) · LACMA hwarot shown for the first time · opens in a new tabDonated another 100 million won to the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation. Part of the donation went to the conservation of a hwarot (a ceremonial robe) held by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).
Source 20 · Newsis (Korean) · LACMA hwarot shown for the first time · opens in a new tabSource 21 · Maeil Business Newspaper (Korean) · Art as an investment · opens in a new tabHis first solo studio album since BTS’s debut.
Source 22 · OSEN (Korean) · Indigo release and Alsseul-injab MC · opens in a new tabtvN’s Alsseul-injab, a trivia talk show, premiered. He hosted with Jang Hang-jun, and the guests included the novelist Kim Young-ha and the physicist Kim Sang-wook.
Source 22 · OSEN (Korean) · Indigo release and Alsseul-injab MC · opens in a new tabSource 23 · Herald POP (Korean) · Alsseul-injab premiere · opens in a new tabRe-entered the Billboard 200 after its release and rose to No. 3, the highest ranking for a K-pop solo artist.
Source 24 · Hankyoreh (Korean) · Indigo re-enters at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 · opens in a new tabEntered the Nonsan training center with V to begin active-duty service.
Source 25 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · RM and V enlist in the Army · opens in a new tabReleased during his military service. It contained 11 tracks made before his enlistment.
Source 27 · Hankyoreh (Korean) · RM’s second solo album · opens in a new tabAhead of his discharge, he won the Favorite K-Pop Artist category as a solo artist at the American Music Awards in the U.S.
Source 28 · KBS (Korean) · American Music Awards K-pop category · opens in a new tabFinished his service in the 15th Division military band and was discharged with V.
Source 26 · Yonhap News Agency (Korean) · RM and V discharged · opens in a new tabBecame the first global ambassador the National Museum of Korea has named since it opened. The appointment ceremony was held at the museum.
Source 29 · Sports Chosun (Korean) · National Museum of Korea global ambassador · opens in a new tabSet to open “RM X SFMOMA: Between You and Me” with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on Oct. 3. He takes part as co-curator, showing about 200 works that combine Korean artists’ pieces with SFMOMA’s collection.
Source 30 · Marie Claire Korea (Korean) · SFMOMA collaboration · opens in a new tab The announcement date was not confirmed; based on the Marie Claire Korea article of July 30, 2026.END OF SELECTED RECORDSSelected records, 2010–2026 · not a complete list of work. “Key moment” is an editorial label, not a measure of success.
What did they do, and at what age?
AgeTrail lines up the key moments of a life by age.
Debut and breakthrough are marked separately, and every record has a source.
Music · South Korea
Sep 12, 1994 —
Ages are counted from the birth year 1994: the year of the event minus 1994, birthdays aside. “Key moment” labels and the connecting story are AgeTrail's editorial reading.
Fact-checked: 2026.09.28 · An independent archive, not affiliated with the person or their agency.