On July 13, Guinness World Record announced that NCT vocalist Moon Taeil beat the record for fastest time to reach 1 million followers on Instagram. Taeil’s Instagram was initially announced on July 6, and surpassed the 1 million mark in 1 hour and 45 minutes following his first post on the same day. 

 

A Grand Entrance

On July 6, a day ahead of NCT 127’s fifth anniversary, Taeil surprised fans by announcing the creation of his personal Instagram. At 4:33 PM KST, he shared his username, mo.on_air, to fans on LYSN app’s bubble subscription service. Shortly after his announcement, fellow NCT member Haechan promoted Taeil’s Instagram on his own bubble account. 

At 6:35 PM KST, Taeil greeted Instagram with a selfie captioned “On air” with a light bulb emoji, providing an explanation for his username which is a combination of his last name “Moon” and the phrase “on air.” 

 

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A post shared by @mo.on_air

In true neo fashion, NCT Taeil’s Instagram went viral across social media platforms. Within an hour of his announcement, Taeil took over Twitter’s trends, trending in various countries and Worldwide. At 8:20 PM KST, Taeil surpassed 1 million followers on Instagram, making him the record holder for fastest time to reach 1 million followers on Instagram, a title previously held by Rupert Grint. 

A week following the news, Guinness World Record gave their grand announcement of Taeil’s accomplishment with both a feature and social media post. 

 

Taeil’s Humble Response 

On becoming the record holder, Taeil told Guinness, “Thank you to all the fans! I was so surprised when I heard the news! I never imagined myself becoming a Guinness World Records title holder, and am truly grateful for all the love and support. I would not be here without my members and our NCTzens. I’ll try my best to connect and communicate even more through socials. I love you all!”

Following the release of Guinness World Record’s announcement, Taeil took to Twitter to show fans gratitude in his own way. Rather than boasting the accomplishment, Taeil started responding to fans on NCT’s Official Twitter in what fans refer to as a “menpa,” or mention party. 

He replied to fans who shared pictures of dishes they cooked, referencing his on-going YouTube series and alter ego, “Master MOON Chef.” 

 

2021: Taeil’s Time To Shine

As a member of NCT, Taeil’s 2020 was a grand year in terms of growth and sales. In March, NCT 127 became the first unit of NCT to sell a million copies of an album with their first full-length album, Neo Zone. NCT 127 also landed a spot on many global charts with Neo Zone, including Billboard’s Top 200 Albums and Gaon’s 2020 Album Chart. Later that year, NCT 2020 exceeded 2 million sales with the supergroup’s full-scale promotions as 23 members with Resonance. Following the growth of NCT 127 and NCT as a whole, it is no surprise that Taeil’s Instagram made waves across the internet! 

While Taeil has yet to return to the Korean music scene with NCT 127 in 2021, he has participated in numerous music-related projects, including a Japanese mini album with NCT 127, a single with Korean R&B singer Moon Sujin and a tribute song for the legendary Korean singer Kim Min-Ki. While 2020 was NCT’s year, 2021 is proving to belong to Taeil, receiving recognition for his powerful vocals and influence as an idol.

With five months remaining in 2021, there is plenty to see from Taeil, and NCT as a whole. Taeil will be promoting with NCT 127 for their comeback in September and NCT during their upcoming NCT 2021 promotions. 

 

For more neo news, check out our coverage of NCT 127’s fifth anniversary fan meeting here! 

Thumbnail from @mo.on_air

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