Korean Music Awards 2026: Full Winners List

BLACKPINK’s Jennie and AKMU’s Lee Chan-hyuk emerged as the K-pop world’s biggest winners at the 23rd Korean Music Awards on Wednesday, claiming victories at South Korea’s prestigious music ceremony that judges artists on critical merit rather than commercial success.

Jennie took home both Best K-Pop Album for Ruby and Best K-Pop Song for “Like Jennie,” marking a major validation of her solo career at an awards show where critics, not fans, determine winners. Lee Chan-hyuk swept the pop categories with wins for Best Pop Album (EROS) and Best Pop Song (“Endangered Love”), while also claiming the ceremony’s top honor — Song of the Year.

The victories represent a significant achievement for both artists at an event that functions as Korea’s equivalent to the Grammy Awards, where mainstream idols compete directly against underground indie musicians, experimental artists, and veteran singer-songwriters.

How Korean Music Awards Works

The Korean Music Awards stand apart from Korea’s numerous other music ceremonies by rejecting popularity metrics entirely. No fan votes, album sales figures or streaming counts. Instead, a committee of music journalists, radio producers, university academics, and industry veterans evaluate artistic quality across 26 categories spanning every genre from hyperpop to traditional folk.

Sponsored by Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and hosted by the Korean Music Awards Selection Committee, the ceremony evaluates music released from December 1, 2024 through November 30, 2025. This year marked the awards’ 23rd edition.

The result is an event where a BLACKPINK member can compete against completely unknown indie acts on equal footing, and where winning actually means something to Korea’s music establishment beyond just having the largest fanbase.

The Top Prizes Go To Indie Artists

While K-pop stars claimed their genre categories, the ceremony’s most prestigious general awards went to artists largely unknown outside Korea’s indie scene.

Indie artist Chudahye Chagis won Album of the Year for SOSUMINJOK (which translates to “Ethnic Minority”), while singer-songwriter Hanroro claimed Musician of the Year. The Rookie of the Year award went to Woo Huijun, who also won Best Alternative Rock Song for “Spacious House.”

Lee Chan-hyuk’s Song of the Year win for “Endangered Love” represented the only crossover between the top general categories and the K-pop world, demonstrating how rarely idol artists break through with Korea’s critical establishment despite dominating commercial charts.

Lee Chan-hyuk’s Triple Crown

Lee Chan-hyuk’s three wins — Song of the Year plus both pop category awards — cement his status as one of Korea’s most respected musician-songwriters. Best known as half of sibling duo AKMU, his solo album EROS demonstrated his range beyond the group’s signature sound.

Taking Song of the Year, the ceremony’s highest single-track honor, puts him in rare company. The award has previously gone to acts like aespa and other artists who’ve achieved both critical and commercial acclaim.

His video acceptance speech, described by attendees as witty, became one of the night’s talking points alongside other memorable moments.

Hip-Hop’s Winning Formula Repeats

Producer-rapper duo Sik-K and Lil Moshpit became only the second act in Korean Music Awards history to sweep both rap and hip-hop categories in the same year. They won Best Rap & Hip-Hop Album for K-FLIP+ and Best Rap & Hip-Hop Song for “LOV3 (feat. Bryan Chase & Okasian).”

The last time this happened was three years ago when Nucksal and Cadejo achieved the same feat, suggesting that collaborative producer-rapper projects resonate particularly well with the awards’ critical panel.

Other Notable Winners Across Genres

The ceremony’s breadth was evident in winners across its two dozen categories. In rock categories, Wah Wah Wah and playbook claimed Best Rock Album for UBUBU, while Lee Seung Yoon won Best Rock Song for “PunKanon.” Metal and hardcore recognition went to band baan for their album neumann, marking a return for Ban Jae Hyun to the awards stage.

R&B and soul awards split between two artists: Yoon Da Hye won Best Album for King of Ants, while Chudahye Chagis — who also won Album of the Year in the general categories — claimed Best Song with “Heosse!”

Electronic music categories produced an emotional moment when mentor KIRARA won Best Electronic Album for the self-titled Kirara while student MELKI took Best Electronic Song for “Body Break,” highlighting the ceremony’s role in recognizing Korea’s underground electronic scene.

