Popular Korean YouTube personality, former singer, and now vlogger Jay Kim has recently made it public that he has converted to Islam. While many of his videos dating back to a year show him exploring the religion of Islam, with titles of videos like “Eid in Korea” and “Is Music Haram?”, it was one week ago when he posted a video of him taking the shahada, the declaration of becoming a Muslim, at the Seoul Central Mosque.
Refreshingly open about his journey to Islam alongside both his fears and joys, Kim has been open and honest about converting to Islam. Deciding to change his name to Daud Kim, he to choose this name because of his upbringing as a Catholic with the baptized name of David. In another video posted to his Facebook account and YouTube channel, he shows a candid conversation between himself and his mother when he first told her of his conversion to Islam.
As many converts can relate, the conversation starts off with shock, but continues with him explaining patiently and lovingly to his mother about his decision. Kim’s quiet but determined demeanour remains one of the most inspiring aspects of the video, as he tells his mother that despite the hardships of being Muslim in Korea, “Don’t worry. It’ll all work out somehow inshallah” with a small laugh.
Kim’s YouTube channel has over 560,000 subscribers, with more than 2 million views on his video about his conversion to Islam. His Instagram and Facebook account also have a large following of supporters, with his most recent videos going viral not only in South Korea but across the world as well. In addition to his most recent videos on converting, his past videos have also gained huge numbers of views and shares, with videos exploring Islam in South Korea, topics such as music and halal food in Islam, and what other Koreans think about the religion of Islam.
As inspiring people around the world become believers of Islam, it becomes an even more important task on the rest of the Muslim community to support and embrace the diversity of peoples and cultures that fall under the umbrella of Islam. With communities around the world becoming more globalized in our day and age, there remains fewer excuses when it comes to the ignorance and xenophobia of different peoples and cultures who believe in Islam. Lets hope Kim’s journey with Islam remains empowering for himself and others, as his inspirational story remains a strong reminder about the beauty of diversity.
