Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) Debuts In Vietnam

By Music Press Asia Staff

29 November, 2017 6:07pm GMT+8 / MYT

Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA) aims to gain more K-pop followers on extends LIVE broadcast in Vietnam.

Seven awards were presented to five Asian artists including Toc Tien, Son Tung M-TP(Vietnam), Lula(Thailand), Aisyah Aziz(Singapore), Agnez Mo(Indonesia), Wanna One, Seventeen(Korea).

The road to MAMA WEEK is happening all of this week featuring Korean nominees and winners of the global music festival ‘2017 Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA)’. For the first time in MAMA history, the music festival is taking place in three different locations in Asia – Vietnam, Japan and Hong Kong from 25 November to 1 December. Tonight’s event is happening at Yokohama Arena in Japan.

“There are so much diversity and unique personalities in the music industry in our region alone. So MAMA could be a cultural platform to highlight that diversity. Not only it’s a place to award some of the best in our region, it is also a place to foster collaborations and create new friendships and network,”Hyun Soo Kim, Head of Convention Business at CJ E&M Music Contents Business Division.

Setting ‘Coexistence’ as this year’s theme, more than thirty artists from five different Asia countries including Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, and Korea joined to embrace diverse pan-Asian music.

Just four days ago, the MAMA celebration at Hoa Binh Theatre in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam awarded singer and The Voice of Vietnam judge Toc Tien the “Best Asian Artist in Vietnam”. The multiple award winner is a familiar celebrity among her peers in the industry and signifies her continuation as an outstanding and versatile artist. The “Vietnam Breakthrough Artist” prize went to Son Tung M-TP who performed at Viral Fest in Bangkok, Thailand just earlier this year.

In addition, most acclaimed celebrities including Pham Huong, Thanh Hang, Diem My, Khac Hung, Trịnh Thăng Bình, Kang Tae-Oh and more joined the celebration as presenters. The event is scheduled to broadcast on TV Blue, CJ’s very own TV Channel in Vietnam, on the 3rd December.

In a recent private interview with MNA at CJ E&M Headquarter in Seoul, Korea, Mr Hyun-Soo Kim [Head of Convention Business at CJ E&M Music Contents Business Division] commented: “There are so much diversity and unique personalities in the music industry in our region alone. So MAMA could be a cultural platform to highlight that diversity. Not only it’s a place to award some of the best in our region, it is also a place to foster collaborations and create new friendships and network”.

At the same interview, Mr Kim also highlighted CJ E&M’s effort in changing MAMA’s stereotypical image as an award show that only promotes K-Pop artists. “People working behind the scenes are as important as to us as those performing on stage. And I do mean the producers, engineers, composers, choreographers, and directors. In acknowledging their dedication, CJ E&M have introduced the Professional Categories this year honouring some of the best in their respective fields.”

Stay tuned to MNA for more announcements later in the week.

Award Winners from ‘2017 MAMA Premiere in Vietnam’
Best Asian Artist Vietnam – Toc Tien
Best Asian Artist Thailand – Lula
Best Asian Artist Singapore – Aisyah Aziz
Best Asian Artist Indonesia –- Agnez Mo
Best of Next – Wanna One
Worldwide Favorite Artist – Seventeen
Favorite Vietnamese Artist Presented By Clear & Close up – Son Tung M-TP