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Jannabi, Baek Ye-rin lead Korean Music Awards nominations

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From left are KMA committee members Jung Min-jae, Kim Chang-nam, Park Hee-a and Ko Jong-seok, at Korea Press Center in Seoul, Wednesday. / Courtesy of Korean Music Awards
From left are KMA committee members Jung Min-jae, Kim Chang-nam, Park Hee-a and Ko Jong-seok, at Korea Press Center in Seoul, Wednesday. / Courtesy of Korean Music Awards

By Kwak Yeon-soo

The Korean Music Awards (KMA) committee has announced the nominees for this year's event, with Jannabi and Baek Yerin leading the pack with five nominations each.

At the press conference held at the Korea Press Center, Wednesday, to unveil the list of nominees for a total of 24 categories, the organizing committee said they put a focus on singers' musical achievements and artistic merits rather than album sales and fame.

"We really believe music should be judged upon artistic merit, not its windowing strategy or popularity," committee head Kim Chang-nam said. "We also aim to go beyond the barrier between mainstream and non-mainstream music."

Despite violence and corruption scandals involving two group members, indie rock band Jannabi has been nominated for five categories, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Artist of the Year.

Baek Ye-rin has been nominated for five categories, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Song.

K-pop sensation BTS has been nominated for three categories: Artist of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Song.

This year's nominations showed a bigger presence of female artists, according to KMA.

"Among the six nominees for the Best Pop Album category, three are female soloists: Baek Ye-rin, Taeyeon and Cacophony," committee member and music critic Park Hee-a said.

"There is also a changing perception toward female idol groups. ITZY and (G)I-DLE have set good examples by highlighting their cool vibes instead of cute charms."

Park also stressed that the committee tried to look at music from different perspectives.

"Take nominees for Artist of the Year for example. The list includes Lim Kim, who is vocal on issues like feminism; BTS, who are pioneers of the K-pop boom; and Kim Hyun-chul, who has returned to the music scene after a long hiatus," she said.

Kim also addressed public comments made regarding the diversity of judges on the committee.

"We're well aware of the criticism, and so we've welcomed younger, female critics to our committee this year. We will continue to move in the direction that reflects the audience and public opinion," Kim said.

The panel also announced that the winner for this year's Lifetime Achievement Award will go to Kim Soo-chul.

Debuting in 1979 as the member of the quartet Little Big Man, known to perform a fusion of rock, jazz, folk and soul music, Kim became popular with his hard-edged dance music.

The veteran singer continued to explore his musical roots by combining elements of gugak, traditional Korean music, into his work.

"He has brought traditional Korean instrumental music closer to the Korean pop music scene," Kim said.

He's also acclaimed for producing songs for the 1988 Summer Olympics and the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

Some of his chart-topping hits include "The One Flower that Could Not Bloom" and "I Will Not Fall in Love Again."

The ceremony for the 17th Korean Music Awards will be held at the Guro Arts Valley Theater on Feb. 27.


Kwak Yeon-soo yeons.kwak@koreatimes.co.kr


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