Music experts and critics selected the artists and releases that shone the brightest in 2021, without popularity voting. As a result, the 2022 Korean Music Awards recognized aespa, BTS, Chung Ha, IU, and more!  

(Photo : BTS, IU, CHUNG HA, aespa (News1))

On March 1, the annual Korean Music Awards (KMA) ceremony was held at the Nodeul Island Live House in Seoul.

In particular, KMA is an award ceremony for Korean artists based on musical achievement rather than popularity and sales. This time, popular music experts such as critics and radio PDs participated as sole selection committee members.

aespa Snags 3 Trophies: 'Song of the Year', 'Rookie of the Year' & 'Best K-pop Song'

(Photo : aespa (News1))

In the event, the "monster rookie" aespa secured their status after winning the most awards by taking home three trophies: "Song of the Year" and "Rookie of the Year" in the overall field as well as the "Best K-pop Song" in the genre field.

This is an extremely huge achievement as it is unusual for a rookie girl group to be selected to have the most wins at the awards ceremony.

aespa, who debuted in November 2020, quickly became a top girl group with three consecutive hits "Black Mamba," "Next Level" and "Savage."

ALSO READ: aespa 'Next Level' Becomes the 2021 K-pop Song by a Girl Group with the Most Days on Worldwide iTunes Song Chart

(Photo : aespa (News1))

Among their songs, "Next Level" was evaluated as catching both popularity and musicality as the dance that made the shape of a C with the arm became a hit.

"We received this award for last year thanks to those who covered 'Next Level' a lot and followed 'C Dance' a lot. We will continue to sing better songs for you. We will cheer up and work harder in 2022," aespa said.

BTS Wins 'Artist of the Year' Trophy + Chung Ha, IU, More Receive Awards

(Photo : BTS (News1))

Aside from aespa, the global boy group BTS, which topped the U.S. Billboard's main singles chart Hot 100 for 10 weeks with its hit song "Butter" last year, was selected as the "Artist of the Year," one of the major awards.

"Thank you for giving us such a meaningful award, We will continue to try to make Korean music more known in the world," BTS expressed their gratitude.

(Photo : chung ha (News1))

Moreover, Chung Ha was honored with the award in the newly established K-pop category this year and won, "Best K-pop Album." The K-pop sector was created by separating performance-oriented music from the existing pop sector.

Chung Ha said, "It's a (debut) full album, so I have my fears and needed a lot of courage but I'm really grateful that you invited me to remember it with a special award. I'll repay you with better activities in the future."

Here Are Winners of Korean Music Awards 2022 (For K-pop Only):

• Artist of the Year: BTS
• Song of the Year: aespa's 'Next Level'
• Album of the Year: Lang Lee 'There is a Wolf'
• Rookie of the Year: aespa

(Photo : AKMU (News1))

(Photo : IU (News1))

• Best K-Pop Song: aespa's 'Next Level'
• Best K-Pop Album: Chungha's 'Querencia'
• Best Pop Song: AKMU's 'NAKKA' (with IU)
• Best Pop Album: IU's 'LILAC' 

READ MORE: 19th Korean Music Awards Nominees: Who Will Be Music Critics' Pick? BTS, SHINee, aespa, More Included

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Written by Eunice Dawson