The winners for this year’s The Fact Music Awards has been announced!
On September 19, the ceremony for the 2026 The Fact Music Awards took place in Busan.
The four Daesang (grand prize) awards went to ATEEZ, NMIXX, RIIZE, and CORTIS. ATEEZ took home Icon of the Year along with Artist of the Year, while NMIXX took Sound of the Year and Artist of the Year, with member Sullyoon also snagging the FANSTAR MYSTAR award. RIIZE won Muse of the Year along with Artist of the Year, and CORTIS won three awards with Record of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Next Leader.
Check out the full list of winners below:
Icon of the Year: ATEEZ
Sound of the Year: NMIXX
Muse of the Year: RIIZE
Record of the Year: CORTIS
World Best Performer: TREASURE
Artist of the Year: ATEEZ, TREASURE, NMIXX, RIIZE, ILLIT, RESCENE, KiiiKiii, ALLDAY PROJECT, CORTIS, ALPHA DRIVE ONE, Yena
World Best Wave: EVAN
Global Hot Trend: tripleS, CLOSE YOUR EYES
Next Leader: CORTIS, ALPHA DRIVE ONE
Hottest: xikers, IDID
TMA Popularity Award: Lim Young Woong
Today’s Choice: RESCENE
Special Jury Award: Lim Young Woong
FANNSTAR CHOICE (Group): BTS FANNSTAR CHOICE (Solo): Lee Chan Won
Best Music (Spring): BTS Best Music (Summer): BTS Best Music (Autumn): PLAVE Best Music (Winter): Lee Chan Won
Global Hot Star Awards: PLAVE
FANNSTAR MYSTAR (Male): Jin FANNSTAR MYSTAR (Female): Sullyoon
Congratulations to all the winners!
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Music,2026 The Fact Music Awards,ALLDAY PROJECT,ALPHA DRIVE ONE,ATEEZ,BTS,CLOSE YOUR EYES,CORTIS,Evan,IDID,ILLIT,Jin,KiiiKiii,kpop,Lee Chan Won,Lim Young Woong,NMIXX,PLAVE,RESCENE,RIIZE,Sullyoon,Treasure,tripleS,xikers,Yena2026 The Fact Music Awards,ALLDAY PROJECT,ALPHA DRIVE ONE,ATEEZ,BTS,CLOSE YOUR EYES,CORTIS,Evan,IDID,ILLIT,Jin,KiiiKiii,kpop,Lee Chan Won,Lim Young Woong,NMIXX,PLAVE,RESCENE,RIIZE,Sullyoon,Treasure,tripleS,xikers,Yena#Winners #Fact #Music #Awards1789829585
September Boy Group Brand Reputation Rankings Announced
The Korean Business Research Institute has revealed this month’s brand reputation rankings for male idol groups!
The rankings were determined through an analysis of the consumer participation, media coverage, interaction, and community indexes of various boy groups, using big data collected from August 12 to September 12.
BTS continued their reign at the top of the list with a brand reputation index of 6,633,651 for September. High-ranking phrases in the group’s keyword analysis included “ARIRANG,” “ARMY,” and “North American tour,” while their highest-ranking related terms included “record,” “sold out,” and “long run.” BTS’s positivity-negativity analysis also revealed a score of 93.91 percent positive reactions.
BIGBANG jumped to second place after seeing a 103.60 percent increase in their brand reputation index since last month, bringing their total score to 4,162,542 for September.
ATEEZ came in at a close third with a brand reputation index of 3,980,128, marking a 48.59 percent increase in their score since August.
CORTIS took fourth place with a brand reputation index of 3,655,034, marking a 45.45 percent rise in their score since last month.
Finally, SEVENTEEN rounded out the top five with a brand reputation index of 3,529,483, marking a 65.74 percent increase in their score since August.
Check out the top 30 for this month below!
