2026 MAMA AWARDS to travel across time, space with 'A Music Interstellar'

CJ ENM organizers unveiled the “A Music Interstellar” theme for the 2026 MAMA AWARDS at a media event in Seoul on Thursday, ahead of the Nov. 20 and 21 ceremony in Osaka. The show will pair K-pop acts with film, animation, art and artificial intelligence, including performances involving ENHYPEN and “Dune: Part Three,” and BIGBANG and Dooly. The two nights will divide artist awards from performance and genre categories, while a fan festival and events across Osaka will extend the experience beyond the venue.

The ceremony began in 1999 as Mnet’s music video awards, became the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2009 and was rebranded as the MAMA AWARDS in 2022.

The first MAMA Fan Festa will run on CJ ENM’s Mnet Plus from Nov. 9 to 21, with events also planned around HEP FIVE, Midosuji Avenue and Namba Plaza in Osaka.

The Osaka fan experiences will include MAMA-themed activities at Dotonbori restaurants, electric bikes and scooters, a Ferris wheel playing nominees’ music and video high-five sessions at a welcome station in Namba Plaza.

Actor Park Bo-gum will serve as the ceremony’s ambassador and host, connecting the two nights.

Panic, the duo of Lee Juck and Kim Jin-pyo, will perform with CORTIS members Martin and Seonghyeon, WOODZ, ZEROBASEONE’s Kim Tae-rae, ALLDAY PROJECT’s Woochan and Hearts2Hearts’ Yuha.

Published Oct 29, 2026 3:14 pm KST

American singer-songwriter Bruno Mars, left, and BLACKPINK’s Rosé receive the Global Sensation award at the 2024 MAMA Awards at Kyocera Dome Osaka in Japan, Nov. 22, 2024. The duo’s collaboration “APT.” topped charts across English-speaking markets. Courtesy of CJ ENM

This year's MAMA AWARDS will take audiences on a journey between the stars, where music transcends the boundaries of past and present, here and there, organizers said Thursday as they unveiled plans for CJ ENM's flagship K-pop ceremony.

The theme, “A Music Interstellar,” was introduced at a media day held at the Eliena Hotel in Gangnam District, Seoul, ahead of the 2026 MAMA AWARDS, set for Nov. 20 and 21 at Kyocera Dome Osaka in Japan. The event was attended by Shin Hyung-kwan, head of CJ ENM's music content business division; Yoon Shin-hye, head of its Mnet business division; and Park Chan-uk, head of its convention business division.

Yoon said the theme captures 2026 as a moment when older songs find new life amid fast-changing trends and audiences around the world enjoy the same music as K-pop expands.

Launched in 1999 as Mnet's music video awards, the ceremony was renamed the Mnet Asian Music Awards in 2009 and rebranded as the MAMA AWARDS in 2022.

From left, Shin Hyung-kwan, head of CJ ENM’s music content business division; Yoon Shin-hye, head of CJ ENM’s Mnet business division; and Park Chan-uk, head of CJ ENM’s convention business division, pose during a media day for the 2026 MAMA Awards at the Eliena Hotel in Gangnam District, Seoul, Thursday. Courtesy of CJ ENM

The idea of crossing boundaries carries into a series of collaborations. K-pop boy band ENHYPEN will team up with Hollywood sci-fi blockbuster “Dune: Part Three,” the final installment of Denis Villeneuve's trilogy opening in December, in a performance Yoon said fuses K-pop with cinematic elements.

BIGBANG, which marks its 20th anniversary this year, will share the stage with the title character of “Dooly the Little Dinosaur,” a cartoon first created in 1983. Other crossovers will include a K-art collaboration with renowned contemporary artist Lee Bae and performances produced with Google's artificial intelligence model Gemini, which Yoon said will support the show from its opening onward.

