The “2021 Mnet Asian Music Awards”, which was the center of gossip yesterday, has ended safely at CJ ENM Studio Center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on Dec 11th.
The “Mnet Asian Music Awards“ (hereinafter referred to as MAMA), which was at the center of attention and gossip, has ended safely at CJ ENM Studio Center in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on Dec 11th. This year’s MAMA was held quieter than usual due to the absence of many large names, but that doesn’t mean there were no impressive moments. Let’s look back on what MAMA did well and did wrong this year with the likes and dislikes.
Like> For the first time, a female host leads the show.
Singer Lee Hyo-ri was selected as the first female host to lead the MAMA ceremony. MAMA introduced the host hosting system in 2012 and has only entrusted male stars such as actors Song Joong-ki, Park Bo-gum, Lee Byung-hun, and singer Psy to host its awards ceremony until last year. The production team said that Lee Hyo-ri was chosen as the host because to them, she was the best person to respect the differences and show the new sides to break prejudices. Lee Hyo-ri said, “Thank you for contacting and loving me even though I’ve been off work for a long time.”
Dislike> The gender ratio is still unbalanced.
There were more than 10 male singers/groups who performed at this year’s MAMA, including NCT, Stray Kids, and TOMORROW X TOGETHER,… while there were only three female teams including Brave Girls, ITZY, and aespa. Including the collaboration stage between Lee Hyo-ri and Mnet’s “Street Woman Fighter”, the total stage time devoted to female artists was about 32 minutes, about an hour less than the male artists. It is in contrast to the fact that in 2021, female singers’ songs such as “Dun Dun Dance” (Oh My Girl), “Alcohol Free” (TWICE), “Celebrity” (IU), and “ASAP” (STAYC) were hits.
Like> An offline event after 2 years.
MAMA, which was held without any offline audience last year due to the pandemic, was converted into an offline event this year. The number of spectators was limited to less than 500, and only those who were confirmed negative in the PCR test before the recording were allowed to enter. Instead of refraining the audience from cheering, the production team used pre-recorded cheering sounds. For rookie singers, such offline events are a new experience. aespa member Karina, who won the “Best New Female Artist” award, was amazed, saying, “It’s our first time receiving an award in front of our fans.”
Dislike> The disappearance of the Korean language.
MAMA aims to become a global awards ceremony. It made this year the first year of a global leap forward, saying it would go beyond Asia to a worldwide scale. Perhaps that’s why English was overused at the awards ceremony. To be exact, only English has been overused. Both Korean and English were used in the subtitles introducing the winners, while the introduction of the presenter and the introduction of the award candidates were delivered only in English. Will changing the language change its scale from “local” to “global“?
Like> Lee Hyori’s performance with “Street Woman Fighter”.
Mnet’s narcissism, which always praises “MAMA” as a “dream stage,” has only given it the embarrassment many times, but it was different this year. The “Do the Dance” stage, which featured the cast of “Street Woman Fighter” and Lee Hyo-ri, inspired viewers by showing not only the audio-visual pleasure but also “woman power.” The lyrics of “They say we look like dolls, like mannequins. But I’m against it. We are alive and moving” become a more vivid story in harmony with the struggles of female artists on stage. The song was composed by Lee Hyo-ri and composer Shim Eun-ji, and choreographed by Honey J, the leader of the winning crew of “Street Woman Fighter” Holy Bang.
Dislike> A mistake in the award winner’s introduction
Accusefive, a trio band that won the “Best Asian Artist” Mandarin (China) category this year, is a team formed and actively promoting in Taiwan. However, the MAMA production team wrote in the team’s introduction caption “Hong Kong’s mixed gender band,” which is a wrong explanation. It has already been 11 years since MAMA started the Asian music category, and it is increasingly doubtful how sincere the awards show is to “promote Asian artists to the world.”
