Winning “Best New Artist” at MAMA is a dream for many rookie groups. However, these Kpop artists got extremely successful even without winning.
As one of the largest Kpop award ceremonies, MAMA is the dream of many Kpop rookies. Particularly, receiving the title of “Best New Artist” at this award ceremony is a huge honor. However, many groups, despite not securing such a win, still managed to attain massive popularity.
SNSD (MAMA 2007)
Now in their 16th year, SNSD (also known as Girls’ Generation), still maintain a stable standing in the Kpop industry. Whilst SNSD members are now embarking on their own paths, their reunion with “Forever 1” was a huge success. However, whilst SNSD is now considered one of the greatest Kpop girl groups in history, they did not win “Best New Artist” at the 2007 MAMA.
In particular, SNSD made their debut in 2007 under SM Entertainment, and immediately made a deep impression with “Into The New World”, which is now considered a “legendary Kpop song”. However, they lost to Younha, F.T. Island, and Wonder Girls at MAMA.
EXO (MAMA 2012)
2012 was an extremely tough battle, with various Kpop groups making a deep mark through their impressive songs. At the time, EXO entered the Kpop industry with “Mama”, but lost against B.A.P and Busker Busker when it came to the 2012 MAMA’s “Best New Artist” title.
Now, B.A.P and Busker Busker are mostly absent from the Kpop scene due to various reasons, while EXO has established a strong foothold and a large fandom. Each member of EXO is also gaining their own successes with solo activities.
BTS (MAMA 2013)
There’s no denying the influence of BTS nowadays, but back in 2013, the group was a complete underdog. It was no exaggeration to say that BTS was severely underrated back in their debut, so their loss against Roy Kim and Crayon Pop in MAMA 2013 is understandable.
BLACKPINK (MAMA 2016)
Even now, BLACKPINK’s achievements in the 2016 MAMA still leave the group’s fans in deep confusion. The YG girl group made a deep impression with “Whistle” and “Boombayah” right in their debut year, yet their visuals and title was not “enough” to secure the Best New Artist title at the 2016 MAMA.
In the end, it was I.O.I that was named for “Best New Artist” at the 2016 MAMA. Since I.O.I was a project group, their influence now fell short compared to BLACKPINK, turning the table around.
Currently, however, it is impossible to deny the impact of BLACKPINK both in and outside of Korea. Their popularity has also seen no sign of dwindling.
NewJeans (MAMA 2022)
Despite making a name for themselves right after debut, NewJeans failed to win “Best New Artist” at the 2022 MAMA. In fact, the group was not even nominated, so it was only NMIXX, LE SSERAFIM, IVE, Kep1er, and Choi Yena competing for the title. In the end, it was IVE that held the cup in their hand.
Regarding NewJeans’ lack of nomination at last year’s MAMA, a CJ E&M official said, “For special awards, we determine the winners by comprehensively evaluating different data and the significance of their achievements.”
Although NewJeans did not win the Rookie of the Year award at the 2022 MAMA, they are continuing to thrive in the Kpop industry. In the latest comeback with “Ditto” and “OMG”, NewJeans has achieved outstanding results both digitally and physically, confirming the group’s status as one of the top 4th gen girl groups. Since their debut, every song of NewJeans has become a trend. They are expected to gain more explosive results in the future.
Source: Yan