Legendary duo Panic, made up of singer-songwriter Lee Juck and rapper Kim Jin-pyo, will also perform. The duo debuted in 1995, the same year Mnet first launched. At MAMA, Panic will be joined by CORTIS' Martin and Seonghyeon, WOODZ, ZEROBASEONE's Kim Tae-rae, ALLDAY PROJECT's Woochan and Hearts2Hearts' Yuha.

“Our goal is for people from different eras, generations and places to discover music, share their tastes and pass on their experiences at MAMA,” Yoon said.

Fans attend the 2025 MAMA Awards at Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong, Nov. 28-29, 2025. Last year’s edition was the first K-pop awards ceremony to be held at the stadium. Courtesy of CJ ENM

The two nights will be divided by category, with the first part presenting artist awards and the second night honoring performance and genre categories. Actor Park Bo-gum, will connect the two as MAMA's ambassador and host. In a video message played at the event, he promised performances “beyond imagination.”

The ceremony will also introduce its first MAMA Fan Festa, running from Nov. 9-21 on CJ ENM's platform Mnet Plus. Events will also take place around HEP FIVE, Midosuji Avenue and Namba Plaza in Osaka.

Park said fans have always been at the center of MAMA's evolution, adding that visitors will be able to experience the event from the moment they arrive in the city.

MAMA-themed experiences will be spread across Osaka, he said, from restaurants in the Dotonbori District to electric bikes and scooters that fans can ride around downtown. A Ferris wheel will play music by this year's nominees. A welcome station at Namba Plaza will also host a series of events, including video high-five sessions with artists.

Fans will be able to take center stage and enjoy MAMA in a variety of ways, moving freely between online and offline, he added.

“We have spent a long time preparing a musical experience that transcends time and space,” Shin said, asking fans to stay tuned.

CJ ENM主办方于周四在首尔举行的媒体活动上公布了2026 MAMA颁奖典礼的主题“星际音乐”（A Music Interstellar），颁奖典礼将于11月20日和21日在大阪举行。届时，K-pop艺人将与电影、动画、艺术和人工智能相结合，其中包括ENHYPEN与《沙丘3》、BIGBANG与Dooly的合作演出。两晚的颁奖典礼将分别颁发艺人奖、表演奖和音乐类型奖，同时，大阪还将举办粉丝节和一系列活动，将MAMA的精彩体验延伸至颁奖典礼之外。

该颁奖典礼始于 1999 年，最初名为 Mnet 音乐录影带大奖，2009 年更名为 Mnet 亚洲音乐大奖，2022 年更名为 MAMA 大奖。

首届 MAMA 粉丝节将于 11 月 9 日至 21 日在 CJ ENM 的 Mnet Plus 频道举行，同时还计划在大阪的 HEP FIVE、御堂筋大道和难波广场附近举办活动。

大阪粉丝体验活动将在道顿堀餐厅举行，包括MAMA主题活动、电动自行车和滑板车、播放提名者音乐的摩天轮，以及在难波广场迎宾站举行的视频击掌环节。

演员朴宝剑将担任颁奖典礼的形象大使和主持人，串联起两个夜晚的活动。

由李笛和金镇杓组成的二人组合 Panic 将与 CORTIS 成员 Martin 和 Seonghyeon、WOODZ、ZEROBASEONE 的金泰来、ALLDAY PROJECT 的 Woochan 和 Hearts2Hearts 的 Yuha 一起演出。

发布于2026年10月29日下午3:14（韩国标准时间）

美国创作歌手布鲁诺·马尔斯（左）和BLACKPINK成员Rosé于2024年11月22日在日本大阪京瓷巨蛋举行的2024 MAMA颁奖典礼上荣获“全球轰动奖”。两人合作的歌曲《APT.》在英语市场各大音乐排行榜上名列前茅。图片由CJ ENM提供。

