The MAMA Award Ceremony lasted three days. The event officially started on Nov. 21 in the Dolby Theatre. This was a significant moment because it was the first time the MAMA Awards was hosted in the US. The last two days were spent in the Kyocera Dome in Japan.

“It’s interesting to see the expansion of K-pop into different countries,” Peter Yoon (11), MAMA streamer, said. “I can’t wait to see where the MAMA Award Ceremony will take place next year.”

The theme of the ceremony was “BIG BLUR: What is Real?” which focused on breaking industries by combining art, technology, and music. This major event was streamed live and 20 million viewers tuned into the award ceremony. 

One of the most memorable parts of the event was the appearance of BigBang, the famous Korean boy band, after almost nine years. It was their first time coming back together as a full group with G-Dragon beginning the performance with his hit “Untitled,” followed by his new release “Power.”  The rest of the members joined for the remaining songs in the program which were “Home Sweet Home,” “Bang Bang Bang,” and “Fantastic Baby.”

“As a huge K-pop fan, I was especially excited for this year’s MAMA Award Ceremony because the event was also happening in places other than Korea,” Julie Lee (11), K-pop fanatic, said. “My personal favorite performance was by BigBang. Their get-together this year as a surprise concert was such a sentimental moment.”

Regarding some of the highlights of the ceremony, the “Artist of the Year” and “Worldwide Icon of the Year” went to SEVENTEEN, and the“Song of the Year” was awarded to Jungkook. There were many other notable awards given to people like IU, Jennie, and Zico as well. 

This year’s MAMA was a huge success with a record-breaking livestream viewership, a first-time venue expansion, and fan engagement with a theme of “BIG BLUR: What is Real?” that encouraged the celebration of diversity.