Book co-authored by BTS’s Suga on music-based social skills training to be released Thursday

BTS member Suga attends an event in Seoul on July 26, 2023. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

 

A book co-authored by BTS’s Suga on social skills development for young people with autism spectrum disorder will hit bookstores on Thursday, Severance Hospital announced Tuesday.

 

The book, “MIND Program,” was co-authored by Suga and a research team headed by Cheon Keun-ah, a professor of psychiatry at Yonsei University. Prof. Cheon is the lead author of the book.

 


 

The book details the “MIND” — short for music, interaction, network and diversity — program developed by Suga and Cheon since last year.

 

Through the program, young patients can select musical instruments and participate in ensemble playing, naturally gaining experience in harmonizing with others, according to Severance Hospital. The program is aimed to be a new clinical model that complements the limitations of existing social skills training.  

 

Suga was actively involved in the development of the MIND program, sharing ideas from the planning stage and participating as a volunteer instructor in the pilot edition of the program, according to Severance Hospital.

 

″MIND Program,″ a book on autism treatment [SEVERANCE HOSPITAL]

 

Participants in the inaugural MIND program put on a concert on Dec. 9 last year at Yonsei University, performing in front of an audience of more than 1,600 people.

 

Suga and Cheon’s paths first crossed in 2024. Suga, who had a longstanding interest in mental health issues affecting the youth, reached out to Cheon and shared a common understanding regarding the need for mid- to long-term support for the treatment of autism spectrum disorder among children and teenagers.  

 

Suga soon donated 5 billion won ($3.35 million) in June last year to Severance Hospital to establish a dedicated treatment center specializing in autism. The treatment center, named the Min Yoongi Center after Suga’s real name, opened on Sept. 30 last year. Cheon serves as the inaugural director of the center.

 

Suga of boy band BTS plays a guitar with a child patient at Severance Hospital in Seodaemun District, western Seoul, during a visit to the hospital on June 26, 2025. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

 

“We hope that through this book, domestic and international experts and therapists can share the MIND program’s philosophy and procedures and utilize them in actual clinical practice,” said Prof. Cheon. “Various studies have already demonstrated that collective experiences through music promote social relationships and emotional development. As one of the first attempts to bring this into a clinical setting, the MIND program holds significant importance.”

 

Preorders for the “MIND Program” book began on online bookstores on Tuesday.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [[email protected]]