MMA2025 - G-DRAGON
The Melon Music Awards showcased the valuable fruits of the past year together with the artists who illuminated the Melon Chart this year. By delivering fantastic performances that captivated the eyes and ears of music fans around the world, they created unforgettable memories on a winter night.
The ceremony “THE 17TH MELON MUSIC AWARDS (2025 MELON MUSIC AWARDS, HEREAFTER MMA2025)”, hosted by the music platform Melon of KAKAO ENTERTAINMENT, concluded on the evening of December 20 amid passionate cheers from approximately 18,000 spectators. With performances of high artistic quality and fair awards spanning 29 categories, this edition of the MMA embraced the entire music industry of the year, revealing the accumulated power of Melon over more than 20 years and confirming its indisputable authority as a representative Kpop ceremony and festival.
MMA2025 was held that day at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul with KAKAO BANK as the title sponsor. Particularly this year, through differentiated membership benefits such as exclusive presales for long-term subscribers and VIP red carpet invitations, the event gained additional significance as a celebration expressing deep gratitude toward users who supported the Korean music ecosystem.
Thus, Melon once again proved that it is not merely a platform, but the “central base of Kpop” leading global trends. Through credible awards based on extensive chart data and legendary stages that captivated fans worldwide, Melon solidified its status as the supreme music festival.
#G-DRAGON, seven trophies including “Artist of the Year”, “Album of the Year”, and “Song of the Year”
The undisputed protagonist of 2025 was G-DRAGON. G-DRAGON swept the grand prizes “Artist of the Year”, “KakaoBank Album of the Year”, and “Song of the Year”, as well as “TOP10”, “Millions TOP10”, “Best Male Solo Artist”, and “Best Songwriter”, winning a total of seven trophies. His third full-length studio album “ÜBERMENSCH”, released last February, surpassed one million streams in just four hours, setting a speed record for a solo artist and entering Melon’s “Millions Album” Hall of Fame. The song awarded “Song of the Year”, “Home sweet home (feat. TAEYANG, DAESUNG)”, was the most-streamed track on Melon during the first half of the year.
Upon receiving the “KakaoBank Album of the Year” award, G-DRAGON stated:
“This year will remain a meaningful year for a long time. I named the album ‘Übermensch’, but for me it was actually like a personal incantation. I thank all the VIP fans, who are the source of my inspiration.”
JENNIE won the major award “Record of the Year” with her first solo full-length album “RUBY”, released in March. The title track “Like jennie” entered Melon’s TOP100 immediately upon release and remained there for ten consecutive months, proving impressive digital power.
#“Rookie of the Year”: joint victory by ALLDAY PROJECT and HEARTS2HEARTS
The single “Rookie of the Year” award was jointly presented to the co-ed group ALLDAY PROJECT and the girl group HEARTS2HEARTS. ALLDAY PROJECT, which appeared like a comet in June, reached No.1 on Melon’s TOP100 in just three days with its debut song “Famous”, setting a record since the chart overhaul in 2021. HEARTS2HEARTS saw all three albums released this year, “THE CHASE”, “STYLE”, and “FOCUS”, rank well on the TOP100 and HOT100 charts, establishing themselves as a major breakout act.
In the popularity award categories, ROSÉ was selected as “Best Female Solo Artist” with her first studio album “ROSIE”. “Best Female Group” went to IVE with “Rebel heart”, while “Best Male Group” was won by BOYNEXTDOOR with “오늘만 I love you”.
The “Best OST” award was given to “Golden” performed by HUNTR/X for the global hit film “KPOP DEMON HUNTERS”. The “Best Pop Artist” award went to ED SHEERAN for his studio album “PLAY”, released in May.
#“Best Music Style” and “Track Zero Choice”, celebrating musical diversity
In the special awards category, “Best Music Style” was jointly awarded to 10CM for the remake “너에게 닿기를” and ALLDAY PROJECT for “Famous”. The “Stage of the Year” award went to AESPA for the concert “2025 AESPA LIVE TOUR – SYNK : AEXIS LINE”. “Best Female Performance” was awarded to ILLIT with “빌려온 고양이”, and the male counterpart went to RIIZE for “Fly up”. KIIIKIII won “Music Video of the Year” with “I do me”.
