Mnet releases legendary photo of BTS, GOT7, SEVENTEEN, WANNA ONE and more together from the 2018 MAMA archives

Mnet sent millions of K-pop fans into a tizzy when it released a group photo featuring BTS, GOT7, SEVENTEEN, WANNA ONE, Tiger JK, Yon Mi-rae, Roy Kim, Song Joong-ki, and a few other celebrities. The throwback photo from the 2018 MAMA was released on November 22, 2022.

It is unclear whether it was clicked before or after the ceremony.

However, what makes it a treasure for hordes of K-pop fans is the fact that there has hardly been any public interaction between these third-generation idols.

WANNA ONE was a project group that disbanded in 2019. Some of its members are active in different entertainment fields. GOT7 left their agency in January last year and have since been promoting their work as solo artists. Meanwhile, SEVENTEEN and BTS have grown unexpectedly big since 2018.

Despite the idols in the group photo going their separate ways, the 2018 picture revived nostalgia for old K-pop fans.

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“Peak 3rd gen era”: Mnet’s 2018 MAMA photo featuring BTS, GOT7, SEVENTEEN, WANNA ONE, Song Joong-ki and more goes viral

Seeing even a low-quality photo of some of the biggest third-generation boy groups and artists was not on anyone’s K-pop 2022 bingo card.

One Twitter user even deemed all the artists in the picture as constituting K-pop's "peak 3rd gen era."

To showcase the legacy of the awards ceremony, Mnet surprised fans with an emotional trip down memory lane by posting a behind-the-scenes group picture of BTS, GOT7, SEVENTEEN, WANNA ONE, Tiger JK, Yoon Mi-rae, Roy Kim, and Song Joong-ki in the middle, among other artists. All the artists in the picture had a bright smile on their faces.

Despite being blurry and having a filter, the picture moved K-pop fans across fandoms. Many idols born in the same year form a friendship group, key among them being the 97 liners, which include BTS' Jung Kook, GOT7's BamBam and Yugyeom, SEVENTEEN's Mingyu, The8, and DK, NCT's Jaehyun, and ASTRO's Cha Eun-woo.

However, they hardly interact in public as the K-pop system stands headfast on pitting them against each other.

For fans who know and support the idols’ friendships, Mnet’s 2018 MAMA behind the picture was a gem. They jokingly mentioned how cruel it was for the awards show to keep a treasured photo hidden all these years. Fans called it “the good old days” and even reminisced about first stanning one group, and then another, until they eventually became fans of them all.

Take a look at some of the fans’ reactions below:

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Why fans go wild at even the slightest K-pop idol interactions

As K-pop went global thanks to the ever-growing social media platforms, the criticisms against idols increased too.

The fanservice, holier-than-thou and the parasocial relationships that entertainment agencies banked upon grew multifold, leaving many K-pop fans eager for any collaborative content between their favorite groups.

Multiple fan edits comparing past award shows (featuring second and third-generation idols) to today’s shows (featuring fourth-generation idols) shed light on the many exciting moments newer K-pop fans are missing out on.

While both male and female artists interacted freely earlier, recent groups tend to stay quiet in their place so as not to get entangled in dating rumors.

This has led to many fans criticizing the toxic culture in the K-pop fandom that makes them miss them out on adorable friendships.

Moreover, the 2018 MAMA photo also went viral because the award shows have now made place for newer talents. The majority of artists announced for the upcoming year-end award show lineups are fourth-generation groups.

Mnet’s legendary group photo of BTS, GOT7, SEVENTEEN, WANNA ONE, and others is a treasure that will go down in K-pop’s history.