On July 13, rapper Kang Min Soo—who goes by the stage name AQUINAS—told the world that he’s bisexual in an Instagram post.

AQUINAS is an independent rapper and songwriter best known for his star turn on season three of Mnet’s High School Rapper in 2019. Before that, he competed on the fifth season of Show Me the Money, but he got cut in the first round.

Fortunately, AQUINAS fared much better on High School Rapper. He made waves because of his talent, which took him all the way to second place. Although he didn’t win, he has fond memories of his time on the show, as it gave him the opportunity to work with his idol Penomeco.

In 2020, he made his official debut with the single “Oh!” In May, AQUINAS released an EP titled It Doesn’t Matter, bannered by the title track of the same name. Recently, he made his first-ever appearance on the popular show Yoo Hee Yeol’s Sketchbook, where he treated viewers to a rousing rendition of “It Doesn’t Matter.”

Some fast facts about him: His stage name is derived from his baptismal name Thomas Aquinas. He was named after the patron saint of students. He has bad eyesight and is hyung to a younger brother who’s still in high school. Finally, he writes his own lyrics, which is something he’s proud of.

During a phone interview with SpoTV News, AQUINAS said that he decided to come out as bisexual to inspire and support the LGBTQ+ community in South Korea. He also said that it wasn’t a decision he made lightly.

“I contemplated for hours before making the post. I feel gender identity is just one piece of information about a person. I felt frustrated because I had to hide it. In our society, the LGBTQ+ community is still criticized and discriminated against. Some are even neglected by their families. So I thought if I made such a confession at a young age, those people would be comforted and also have the courage to stand up for themselves,” he said.

He added, “I believe that it's natural to have a sexual identity since the time of your birth. I always thought I should share this information with everyone, since it’s natural. I wondered if it would be OK to make a post and wondered how people would react.”

Fortunately, a vast majority of the comments on his post are supportive of his decision to come out. He doesn’t regret doing so, but worries about the impact his revelation will have on his family.

“They already knew, but I don't think they thought I would ever make it public. I feel apologetic because my dongsaeng is still in high school, but this is something I had to do.”

There aren’t many openly queer entertainers in South Korea. Aside from AQUINAS, there’s HOLLAND (whose real name is Go Tae-seob), who came out at the same time he debuted in 2018.

When TV personality Hong Seok-cheon came out as gay in 2000, he lost most of his jobs. Pundits believe that harsh response discouraged others from following in Seok-cheon’s footsteps, regardless of how brave it was for him to do so.

But that was then, and this is now. Many things have changed since Seok-cheon came out. Perhaps AQUINAS's revelation will inspire idols who are in the closet to be themselves. Perhaps K-pop fans in South Korea and from other parts of the world are ready for a revolution like that.

Only time will tell.