BTS
BIGBANG
ATEEZ
CORTIS
SEVENTEEN
Stray Kids
TVXQ
NCT
EXO
SHINee
ENHYPEN
INFINITE
TWS
Wanna One
RIIZE
Super Junior
MONSTA X
TXT
BOYNEXTDOOR
BTOB
ASTRO
ALPHA DRIVE ONE
IDID
ZEROBASEONE
XLOV
HIGHLIGHT
TREASURE
THE BOYZ
2PM
Shinhwa
Watch BTS’s docu-series “BREAK THE SILENCE” on Viki below:
Watch Now
And check out SEVENTEEN’s variety show “NANA TOUR with SEVENTEEN” below!
2026 Korea Grand Music Awards (KGMA) Announces 1st Lineup
The 2026 Korea Grand Music Awards (KGMA) has announced its first lineup of performing artists!
On September 4, the Korea Grand Music Awards announced that ATEEZ, RIIZE, TREASURE, Hearts2Hearts, KiiiKiii, ALLDAY PROJECT, AND2BLE, CRAVITY, AHOF, and CLOSE YOUR EYES would all be attending this year’s ceremony.
This year’s awards will be held over two days on November 7 and 8 at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. RESCENE’s Woni and actress Nam Ji Hyun will host the ceremony on Day 1, while IVE’s Liz and actor Kim Jae Won will serve as MCs on Day 2.
Stay tuned for the next lineup of artists!
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Music,AHOF,ALLDAY PROJECT,AND2BLE,ATEEZ,CLOSE YOUR EYES,CRAVITY,Hearts2Hearts,KiiiKiii,kpop,RIIZE,TreasureAHOF,ALLDAY PROJECT,AND2BLE,ATEEZ,CLOSE YOUR EYES,CRAVITY,Hearts2Hearts,KiiiKiii,kpop,RIIZE,Treasure#Korea #Grand #Music #Awards #KGMA #Announces #1st #Lineup1788481720
Watch: TREASURE Returns With Explosive Dance Performance Video For “DANGER”
TREASURE is back with an exciting new performance video!
On August 24 at midnight KST, TREASURE released a dance performance video for “DANGER,” one of the B-sides from their latest mini album “NEW WAV.”
Check out TREASURE’s new dance performance video for “DANGER” below!
Watch TREASURE in “Idol Festa Attack” on Viki below:
2026 The Fact Music Awards Announces Special Stage Lineup
The 2026 The Fact Music Awards (TMA) has teased special stages in store for this year’s ceremony!
On August 19, the event’s organizing committee revealed that the ceremony will feature a variety of special performances, including fresh takes on hit K-pop songs, exciting artist collaborations, and the first-ever performances of unreleased tracks.
The opening stage will be performed by three leading fifth-generation groups: xikers, CLOSE YOUR EYES, and tripleS.
xikers will perform BTS’s “Hooligan,” CLOSE YOUR EYES will take on NCT DREAM’s “Beat It Up,” and tripleS will perform aespa’s “LEMONADE,” putting their own spin on each hit song.
A special collaboration has also been arranged to celebrate the ceremony’s venue in Busan. TREASURE’s Jihoon and KiiiKiii’s Jiyu, who are both from Busan, will team up for a duet. Under this year’s theme “Shine on, Dream One,” the two will showcase a beautiful harmony against the backdrop of Busan at night.
Adding to the anticipation, xikers and ATEEZ are preparing stages for songs they have never performed on a music show before, while CLOSE YOUR EYES will give the first-ever performance of an unreleased new song.
2026 The Fact Music Awards will take place on September 19 at Busan Asiad Main Stadium. Check out the artist lineup announced so far here, and stay tuned for more updates!
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Music,2026 The Fact Music Awards,ATEEZ,CLOSE YOUR EYES,Jihoon,Jiyu,KiiiKiii,kpop,Treasure,tripleS,xikers2026 The Fact Music Awards,ATEEZ,CLOSE YOUR EYES,Jihoon,Jiyu,KiiiKiii,kpop,Treasure,tripleS,xikers#Fact #Music #Awards #Announces #Special #Stage #Lineup1787182120
RIIZE, BOYNEXTDOOR, Stray Kids, TREASURE, ATEEZ, NewJeans, CORTIS, Hearts2Hearts, And More Earn Circle Million And Platinum Certifications
Circle Chart has announced its latest batch of official certifications!
