Melon Music Awards: 8 K-pop artists with the most Daesang wins in history

The Melon Music Awards, or MMA, is an annually held major music award show that recognizes the best talents in the South Korean music industry.

The award show was started in 2005 by a major South Korean conglomerate called Kakao Entertainment and till 2008, it was mostly a fan-voted online award show. From 2009 onwards, however, it was held offline in Seoul annually.

The award show chooses the winners based on digital data obtained from the music platform Melon, along with votes from judges and online voting.

The Daesangs or grand prizes are given to those who have shown exceptional performances compared to other K-pop artists in that particular year. The Melon Music Awards has four Daesangs namely, Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Record of the Year.

BTS is the only artist ever to have swept all the Daesangs consecutively from 2019 to 2022. The Record of the Year Daesang was only formed in 2018 and was considered a controversial award after it was mysteriously removed in 2020 when BTS was sure to win it twice in a row, after having won it in 2019, only for the award to return again in 2021.

Due to this controversy, many K-pop fans were enraged at Melon and Kakao Entertainment’s unfair actions towards BTS.

Let’s have a look at all the K-pop artists who’ve won the most Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards.

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BIGBANG and 7 other K-pop artists who have won the most Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards

8) Highlight

Highlight, formerly known as Beast, has won two Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards. The group debuted in 2009 and soon became the biggest second-generation idol group in the K-pop industry. Their powerful ballads and masculine energy separated them from their contemporaries.

2011:

Artist of the Year

2012:

Artist of the Year

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7) 2NE1

2NE1 is YG Entertainment’s iconic girl group that has South Korea grooving to their tunes. While most K-pop girl groups were producing bubbly pop tunes, 2NE1 debuted with fresh and experimental songs mostly produced and written by the group.

Their strong and powerful image was a clear departure from the cutesy images of girl groups at the time and this helped them win two Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards.

2010:

Album of the Year for To Anyone

2011:

Album of the Year for 2NE1 2nd Mini Album

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6) BIGBANG

BIGBANG is one of the most prominent boy groups of the second generation and was also considered the South Korean Kings of K-pop due to their music’s mass appeal to both men and women alike.

Unfortunately, the group often found themselves in multiple scandals, even causing a member to withdraw from the group. The group, however, has won two Daesangs at the MMA.

2015:

Artist of the Year

Song of the Year for Bang Bang Bang

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5) Busker Busker

Busker Busker is an indie band that does not technically fall within the bracket of K-pop music but was still widely liked by many, despite their music being for a niche group of people.

Their most famous song, Cherry Blossom Ending, is a national sensation and ever since its release in 2012, has serenaded the entirety of South Korea. It even got dubbed the carol of spring due to its longevity on the South Korean charts, especially during springtime. The band has won two Daesangs at the MMA for their popular albums.

2012:

Album of the Year for Busker Busker 1st Album

2013:

Album of the Year for Busker Busker 2nd Album

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4) Girls’ Generation

Girls’ Generation was dubbed as the Nation’s girl group due to their increasing popularity amongst the masses right after their debut. They gave the world earworms such as Gee, Run Devil Run, and I Got A Boy, which has cemented their position as a legendary girl group in history. They have won three Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards.

2009:

Artist of the Year

Song of the Year for Gee

2010:

Artist of the Year

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3) EXO

EXO is one of the most popular boy groups of the third generation and has even been given the title of Nation’s pick with the release of constant hits since their debut.

Their song Growl has been dubbed one of the best debut songs to come out of a rookie group. The nine-member boy group has managed to secure the following four Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards.

2013:

Song of the Year for Growl

2015:

Album of the Year for Exodus

2016:

Artist of the Year

2017:

Artist of the Year

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2) IU

IU is the only soloist on the list as she achieved mainstream success at the young age of 18 when she released the song Good Day. Ever since then, she has consistently produced hits and has also sold out Jamsil Stadium, becoming the first female artist to do so.

She was given the title of Nation’s Little Sister for her popularity and lovable personality. She has won the following five Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards.

2011:

Song of the Year for Good Day

2014:

Artist of the Year

2017:

Album of the Year for Palette

2021:

Artist of the Year

Album of the Year for Lilac

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1) BTS

BTS are dubbed the Kings of K-pop for their massive global appeal and generational hits. Their song Spring Day hasn’t left the Melon charts since its release and is one of the most loved and streamed songs in South Korea. Their Map of the Soul: 7 album is also the best-selling album in the history of the Korean music industry.

They also hold the record for most number of PAKs as well as music show wins and hence it comes as no surprise that the group has won 12 Daesangs at the Melon Music Awards.

They have the highest number of Daesangs as well as wins at the award show and are the only artists to ever win all four Daesangs in the history of the show.

2016:

Album of the Year for The Most Beautiful Moment in Life: Young Forever

2017:

Song of the Year for Spring Day

2018:

Artist of the Year

Album of the Year for Love Yourself: Tear

2019:

Artist of the Year

Album of the Year for Map of the Soul: Persona

Song of the Year for Boy With Luv

Record of the Year

2020:

Artist of the Year

Album of the Year for Map of the Soul: 7

Song of the Year for Dynamite

2021:

Song of the Year for Butter

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The 2022 Melon Music Awards will be held on November 26 at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul and it will be the the first full ceremony since 2019.