Folk categories went entirely to Kwon Tree, who won both Best Folk Album for The Fragrance of Life and Best Folk Song for “Unknowingly, So Did I.” Jazz recognition was split between Malo for Best Vocal Album (Malo Live at Muddy) and Lim Mijung for Best Instrumental Album (Impromptu).

The Global Contemporary Album category went to Gray by Silver for Time of Tree, while legendary act Peregrine Falcon received the Lifetime Achievement Award.

A Ceremony That Feels Like A Festival

Wednesday’s ceremony drew nearly complete attendance from nominees, a rarity in Korea’s packed awards season when artists often skip events. Industry insiders describe the Korean Music Awards as feeling less like a competition and more like an annual celebration for Korea’s music community.

Performances included Lee Seung Yoon’s stage — his first at the awards in seven years since the 16th edition — alongside sets from Danpyeonseon Sungandeul. Lee Seung Yoon also created a lighthearted moment by announcing his own award win.

The ceremony was broadcast via the Melon streaming app, and the Korean Music Awards Selection Committee announced that certain Rookie of the Year nominees would receive development support from title sponsor Kakao Creative Foundation and Melon, extending the awards’ impact beyond just trophies.

Full acceptance speeches and performances will be available on the Korean Music Awards YouTube channel, while the committee will publish their selection rationale on the official KMA website.

What It Means For K-Pop’s Critical Standing

Jennie and Lee Chan-hyuk’s wins demonstrate that K-pop artists can achieve critical validation at Korea’s most artistically rigorous awards ceremony, even when competing against the country’s diverse independent music scene.

However, the continued dominance of indie and alternative artists in top general categories — Musician of the Year and Album of the Year — shows that commercial K-pop still faces skepticism from Korea’s critical establishment. Only when idol artists like Lee Chan-hyuk demonstrate exceptional songwriting and production do they break through to the ceremony’s highest honors.

For international K-pop fans accustomed to awards based on album sales or fan voting, the Korean Music Awards offer a rare glimpse into how Korea’s music critics actually evaluate their industry, and which artists they believe deserve recognition beyond just chart performance.

Here’s the complete winners list from the 23rd Korean Music Awards (2026):

MAJOR CATEGORIES:

• Album of the Year: CHUDAHYE CHAGIS – SOSUMINJOK
• Song of the Year: Lee Chanhyuk – “Endangered Love”
• Musician of the Year (with DAZED): Hanroro
• Rookie of the Year (with Kakao Creative Foundation): Woo Huijun

GENRE CATEGORIES:

Rock:

• Best Rock Album: Wah Wah Wah & playbook – UBUBU
• Best Rock Song: Lee Seung Yoon – “PunKanon”

Alternative Rock:

• Best Alternative Rock Album: Shin In Ryu – Shining Strike
• Best Alternative Rock Song: Woo Huijun – “Spacious House”

Metal/Hardcore:

• Best Metal/Hardcore Album: baan – neumann

Rap & Hip-Hop:

• Best Rap & Hip-Hop Album: Sik-K & Lil Moshpit – K-FLIP+
• Best Rap & Hip-Hop Song: Sik-K & Lil Moshpit – “LOV3 (feat. Bryan Chase & Okasian)”

R&B & Soul:

• Best R&B & Soul Album: Yoon Da Hye – King of Ants
• Best R&B & Soul Song: CHUDAHYE CHAGIS – “Heosse!”

Pop:

• Best Pop Album: Lee Chanhyuk – EROS
• Best Pop Song: Lee Chanhyuk – “Endangered Love”

K-Pop:

• Best K-Pop Album: Jennie – Ruby
• Best K-Pop Song: Jennie – “Like Jennie”

Electronic:

• Best Electronic Album: KIRARA – Kirara
• Best Electronic Song: MELKI – “Body Break”

Folk:

• Best Folk Album: Kwon Tree – The Fragrance of Life
• Best Folk Song: Kwon Tree – “Unknowingly, So Did I”

Jazz:

• Best Jazz Vocal Album: Malo – Malo Live at Muddy
• Best Jazz Instrumental Album: Lim Mijung – Impromptu

Global Contemporary:

• Best Global Contemporary Album: Gray by Silver – Time of Tree

SPECIAL AWARDS:

• Lifetime Achievement Award: Peregrine Falcon