BTS’s Jungkook Piques Fans’ Intrigue Into Justin Bieber’s Korean Nickname— Here’s Its Hilarious Origin

BTS member Jungkook recently gave an affectionate shoutout to singer Justin Bieber during a recent Weverse livestream.

BTS’s Jungkook | @bts_bighit/X

During the broadcast, Jungkook mentioned that he really liked the music of “Ddeuddo hyungnim,” while referring to Bieber.

Jungkook mentioned that he's listening to Ddeu-ddo hyungnim’s (Justin Bieber korean name) new album Swag

pic.twitter.com/obBXdVpfD5

— ً (@kpopliebers) July 20, 2025

This nickname intrigued many fans, who wondered why Justin Bieber had such a unique nickname in Korea to begin with.

Justin Bieber | slate.com

The origin story behind the name “Ddeuddo” is a hilarious one. Though it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when the nickname caught on, it made headlines in the Korean media around 2016-17.

The name “Ddeuddo” originates from a tattoo that Bieber got done in 2014. The design was simple— his surname spelled out in Korean. He posted the picture on his Instagram with a caption, “I love you Korea.”

The design, tattooed on him by Toronto-based Korean tattooist Seunghyun Jo, unintentionally turned into an inside joke when netizens realized that if Bieber folded his hand at the elbow, the “비버” (Bieber) spelling looked more like “뜨또” (Ddeuddo).

lol @ jk calling bieber tteutto-ssi

bieber written in hangul: 비버 [bi-beo]

try rotating each letter by 90 degrees clockwise: 비 -> 뜨, 버 -> 또

hence 뜨또 [tteu-tto] is a nickname for bieber in korea

* photo is bieber’s hangul tattoo 비버 (that looks like 뜨또) pic.twitter.com/qBxIOzmnLT

— doolset🍊 (@doolsetbangtan) July 29, 2021

As the Korean media caught on and poked some good-natured fun at Bieber’s well-intentioned but not well-thought-out tattoo, it became more of a pop culture reference among netizens.

Though this wasn’t Jungkook’s first time mentioning this nickname, given that he had called Bieber “Ddeuddo” during a livestream back in 2021 as well, many fans appeared to be still unfamiliar with the lore.

정구기도 뜨또씨 ㅋㅋㅋㅋ pic.twitter.com/jeboBU0q57

— 꾹타민🍑 (@kooktamin) July 29, 2021

Did you know about this fascinating origin story?

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