At the 2025 MelOn Music Awards, G-DRAGON won 3 major awards, while BLACKPINK's Jennie won another. A night of celebration for K-pop!
December/21/2025 12:00
BIGBANG's G-DRAGON monopolized 3 out of 4 major awards, becoming the main character of the '2025 MelOn Music Awards' (hereafter 'MMA 2025'). The other major award was won by BLACKPINK's Jennie. On the afternoon of the 20th, 'MMA 2025' was held at the Seoul Gocheok Sky Dome. The evaluation targets were all sound sources released between October 31, 2024, and November 19, 2025. However, the track zero choice category had a different evaluation period, and the hot trend category had no release time restrictions. The main character of the day was G-DRAGON. He monopolized 3 out of the 4 major awards, including 'Album of the Year', 'Artist of the Year', and 'Best Song of the Year', achieving a total of 7 crowns including 'TOP10', 'Millions TOP10', 'Best Solo Male', and 'Best Songwriter'. First, upon receiving the 'Album of the Year', G-DRAGON stated, 'Every year is always special and important, but this year will be remembered as a very meaningful year for me personally. I named the album 'Übermensch', and while I wanted it to look cool, it is actually a bit difficult, but the meaning is 'the one who transcends' or 'the one who surpasses'. Personally, it was like self-suggestion. I produced it with the desire to be that way.' Continuing, when he received the 'Artist of the Year', he joked, 'This is not a rerun,' and expressed joy, saying, 'You are the protagonists directing your own lives. Even if each story is different, there is no right answer, so be like the protagonists. This time, I will take 'Artist of the Year'.' Finally, after receiving the trophy for 'Best Song of the Year' with the hit song 'HOME SWEET HOME', he conveyed special meaning, saying, 'It's the first song of the album. It's a warm song because the members worked on it together.' As he approaches the 20th anniversary of BIGBANG's debut next year, he expressed a wish for the 'Best Group Award' next year, saying, 'I hope we can receive it.' G-DRAGON also performed the stages of 'HOME SWEET HOME' and 'POWER' solo. Furthermore, during the stage of 'CROOKED', the entire audience erupted with excitement. He naturally handed the microphone to Block's Zico, creating an impromptu luxurious collaboration that thrilled fans. Following this, Jennie achieved 3 crowns, including 'Record of the Year', one of the major awards, as well as 'TOP10' and 'Millions TOP10'. She stated, 'This year has been very meaningful for me, as I released my first album and experienced many events,' and expressed her desire to continue making wonderful music. Especially with BLACKPINK's full group comeback next year, she showed affection for the members, saying, 'I miss them and feel lonely being alone.' In the best popular artist category, BLACKPINK's Rosé, who released her first full album 'rosie', was selected as 'Best Solo Female'. 'Best Group Female' went to IVE, who topped the Melon monthly chart in February with 'REBEL HEART', while 'Best Group Male' was awarded to BOYNEXTDOOR, who received great love with their breakup song 'I LOVE YOU'. The 'Rookie of the Year', awarded only once in a lifetime, went to the mixed-gender group ALLDAY PROJECT and the girl group Hearts2Hearts from SM Entertainment. After expressing gratitude to the agency staff and fans, ALLDAY PROJECT stated, 'My parents came to see me. I think we can stand here because all five members were raised with the devotion and love of our parents.' Hearts2Hearts received the Rookie Award on the birthday of member Eina, making it an even more meaningful time. Additionally, the 'Best OST' was awarded to HUNTR/X for 'Golden', sung in the Netflix anime 'KPOP Girls! Demon Hunters', and the 'Best Pop Artist' was awarded to Ed Sheeran, who released his full album 'Play' in May. In the special award category, 10CM, who topped the TOP100 with the remake song 'To Reach You', and ALLDAY PROJECT's 'FAMOUS' won 'Best Music Style'. 'Best Performance Female' went to ILLIT, who showcased her charm on the stage of 'Billyeoon Goyangi', while 'Best Performance Male' was awarded to RIIZE, who received great love for the stage of their first full album's title track 'Fly Up'. aespa drew attention in their first public appearance after the dating rumors between WINTER and BTS's Jungkook. aespa achieved 3 crowns, including 'TOP10', 'Global Artist', and 'Stage of the Year', demonstrating their unwavering popularity. Especially, after winning 'Stage of the Year', WINTER shared, 'When we debuted (during the COVID-19 pandemic), performing on stage without face-to-face interaction made me feel scared and fearful. Sharing the stage with MY (the name of their fans) and the audience, I felt joy and happiness,' and expressed gratitude, saying, 'Thank you so much for making the stage happy.' Additionally, EXO's stage, which appeared at 'MMA' for the first time in 8 years, also attracted attention. They showcased stages of their historic hit songs, demonstrating their unchanged skills and popularity. Furthermore, they captivated fans with a glamorous and powerful performance of the track 'Back it up' from their upcoming album set to be released next month.
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