BTS Win Album of the Year as aespa Take New Global-K Prize at MMA 2026 Day 1
The first night of the 2026 Melon Music Awards belonged to BTS and aespa. The ceremony opened on Saturday, November 14, at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, and by the end of Day 1 two of the show’s five Daesang — Grand Prize — winners had been revealed: Album of the Year went to BTS for “ARIRANG,” and aespa became the first-ever winner of the brand-new Global-K Artist of the Year prize.
It is the 18th edition of the Melon Music Awards — MMA 2026 — held this year under the theme “K-POP CONNECT: The New Pulse” and expanded to two nights for the first time. Day 1, branded Global Day, featured 14 performers, including I.O.I, AEN, aespa, ATEEZ, Dragon Pony, HANA, Hearts2Hearts, IDID, NCT DREAM, RESCENE, RIIZE, TUIDE, TWS, and Yena. The remaining three Daesang winners will be announced on Day 2, which begins at 6 p.m. KST on Sunday, November 15.
BTS take Album of the Year for “ARIRANG”
BTS won Album of the Year for “ARIRANG,” the group’s fifth studio album, taking one of the ceremony’s biggest honors even though the group did not attend the event — and, as a result, did not deliver an acceptance speech.
“ARIRANG” beat a strong field of nominees: aespa’s “LEMONADE,” AKMU’s “FLOWERING,” CORTIS’s “GREENGREEN,” and IVE’s “REVIVE+.”
Released in March, “ARIRANG” marked BTS’s return as a full group following the members’ military service. It was their first full-group album in three years and nine months, and its title track, “SWIM,” carries a message about continuing to move forward without stopping, even amid the waves of life.
Eight months after its release, the album is still charting. “ARIRANG” placed at No. 62 on the Billboard 200, Billboard’s main U.S. albums chart, dated November 14. It initially entered the chart at No. 1 on the April 4 ranking, remained at the top for three consecutive weeks, and has now spent 33 weeks on the chart.
aespa make history with the new Global-K Artist prize
aespa took home the other Daesang announced on Day 1, winning Global-K Artist of the Year — a brand-new grand prize this year, and aespa are its first-ever winners.
Melon created the award around its Global-K Chart, which combines K-pop listening data from Korea, China, and Japan, making it a prize for the act with the strongest reach across the region’s three biggest K-pop markets.
It was one of two trophies for aespa on the night: the group also landed a spot on the Global TOP10 list, alongside RIIZE, RESCENE, G-Dragon, BTS, and Hearts2Hearts.
BTS also win Stage of the Year
BTS left Day 1 with three honors in total. Beyond Album of the Year, the group won Stage of the Year for the ARIRANG tour, and took a place on the Global TOP10 list as well.
The TOP10 Artists — decided through fan voting from October 15 to 29 — were AKMU, BTS, CORTIS, Hearts2Hearts, I.O.I, ILLIT, IVE, KiiiKiii, NCT WISH, and PLAVE.
RESCENE and Hearts2Hearts take three trophies each
Two of the night’s breakout stories came from the rookie and rising ranks. RESCENE and Hearts2Hearts each went home with three trophies.
RESCENE won Global TOP10, Hot Trend, and the KakaoBank Everyone’s Star award. Hearts2Hearts won TOP10, Global TOP10, and Global Impact Artist — the last of those shared with TWS.
ATEEZ also had a strong night, winning Best Performance – Male (shared with RIIZE) and Hot Trend (shared with RESCENE).
The rest of the Day 1 winners
The remaining Day 1 honors went to:
- Best Solo – Female: Yena, who beat a lineup of nominees that included BOL4, IU, Jennie, and Taeyeon. She performed IZ*ONE’s “FIESTA” and her solo songs “SMILEY” and “Catch Catch” during the ceremony.
- Best Solo – Male: Lim Young Woong
- Best OST: Kim Min Seok of MeloMance, for “Love Language,” from the “Can This Love Be Translated?” soundtrack
- Best Pop Artist: Bruno Mars
- Best Music Style: I.O.I, whose return to the MMA stage came roughly a decade after the project group’s original rise
- Global Rising Artist: TUIDE
- J-pop Favorite Artist: HANA
- Best Producer: Nicole Kim of BIGHIT MUSIC
What happens on Day 2
The Melon Music Awards 2026 continue on Sunday, November 15, at 6 p.m. KST, with the remaining three Daesang winners — including Artist of the Year and Song of the Year — still to be announced. After a first night that handed its two biggest prizes to BTS and aespa, the second night decides who closes out the year on top.
Sources: Soompi, “Winners Of Melon Music Awards 2026 – DAY 1,” November 14, 2026; allkpop, “BTS wins Album of the Year for ‘ARIRANG’ at MMA2026,” November 14, 2026; allkpop, “YENA gets emotional over MMA2026 win,” November 14, 2026; JazmineMedia, “Winners Of The 2026 MMA Day 1,” November 14, 2026; SeolNotes, “MMA 2026 Winners, Day 1,” November 14, 2026.
Photo credits: BTS group photo — Adam Schultz / The White House (public domain). Giselle of aespa at SYNK : PARALLEL LINE Encore — sublimitas viii, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Karina of aespa at the 2024 Melon Music Awards — 10Asia, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons. All photos are archive photos, not from the MMA 2026 ceremony.
