The Melon Music Awards, MMA 2021, is another legendary year-end K-pop music award that attracts the best in the industry. The event brings out some of the grandest stages in K-pop history, with each group bringing on their A-game. The awards festival is organized by Kakao M, through their online streaming site, MelOn.
NCT, BTS, SHINee, aespa, IU, HEIZE, and more nominated for MMA 2021 Daesangs
MMA 2021 has four daesangs (Grand Prizes): Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Record of the Year. The judging criteria for the daesangs hold a small percentage of fan votes. Take a look at this year’s MMA nominations below.
Best Male Group:
- BTS
- NCT DREAM
- SEVENTEEN
- SHINee
- Homies
Best Female Group:
- OH MY GIRL
- aespa
- STAYC
- TWICE
- Brave Girls
Best Male Solo:
- Lee Mujin
- Lim Young Woong
- 10cm
- ASH ISLAND
- Lil Boi
Best Female Solo:
- IU
- TAEYEON
- ROSÉ
- HEIZE
- KyoungSeo
Rookie of the Year (ROTY):
- aespa
- STAYC
- ENHYPEN
- Lee Mujin
- KyoungSeo
- Jeon Gunho
Song of the Year (SOTY):
- Butter - BTS
- Celebrity - IU
- Next Level - aespa
- Dun Dun Dance - OH Y GIRL
- On The Ground - BLACKPINK’s ROSÉ
- Traffic Light - Lee Mujin
- VVS - Miranni, Munchman, Kundi Panda, MUSHVENOM
- HAPPEN - HEIZE
- Shiny Star - KyeongSeo
- I Will Be Your Shining Star - (Song I Han)
Album of the Year (AOTY):
- BE - BTS
- Hot Sauce - NCT Dream
- LILAC - IU
- Dear OHMYGIRL - OH MY GIRL
- Don’t Call Me - SHINee
- Hello - Red Velvet’s JOY
- Summer Queen - Brave Girls
- NEXT EPISODE - AKMU
- HAPPEN - HEIZE
- tellusaboutyourself - Yerin Baek
For Top 10 Bonsang:
Along with every artist mentioned above, EXO’s Baekhyun, MSG Wannabe, Lee Seung Gi, Apink’s Jung Eunji, Yang Yoseop, Hospital Playlist’s Mido and Falasol, Huh Gak and Lee Yejoon will be considered.
Judging criteria for MMA 2021
The four daesangs for MMA 2021 - AOTY, SOTY, and ROTY have the same criteria. The category considers 60% of digitals, 20% of judge’s evaluation and 20% of fan votes. As for Record of the Year, the winner will be solely decided by the judges.
How to vote for MMA 2021?
Voting for the daesangs and bonsangs for MMA 2021 has resumed since November 8 and will continue until November 22, 12 AM KST. voting is restricted to fans with a Kakao account or a Kakao Talk ID. Fans can vote from the MelOn website and/or the MelOn app.
When will MMA 2021 air?
The Melon Music Awards, or MMA, will be held on December 4, 2021 at 6 PM KST. Fans will be able to watch the livestream on MelOn, Kakao Talk TV, and 1TheK’s YouTube Channel.