BTS Wins Three Awards at MMA, Including Album of the Year for 'ARIRANG'... aespa Wins Newly Established Grand Prize, Two Awards

Melon Music Awards Held at Gocheok Sky Dome
First Two-Day Event, Held Nov. 14-15
RESCENE and Hearts2Hearts Win Three Awards Each
New Award Category Based on South Korea-China-Japan Charts

aespa shares her thoughts after receiving the newly established grand prize, “Global K-Artist of the Year,” at the 18th Melon Music Awards held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Courtesy of Melon.

K-pop group BTS won three awards, including Album of the Year, on the first day of the 2026 Melon Music Awards (MMA2026). aespa received the newly established grand prize, Global-K Artist of the Year. I.O.I, which reunited for its 10th debut anniversary, won two awards and wrapped up its anniversary activities.

The 18th Melon Music Awards, hosted by Melon, Kakao Entertainment's music platform, was held on November 14 at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul. For the first time, the event was extended to two days. A total of 26 acts will perform over the two days, while 41 people, including actors and TV personalities, will present awards. Fourteen acts took the stage on the first day, which drew more than 18,000 attendees.

BTS received the KakaoBank Album of the Year award for its fifth studio album, "ARIRANG." The album's title track, "SWIM," released in March, topped Melon's Top 100 chart within an hour of its release. All 14 tracks on the album also entered the top 100. The Album of the Year winner is selected based on digital music performance (60%), judges' evaluations (20%) and votes (20%).

BTS received Stage of the Year for its "ARIRANG" world tour and was also named to the Global Top 10. The group did not attend the ceremony. Actress Lee Young-ae presented the Album of the Year award. Kim Hyun-jung, vice president of Big Hit Music, BTS's agency, received the Best Producer award.

aespa became the first winner of the newly established grand prize, Global-K Artist of the Year. The award is given to artists who have achieved success on the Global-K Chart, an integrated K-pop chart for South Korea, China and Japan operated by Melon alongside China's Tencent Music and Japan's Line Music. The winner is selected solely on the basis of judges' evaluations. aespa was also named to the Global Top 10, bringing its total to two awards.

The Global Top 10, newly established as a main award this year, equally reflects chart performance on Melon in South Korea, Tencent Music in China and Line Music in Japan. The final selection is based on chart performance (60%), judges' evaluations (20%) and fan votes (20%). The chart tracking period ran from May 11 to October 14. Fans in South Korea and abroad also voted on Melon and the global fan platform Berriz.

aespa member Winter said, "Thank you for always believing in us even more than we believe in ourselves and for supporting us from the same place all this time." Karina said, "This is a sixth-anniversary gift to us," adding, "We will accept it together with MY, our fandom."

aespa performs at the 18th Melon Music Awards at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Photo provided by Melon.

Hearts2Hearts performs at the 18th Melon Music Awards at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Provided by Melon.

Girl groups RESCENE and Hearts2Hearts also each won three awards. RESCENE received the Global Top 10 award, the Hot Trend award and KakaoBank Everyone's Star, which is selected by fan vote. "LOVE ATTACK," released by RESCENE in 2024, belatedly gained popularity after topping Melon's monthly chart in August this year.

Hearts2Hearts won awards for Top 10 (Korea), Global Top 10 and Global Impact Artist. The group won awards in three categories just two years after its debut last year. RIIZE won two awards, taking Global Top 10 and Best Performance (Male), while ATEEZ also won two, taking Best Performance (Male) and Hot Trend.

I.O.I, which reunited for its 10th debut anniversary, received the Top 10 and Best Music Style awards. The group performed "WHATTA MAN," a song from its earlier activities, and "Suddenly," released after its reunion. I.O.I debuted in 2016 and wrapped up its activities the following year, returning to the stage this year for a reunion project.

In her acceptance speech, member Choi Yoojung said, "Today is the final performance of our 10th-anniversary project," adding, "A period of waiting with no set date may begin, but the wait will not feel as indefinite as it did before." Lim Nayoung said, "Thank you to our fans, Angdungi, for waiting for us for 10 years and giving us so much love."

Lim Young-woong and Choi Yena were named the male and female winners, respectively, in the Best Solo category. The Best OST award went to Kim Min-seok of Melomance for "Love Language," featured in the Netflix drama "Can This Love Be Translated?" Bruno Mars received the Best Pop Artist award. TWS was named Global Impact Artist, Twide received Global Rising Artist, and Japanese group HANA won J-Pop Favorite Artist.

ATEEZ performs at the 18th Melon Music Awards at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Courtesy of Melon.

RESCENE performs onstage at the 18th Melon Music Awards, held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, on the 14th. Courtesy of Melon.

During the performances, the artists presented reworked versions of existing songs or special stages. RIIZE performed "INSOMNIA" with ballet dancers, while TWS used magic as part of its performance on a chessboard-shaped stage. Choi Yena presented songs including "FIESTA" and "SMILEY" in a musical-theater style.

aespa performed three songs, including "LEMONADE," with a large group of dancers. ATEEZ built its stage around a seafaring theme. NCT DREAM, the final act of the night, celebrated its 10th debut anniversary by performing "BOOM," "Better Than Gold" and "Boogie Woogie."

The Melon Music Awards will hold the second day of its ceremony at the same venue at 6 p.m. on November 15. Winners in the remaining major categories, including Artist of the Year, Best Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Rookie of the Year, will be announced. Twelve acts, including IVE, NCT 127, CORTIS, PLAVE and ILLIT, will perform.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.