In 2018, the Korea Music Content Industry Association implemented a new certification system for album sales, song downloads, and online streaming. Starting with music released on or after January 1, 2018, Circle Chart now certifies albums platinum once they reach 250,000 sales, while albums that have sold a million copies or more receive a “million” certification.
This month, both RIIZE and BOYNEXTDOOR received separate million and platinum certifications for their latest releases.
The regular versions of RIIZE’s mini album “II” and BOYNEXTDOOR’s full-length album “HOME” both earned official million certifications for selling over 1 million copies each, while the SMC version of “II” and the Weverse version of “HOME” were both certified platinum for over 250,000 copies sold each.
Both Stray Kids’ 2021 holiday single album “Christmas EveL” and TREASURE’s latest mini album “NEW WAV” also earned million certifications for selling over 1 million copies each.
ATEEZ received two separate certifications for their recent mini album “GOLDEN HOUR : Part.5”: the regular version of the EP was certified triple platinum for over 750,000 copies sold, while the POCA version was certified platinum for over 250,000 copies sold.
The Weverse version of CORTIS’s latest EP “GREENGREEN” was certified triple platinum for selling over 750,000 copies, while Hearts2Hearts’ latest mini album “Lemon Tang” was certified double platinum for over 500,000 copies sold.
Additionally, tripleS’s “LOVE&POP” pt.1 was certified platinum for over 250,000 copies sold.
In the streaming category, NewJeans earned two separate certifications this month: “Hype Boy” was certified triple platinum after surpassing 300 million streams, while “Cookie” was certified platinum for hitting the 100 million mark.
Finally, ZO ZAZZ’s “Don’t you know,” BLACKPINK’s Rosé’s “toxic till the end,” and aespa’s “Drama” were all certified platinum for reaching 100 million streams each.
Congratulations to all of the artists!
Watch RIIZE’s variety show “BOSS RIIZE” on Viki below:
Watch Now
And check out TREASURE’s dating show “Shining SOLO” here:
Watch Now
Or watch both groups in “Idol Festa Attack” below:
ATEEZ, I.O.I, RIIZE, CORTIS, BTS, SEVENTEEN’s V8, And ILLIT Top Circle Monthly And Weekly Charts
Circle Chart has revealed its latest monthly and weekly chart rankings!
Monthly Album Chart
RIIZE topped the physical album chart for June with their latest mini album “II,” which debuted at No. 1 on the monthly chart.
All of the top five spots on June’s album chart went to new releases: TREASURE’s “NEW WAV” debuted at No. 2, BOYNEXTDOOR’s “HOME” at No. 3, ATEEZ’s “GOLDEN HOUR : Part.5” at No. 4, and Hearts2Hearts’ “Lemon Tang” at No. 5.
Weekly Album Chart
SEVENTEEN’s new unit V8 claimed two of the top five spots on the weekly album chart with their self-titled debut mini album. The regular version of “V8” entered the chart at No. 1, while the Weverse version charted separately at No. 2.
ATEEZ’s “GOLDEN HOUR : Part.5,” which debuted at No. 1 on last week’s chart, fell one spot to No. 2 this week.
StelLive’s “STAR TRAIL” entered the chart at No. 3, with CORTIS’s “GREENGREEN” climbing back up to No. 4 for the week.
Monthly Download Chart
ATEEZ topped the digital download chart for June with their latest title track “BAD,” which debuted at No. 1.
Meanwhile, I.O.I’s long-running hit “Suddenly” climbed back up to No. 2 on the monthly chart.
RIIZE’s latest title track “Do your dance” debuted at No. 3, while aespa’s “LEMONADE” jumped 16 ranks to take No. 4.
Finally, EVAN (Heeseung)’s debut track “Ride or Die” entered the chart at No. 5.
Weekly Download Chart
ATEEZ also topped the weekly digital download chart with “BAD,” which remained No. 1 for the second week in a row.
SEVENTEEN’s V8 swept the next two spots on the weekly chart, where their songs “singasong” and “8DM” debuted at No. 2 and No. 3 respectively.
Girls’ Generation’s Taeyeon’s “Bansanka” entered the chart at No. 4, while Kyma’s “Little Me” debuted at No. 5.
