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"Why did NewJeans not participate in MAMA••• Complicated calculations at the overflowing 'K-pop awards ceremony'"
The awards ceremony hosted by media companies aiming for sponsorships and advertising profits... Criticism has also been criticized for falling short of authority in the 'turn back' ceremony
Such complaints are constantly leaking out of the K-pop market these days. This is because of the K-pop awards ceremonies. As various entertainment media outlets are rushing to hold award ceremonies to call out famous K-pop singers, the status and value of the awards ceremony seems to be also declining. Currently, there are more than 10 K-pop awards ceremonies held in Korea. On average, about one ceremony is held every month.
In particular, award ceremonies are more crowded during the Year-end and holidays when the year is settled. Starting with 2023 MAMA held from November 28 to 29, Melon Music Awards (MMA, Dec 2), Genie Music Awards (GMA, Dec 9-10), and Asia Artist Awards (AAA) will be held in December. Early next year, Seoul Music Awards (Jan 2), Golden Disc Awards (Jan 7), Circle Chart Music Awards (Jan 10), Blue Dragon Music Awards (Jan 20), and Hanteo Music Awards (February 17-18) are all waiting.
With the recent global popularity of the K-pop market, the group's overseas activities have increased dramatically. Industry sources say that it is virtually impossible to attend each award ceremony one by one while carrying out such schedule. However, there are reasons why they cannot easily declare their absence. This is because many award ceremonies are hosted by media outlets. This means that relationships are inevitable.
They are also wary of attending only a few award ceremonies. This is because they could be in trouble with people who did not attend the ceremonies. A representative from a mid-sized agency said, "I sometimes scheduled other events to officially announce my intention not to attend the ceremonies. It's good to receive an award, but it's better not to go anywhere at all than to show up to a few award ceremonies and make an uncomfortable relationship with others."
As a result, it reduces the authority of the awards ceremony. In a situation where all the candidates cannot attend, an atmosphere of awards centered in the attends is inevitably formed. It is a so-called 'attendance award'.
Against this backdrop, the ceremony's organizers said, "It is a success if we only recruit one or two A-level groups that receive the grand prize. This is because when a K-pop group with a large and strong fandom is officially announced to attend, the name of value of the ceremony rises, and the demand for fans who want to come to the ceremony increase significantly. In this case, it will be advantageous to receive advertising sponsorship.
Of course, small and medium-sized agencies welcome such award ceremonies. Attending and winning awards at a time when singers are not a regular schedule will help them promote and expose them to the media. Another agency source said, "Many agencies want to win awards at any awards ceremony because it can be a good way to promote their group members and build their self-esteem. However, if we end up giving awards in a way that is 'turning around' or 'sharing' way, it will be difficult to become a prestigious award ceremony."
Then, why do media outlets choose to hold K-pop awards ceremonies? This is related to the growth of the K-pop market. As K-pop fandom around the world grows, award ceremonies become "money." There are many cases where sponsorship comes in from overseas as well. That is why some award ceremonies take place outside of Korea. Recently, it has become difficult to rent a venue capable of holding an award ceremony in Korea, which is why people are rushing to other countries.
In addition, K-pop artists do not have to pay huge fees for their performances at award ceremonies. This is because it is an award ceremony, not an event. Usually, to recruit top A-rared K-pop groups, you have to pay at least 100 million won. However, you don't have to pay such guarantees when singing at an award ceremony. In addition, the groups present even hold a celebratory performance. This means that there is little difference from the perspective of audiences who enjoy the performance. After all, leading companies participates as sponsors to enjoy advertising and promotion effects through K-pop events which attract such large award. This directly leads to the profits of each media company.
Against this backdrop, K-pop stars are gradually increasing their influence as the 'gap' of management companies. Girl group NewJeans, which won two grand prizes, was absent at the 2023 MAMA Awards held at the Tokyo Dome in Japan from November 28-29. In addition, there was no video clip of their acceptance speech.
This is related to the uncomfortable relationship between NewJeans and MAMA at the 2022 MAMA Awards, which ended up being irrelevant. Since then, NewJeans has never appeared on CJ ENM's music ranking program "MCountdown", which hosts the MAMA Awards, and has not come to the awards ceremony. Of course, NewJeans was enjoying great popularity at the time, but opinions are divided over its blatant opposition to the failure of the award through screening.
Another industry official said, "Will K-pop groups be able to show this kind of attitude at the Billboard Music Awards or the American Music Awards? In the end, Korean award ceremonies are recognized for their authority amid the flood of award ceremonies," adding, "The fact that media companies that hold award ceremonies are not able to speak out properly in order to recruit famous K-pop groups has also resulted in their own loss of authority."
Source: Ilyo