The ‘Track Zero Choice’ award, linked to Melon’s independent music support project, highlighted the diversity of the music ecosystem. HANRORO was honored for “시간을 달리네”, the title track of the album “자몽살구클럽”.
#Customized stages expanding K-pop’s influence
The main stage, featuring leading artists from Melon’s TOP100 and HOT100, continued the legendary reputation of the MMA. Customized stage productions incorporating each artist’s unique universe created maximum synergy, moving both on-site audiences and fans worldwide while strengthening K-pop’s global influence.
RIIZE presented “Fame”, “Bag bad back”, and “Fly up” consecutively, illustrating the narrative of growth and achievement embedded in their group name.
IVE performed “Rebel heart”, “Attitude”, and “Xoxz”, demonstrating an energetic and charismatic stage presence worthy of the “queens of K-pop”.
EXO marked a powerful return with “Wolf”, “The eve”, “Growl”, and “Back it up”, delivering a stage that blended past and present.
AESPA presented a medley specially rearranged for MMA2025, asserting their powerful musical signature.
JENNIE opened with “Seoul city” and delivered a striking artistic performance, followed by “Like jennie” in a spectacular staging.
G-DRAGON’s stage embodied the artistic climax, from “Drama” to “Home sweet home” and finally “Crooked”, the peak of the night.
The presence of celebrities from various fields among the presenters heightened the atmosphere of the ceremony.
Singer YOON JONG SHIN presented the grand prizes, stating:
“Even though I am not among the award recipients, I am honored to announce these wonderful awards today.”
Actress PARK EUN BIN presented the “Record of the Year” award, praising the work of more than a thousand staff members.
Finally, JANG YOON JOONG, CEO of KAKAO ENTERTAINMENT, stated: “MMA2025 concentrated all of Melon’s capabilities to announce artists’ achievements to the world and deliver immense pride to our users. Melon will continue to maintain its position as a representative K-pop festival.”
Awards summary:
<Grand awards>
Artist of the Year : G-DRAGON
Album of the Year KakaoBank : G-DRAGON “ÜBERMENSCH”
Song of the Year : G-DRAGON – “Home sweet home” (feat. TAEYANG, DAESUNG)
Record of the Year : JENNIE
Rookie of the Year : ALLDAY PROJECT / HEARTS2HEARTS
<TOP10>
ROSÉ,
LIM YOUNG WOONG,
JENNIE,
AESPA,
BOYNEXTDOOR,
G-DRAGON,
IVE,
NCT WISH,
PLAVE,
RIIZE
<Millions TOP10>
ROSÉ – “ROSIE”
SEVENTEEN – “HAPPY BURSTDAY”
IU – “꽃갈피 셋”
LIM YOUNG WOONG – “IM HERO 2”
JENNIE – “RUBY”
BOYNEXTDOOR – “NO GENRE”
G-DRAGON – “ÜBERMENSCH”
IVE – “IVE EMPATHY”
PLAVE – “CALIGO Pt.1”
RIIZE – “ODYSSEY”
<Best awards>
Best female solo artist : ROSÉ
Best male solo artist : G-DRAGON
Best female group : IVE
Best male group : BOYNEXTDOOR
Best OST : HUNTR/X – “Golden”
Best pop artist : ED SHEERAN
<Special awards>
Best songwriter : G-DRAGON
Music video of the Year : KIIIKIII – “I do me”
Best performance (female) : ILLIT
Best performance (male) : RIIZE
Best music style : 10CM, ALLDAY PROJECT
Global artist : AESPA
Global breakout artist : IDID
1theK global icon : KIIIKIII
Favorite J-pop artist : KENSHI YONEZU
Stage of the Year : AESPA
Trend leader : WOODZ
Best producer : ZICO
<Popularity awards>
Track Zero Choice : HANRORO – “시간을 달리네”
Global fans’ choice Berriz : HEARTS2HEARTS
Favorite artist in Japan by U-NEXT : BOYNEXTDOOR
KakaoBank Star of All : NCT WISH
Journalist: Shawn
Translator: Shawn
Source: MMA 2025