Monthly Digital Chart
I.O.I topped the overall digital chart for June with their 10th-anniversary reunion hit “Suddenly,” which jumped 26 ranks to No. 1.
CORTIS’s “REDRED” held onto its spot at No. 2 on the monthly chart, followed by aespa’s “LEMONADE” at No. 3, ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 4, and AKMU’s “Paradise of Rumors” at No. 5.
Weekly Digital Chart + Streaming Chart
The top five songs on this week’s overall digital chart and streaming chart were exactly the same: CORTIS’s “REDRED” came in at No. 1, I.O.I’s “Suddenly” at No. 2, aespa’s “LEMONADE” at No. 3, ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 4, and RESCENE’s “LOVE ATTACK” at No. 5.
Monthly Streaming Chart
CORTIS also topped the monthly streaming chart “REDRED,” which rose to No. 1 for June.
I.O.I’s “Suddenly” soared to No. 2 this month, trailed by ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 3, aespa’s “LEMONADE” at No. 4, and AKMU’s “Paradise of Rumors” at No. 5.
Monthly Global K-Pop Chart
BTS’s “SWIM” continued its reign at No. 1 on the monthly global K-pop chart, while HUNTR/X’s “Golden” (from the “KPop Demon Hunters” soundtrack) and CORTIS’s “REDRED” maintained their respective positions at No. 2 and No. 3.
aespa’s “LEMONADE” jumped 98 ranks to No. 4 on the monthly chart, with ILLIT’s “It’s Me” rounding out the top five for June.
Weekly Global K-Pop Chart
HUNTR/X’s “Golden” topped this week’s global K-pop chart, followed by BTS’s “SWIM” at No. 2.
LE SSERAFIM, ILLIT, and KATSEYE’s collab single “ICONIC BY MISTAKE” held steady at No. 3, trailed by CORTIS’s “REDRED” at No. 4 and ILLIT’s “It’s Me” at No. 5.
Monthly Social Chart
ILLIT held onto their spot at No. 1 on the social chart for June, with BTS at No. 2, Yena at No. 3, aespa at No. 4, and BABYMONSTER at No. 5.
Weekly Social Chart
The top four artists on this week’s social chart were exactly the same as last week: ILLIT remained No. 1, with BTS at No. 2, aespa at No. 3, and Yena at No. 4.
Finally, TWICE climbed to No. 5 for the week.
Congratulations to all of the artists!
Watch RIIZE’s variety show “BOSS RIIZE” with subtitles on Viki below:
July Boy Group Brand Reputation Rankings Announced
The Korean Business Research Institute has revealed this month’s brand reputation rankings for male idol groups!
The rankings were determined through an analysis of the consumer participation, media coverage, interaction, and community indexes of various boy groups, using big data collected from June 11 to July 11.
BTS continued their reign at the top of the list with a brand reputation index of 8,586,669 for July. High-ranking phrases in the group’s keyword analysis included “ARIRANG,” “ARMY,” and “London concert,” while their highest-ranking related terms included “collaborate,” “perform,” and “record.”
CORTIS held onto their spot at second place with a brand reputation index of 4,174,720, while Stray Kids rose to third with a score of 3,448,310.
SEVENTEEN took fourth place with a brand reputation index of 2,983,819, and BIGBANG rounded out the top five with a score of 2,593,535.
Check out the top 30 for this month below!
BTS
CORTIS
Stray Kids
SEVENTEEN
BIGBANG
BOYNEXTDOOR
EXO
TWS
SHINee
Wanna One
NCT
ZEROBASEONE
ATEEZ
ENHYPEN
WINNER
MONSTA X
TXT
BTOB
2PM
RIIZE
TVXQ
HIGHLIGHT
Super Junior
XLOV
INFINITE
Block B
ALPHA DRIVE ONE
THE BOYZ
IDID
TREASURE
Watch BTS’s docu-series “BREAK THE SILENCE” on Viki below:
Watch Now
And watch SEVENTEEN’s variety show “NANA TOUR with SEVENTEEN” below!
TREASURE’s Junkyu To Temporarily Halt Activities Due To Health + Shares Heartfelt Letter To Fans
TREASURE’s Junkyu will be temporarily halting his activities to focus on his health.
