K-netizens aren’t convinced of NCT DREAM’s daesang win at the 32nd Seoul Music Awards

NCT DREAM won the daesang, aka the grand prize, for Glitch Mode and Beatbox at the 32nd Seoul Music Awards (SMAs) held on Thursday, January 19, 2023. While some believe the win was deserved, many Korean netizens think otherwise.

A post uploaded on theqoo, a popular South Korean online forum, regarding the Beatbox singers’ daesang win, has garnered over 54k views and 1.2k comments in just a day. The majority of comments under the post took a dig at the SMAs for giving NCT DREAM the daesang award. Some even commented that the awards ceremony disregarded BTS and IVE, two of the top-performing artists in 2022.

Korean netizens call out SM Entertainment for rigging the 32nd SMAs after NCT DREAM’s daesang and GOT The Beat’s Bonsang awards

The 32nd Seoul Music Awards, held on January 19, 2023, awarded NCT DREAM with two awards, Bonsang (Main Award) and daesang (Grand Prize). In 2022, the group released three albums, Glitch Mode in March, Beatbox in May, and Candy in December. All the title tracks of the albums went viral internationally, but they did not seem to work as well for the South Korean general public.

Commenting on theqoo’s post about the Beatbox singers winning the daesang, many Korean netizens mentioned that other artists, such as BTS and IVE, had better performances than the SM Entertainment group and alleged that the agency rigged the awards show.

One fan even mentioned last year’s daesang, which was awarded to NCT 127. The 31st SMAs were also marred by controversies of rigging votes to play favorites with SM Entertainment artists.

Netizens were even surprised to see GOT The Beat, a sub-unit consisting of aespa, Red Velvet, SNSD members, and BoA receiving a Bonsang. The supergroup had only released one song, Step Back, last year.

All the winners of the 32nd Seoul Music Awards

BTS was the most awarded artist at the 32nd Seoul Music Awards with three wins. Close to them were IVE, NCT DREAM, (G)I-DLE, and Lim Young-woong, who all received two awards. Take a look at the winners' list below:

In other news, NCT DREAM recently announced new dates for THE DREAM SHOW 2: In a Dream tour in Bangkok. They will perform at the IMPACT Arena on March 10, 11, and 12, 2023.

About the author

Afreen has been a K-Pop Content Specialist at Sportskeeda since 2021. She holds a Bachelor's degree in English Literature, along with a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication. Afreen has over 4+ years of working in various positions including being an entertainment content writer with Pinkvilla’s K-pop division Hallyutalk and CineDope, and as a copywriter at Flying Cursor.

As per Afreen, she loves her work because she gets to write about the things she is obsessed with. Her thorough research and following the two-genuine-source rule of journalism helps her produce the most accurate content, along with helping her be up-to-date with the industry.

Afreen has had the privilege to interview The Rose's frontrunner, WOOSUNG, and LIONESSES, K-pop's first openly LGBTQ+ group. She is a big fan of SEVENTEEN, Stray Kids, BTS, and The Rose for their hard work, sincerity, and the comic relief their shows provide.

When she is off her shift, Afreen explores the streets of Nottingham in the UK, cooks, and listens to new music.

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