My favorite season of the year is finally here! No, it’s not the holidays; it’s K-pop award season. If you’re a K-pop stan like me, you probably know that many of the genre’s biggest award shows typically air in November and December — a lot sooner than other music awards shows in the U.S.
I couldn’t stop fangirling over the MAMA awards ceremony in particular, which aired on Nov. 28 — with Day 2 airing on Nov. 29. In the past, MAMA has been known to not only celebrate the hard work of artists by handing out awards for categories such as Song of the Year, but also to highlight some of the most captivating collaborations between artists and different groups. This year, especially, threw expectations out the window as MAMA showcased four of the most popular and new K-pop boy groups on one stage— and let’s just say the performance was nothing short of iconic.
To bring you up to speed, MAMA, also known as the Mnet Asian Music Awards, is considered one of the genre’s largest events. Not only do the biggest artists in K-pop attend, but the two-day event also features some of the most intricate and spectacular live performances. This year’s MAMA was special as it featured six distinct stage performances: a concept stage, a super stage, a mega stage, a wonder stage, a cinematic stage, and an exclusive stage. The wonder stage, in particular, is where Korean and international musicians collaborate on a desired song.
The wonder stage concept appeared on Day 1 of the ceremony with a cover performance of “Endless Rain” by the iconic J-pop group, X Japan. The rock boy band was popular in the ’80s and into the ’90s and was known for its progressive style. As a power ballad, X Japan’s “Endless Rain” deviates from their regular sound and highlights the group’s more emotional side. Yoshiki, the leader of X Japan and the one who wrote the song, gave instrumentals to the track by playing the piano on the MAMA stage!
Instead of performing the ballad alone, Yoshiki was joined by some of the most popular boy groups within the K-pop industry. Members of the boy band Tomorrow x Together, Huening Kai, and Taehyun, provided their vocals for the song. The joint stage also helped to promote many of the rookie boy groups by featuring members from BOYNEXTDOOR, RIIZE, and ZEROBASEONE, all of which came onto the music scene earlier this year.
BOYNEXTDOOR’s Jaehyun performed a self-written rap verse in the song’s second verse. Not only did the performance impress fans globally, but the song also helped to highlight the creative talent of those involved. Anton from RIIZE performed a cello solo to the song and Han Yujin from ZEROBASEONE delivered a contemporary modern dance to complement the song’s instrumentals.
The performance ended with a choir delivering background vocals during the song’s bridge, and what was truly touching was that fans also joined in on the singing. Following the performance, many flocked to Twitter to praise the this performance and those involved in it.
With some of the members expected to be performing on stage for Day 2, I’m excited to see how MAMA Day 2 tops Day 1. The event will be live streamed on Mnet’s YouTube channel at 4 a.m. EST, so set your alarms!