组织者周四公布了CJ ENM旗舰K-pop颁奖典礼的计划，并表示今年的MAMA颁奖典礼将带领观众踏上一段星光之旅，音乐将超越过去与现在、此地与彼地的界限。

在2026 MAMA颁奖典礼（将于11月20日至21日在日本大阪京瓷巨蛋举行）前夕，CJ ENM在首尔江南区艾琳娜酒店举办了媒体日活动，正式公布了“星际音乐”的主题。出席活动的有CJ ENM音乐内容事业部负责人申亨宽、Mnet事业部负责人尹信惠以及会展事业部负责人朴灿旭。

尹表示，该主题捕捉到了 2026 年的景象：在快速变化的潮流中，老歌焕发新生，随着 K-pop 的扩张，世界各地的观众都能欣赏到同样的音乐。

该颁奖典礼于 1999 年以 Mnet 音乐录影带大奖的形式推出，2009 年更名为 Mnet 亚洲音乐大奖，2022 年更名为 MAMA 大奖。

图为周四在首尔江南区艾丽娜酒店举行的2026 MAMA颁奖典礼媒体日活动上，CJ ENM音乐内容事业部负责人申亨宽（左）、CJ ENM Mnet事业部负责人尹信惠（左）和CJ ENM会展事业部负责人朴灿旭（左）的合影。图片由CJ ENM提供。

跨越界限的理念贯穿于一系列合作之中。韩国流行男团ENHYPEN将与好莱坞科幻大片《沙丘3》合作，该片是丹尼斯·维伦纽瓦执导的沙丘三部曲的最终章，将于12月上映。尹恩惠表示，此次合作将融合韩国流行音乐和电影元素。

今年迎来出道20周年的BIGBANG将与1983年首播的动画片《小恐龙杜利》的主角同台演出。其他跨界合作还包括韩国艺术与著名当代艺术家李培的合作，以及由谷歌人工智能模型Gemini制作的表演。尹锡悦表示，Gemini将从演出开幕起就为演出提供支持。

由创作歌手李笛和说唱歌手金镇杓组成的传奇二人组 Panic 也将登台表演。该组合于 1995 年出道，同年 Mnet 电视台也正式开播。在 MAMA 颁奖典礼上，Panic 将与 CORTIS 的 Martin 和 Seonghyeon、WOODZ、ZEROBASEONE 的金泰莱、ALLDAY PROJECT 的 Woochan 以及 Hearts2Hearts 的 Yuha 同台演出。

“我们的目标是让来自不同时代、不同世代和不同地域的人们在 MAMA 音乐节上发现音乐、分享他们的品味并传递他们的经验，”尹说道。

2025年11月28日至29日，粉丝们在香港启德体育场观看2025 MAMA颁奖典礼。去年的颁奖典礼是该体育场首次举办K-pop颁奖典礼。图片由CJ ENM提供。

这两晚的颁奖典礼将按类别划分，第一晚颁发艺人奖，第二晚颁发表演奖和流派奖。演员朴宝剑将作为MAMA的形象大使和主持人，把这两晚的颁奖典礼串联起来。他在活动现场播放的视频致辞中承诺，将带来“超乎想象”的精彩表演。

颁奖典礼还将推出首届 MAMA 粉丝节，于 11 月 9 日至 21 日在 CJ ENM 旗下的 Mnet Plus 平台举行。此外，大阪 HEP FIVE、御堂筋大道和难波广场附近也将举办相关活动。

朴赞郁表示，粉丝一直是 MAMA 发展历程的核心，并补充说，游客从抵达城市的那一刻起就能体验到这场盛会。

他表示，MAMA主题体验活动将遍布大阪，从道顿堀的餐厅到粉丝可以在市中心骑行的电动自行车和滑板车，应有尽有。摩天轮上将播放今年MAMA提名者的音乐。难波广场的迎宾站也将举办一系列活动，包括与艺人进行视频击掌互动。

他还补充说，粉丝们将能够成为焦点，并以各种方式享受 MAMA 颁奖典礼，在线上和线下之间自由切换。

“我们花费了很长时间准备一场超越时空的音乐体验，”申说，并请粉丝们继续关注。