RM recently flew to Las Vegas, U.S., with the other six BTS members to prepare for the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Festival, which is being held at T-Mobile Arena on the 18th (U.S. time). On the day of their departure, RM caught the attention of fans worldwide at the airport with his relaxed demeanor and laid-back fashion style. Meanwhile, BTS are set to take the stage as one of the headliners at the festival, alongside names such as Benson Boone, Cardi B, Ciara, Goo Goo Dolls, Kenny Chesney and Lainey Wilson.

On the 18th (KST), after landing in Los Angeles, RM continued to update fans on his latest activities with a series of photos on his personal Instagram. From portraits and mirror selfies to a photo of him spending time with his father and a glimpse of him learning to drive, the BTS leader called the post a “Photo dump” (кσяєαn slang) and used KGB’s “ADÈLA” as the background track.

Notably, among these everyday snapshots were two incredibly nostalgic selfies from the days when RM was still promoting under the stage name Rap Monster, featuring his signature hairstyle with two shaved lines on the sides. The long-unseen photos quickly caught the attention not only of fans but also of the кσяєαn media.

Several newspapers and magazines immediately reposted the two photos with enthusiastic comments. One article wrote, “A nostalgic Namjoon from the Rap Monster era. Please do more photo dumps like this.” Another post highlighted, “BTS RM’s photo dump time… RM himself shared youthful photos from his early days/debut era as Rap Monster.” The outlet also noted that Rap Monster brought a fresh image to the public at the time with his extremely bold hairstyle, even jokingly asking him to try bringing the look back once again.

Not long after RM shared these nostalgic photos, however, he deleted them. What made the situation particularly interesting was that, out of the 13 photos he had posted, he removed only the two Rap Monster pictures. This immediately sparked discussion among fans.

Some fans jokingly said that perhaps Namjoon was the one trying to bring Rap Monster’s past back, only for RM himself to see it and decide to “erase” it. Beyond the jokes, some fans also connected the move to RM’s previous comments about the relationship between the stage names Rap Monster and RM and his identity as Kim Namjoon.

During a birthday livestream on the 12th, RM once said that in his early days, he tried to separate Rap Monster from Kim Namjoon, until he eventually realized that there was not really much meaning in keeping the two separate. Recently, however, he feels that he has been trying to separate them again because “work is work.” RM also shared that RM and Kim Namjoon are not truly the same person, and that he wants to view music simply as music and work simply as work.

Some fans seriously speculated that RM may feel the Rap Monster era is now too far in the past and may not want to mix that part of his history with his present anymore, leading him to delete the photos afterward. This is also not the first time RM has adjusted the content he shares on social media. He has previously cleaned up posts and photos from his Instagram when he felt they were no longer appropriate.

At the very least, fans were lucky enough to save the Rap Monster photos as keepsakes before he quickly deleted them. The discussion surrounding these special photos is still going strong across social media:

- Oh he removed his pre dubut photos but luckily we screenshotted them instantly. We knew they’d disappear in a second

- Namjoon may have deleted the photo simply because he wanted to at that time, but after all, it wasn't anything weird—it was just a picture of himself. I'm scared that he saw someone asking him to delete it just because people might make fun of him. What's wrong with your mindset? Is what you're saying sounding abnormal only to me?

- "omg why did rm delete it" because he knows how people would react and you ∂αми well know that too but clout is a ∂ιѕєαѕє infecting most of you. It's like you love seeing people drag him everyday

- He was probably just feeling nostalgic about that era and decided to delete it later because it didn't feel right. But some people genuinely thrive on the hate he gets and mock him for it. It’s absolutely unforgivable—these people are honestly disgusting

- Namjoon really said ‘let me bring Rap Monster back’ and then RM immediately changed his mind

- He gave us a tiny glimpse of Rap Monster and then took it away… SIR, YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO US

- Maybe RM really is trying to keep Kim Namjoon, RM, and Rap Monster separate again. That actually makes sense after what he said on his birthday live

- K-media really got their hands on those photos before Namjoon deleted them. At least the internet never forgets