NEW YORK: South Korean boy band BTS created history by becoming the first ever K-Pop group to address the UN where they asked young people around the world to believe in their own convictions and voices.
The group of seven delivered a three-minute speech during the launch ceremony of Unicef's global partnership Generation Unlimited at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday, reports CNN.
Formed in 2013, BTS is one of the most popular Korean bands in the world, with more than 13.3 million followers on Instagram.
The group previously worked with the UN on awareness and fundraising campaigns.
In 2017, BTS joined with the Korean Committee for Unicef to establish "Love Myself", which works with the organisatn's global #ENDviolence to advocate against against youth violence.
"Last November, BTS launched the 'Love Myself' campaign with UNICEF, building on our belief that 'true love first begins with loving myself'," Kim Nam Jun, the band's leader, said on Monday.
"After releasing the 'Love Yourself' albums and launching the 'Love Myself' campaign," Kim said, adding "We started to hear remarkable stories from our fans all over the world, how our message helped them overcome their hardships in life and start loving themselves. These stories constantly remind us of our responsibility".
"So, let's all take one more step. We have learned to love ourselves, so now I urge you to "speak yourself," he added.
According to a UN statement, Generation Unlimited will tackle "the global education and training crisis currently holding back millions of young people and threatening progress and stability", CNN said.
It will do so by focusing on secondary-age education; skills for learning, employability and decent work, and empowerment, the statement added.
Among those attending the speech were UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim and Unicef Executive Director Henrietta Fore.