On June 29, YG Entertainment announced that Junkyu will be taking a temporary break after experiencing health issues.
The agency explained that although TREASURE recently wrapped up promotions for their latest mini album “NEW WAV,” Junkyu had continued participating in activities despite feeling unwell. After discussions with Junkyu himself, it was decided that he would suspend his activities for the time being to prioritize rest and recovery.
As a result, Junkyu will be unable to participate in TREASURE’s upcoming schedules, including the upcoming P/V shoot for the B-side track “DANGER.”
Read YG Entertainment’s full statement below:
Hello, this is YG ENTERTAINMENT.
We would like to inform you that TREASURE member KIM JUNKYU will be taking a temporary break for the time being.
TREASURE completed their official broadcast promotions for their mini album last week.
Despite experiencing poor health, JUNKYU has continued to do his best for the team’s activities. However, based on the artist’s own opinion and the judgment of those around him that he requires focused stability and rest for the time being, it has been decided that he will temporarily halt his activities and take a period of rest.
Accordingly, JUNKYU will be unable to participate in TREASURE’s upcoming activities for the time being, and he will also be unable to take part in the P/V shoot for the B-side track “DANGER,” which is scheduled to take place soon. We kindly ask for fans’ generous understanding.
The members and the company will support and encourage JUNKYU with one heart so that he may recover through sufficient rest and stability and return in good health as soon as possible.
We ask for fans’ warm support and encouragement.
Thank you.
Following the announcement, Junkyu took to Weverse to personally reassure fans with a heartfelt handwritten letter.
His full letter is as follows:
Hello, TREASURE MAKER! This is Junkyu.
I spent a long time thinking about how to begin this letter, but I decided to write this in the hope that my sincere feelings will reach you.
It’s already been six years since I debuted with TREASURE in 2020 and began this journey alongside TREASURE MAKER. Over the years, I’ve received so much love from all of you, and every moment has felt like a miracle. I’ve truly been happy.
However, as I kept running forward and giving everything I had, I think there came a point where I gradually stopped noticing the signals my mind and body were sending me. Because I always wanted to show you the best, most professional side of myself, I kept trying to act as though I was okay. But I eventually realized that it was time for me to stop for a while and take care of myself.
After having many discussions with the company, I decided to temporarily suspend my activities and take some time to rest.
I’m terribly sorry for worrying TREASURE MAKER, who has always been my greatest source of strength, by sharing this sudden news.
However, I believe this pause is something I need in order to come back as a healthier and stronger version of myself. I’ll take this time to rest well, organize my thoughts, and return as my true self.
Watch: RIIZE Takes 3rd Win For “Do your dance” On “Inkigayo”; Performances By ATEEZ, TREASURE, And More
RIIZE has won a third music show trophy for “Do your dance”!
On the June 28 episode of SBS’s “Inkigayo,” the candidates for first place were I.O.I’s “Suddenly,” aespa’s “LEMONADE,” and RIIZE’s “Do your dance.” RIIZE ultimately took the win with a total of 5,036 points.
Congratulations to RIIZE! Watch their performance, win, and full encore below:
Other performers on today’s show included ATEEZ, TREASURE, BOYNEXTDOOR, Hearts2Hearts, EVAN (Heeseung), MEOVV, STAYC, CLASS:y, izna, Super Junior’s Ryeowook, AtHeart, EPEX, USPEER, Kim Hee Jae, and dodree.
Check out their performances below!
ATEEZ – “BAD”
TREASURE – “ZOOM ZOOM”
TREASURE’s HYUNHAYO – “NALLY-NA”
BOYNEXTDOOR – “ADIOS!”
Hearts2Hearts – “Lemon Tang”
EVAN (Heeseung) – “Overflow” and “Ride or Die”
MEOVV – “Hit ‘Em”
STAYC – “2 L0VE”
CLASS:y – “Tear Drop”
izna – “METRONOME”
Super Junior’s Ryeowook – “Runaway”
AtHeart – “Say It”
EPEX – “ECHO”
USPEER – “WICKED GAME”
Kim Hee Jae – “Have you been waiting for me?”
dodree – “HAWWAH”
Watch RIIZE’s variety show “BOSS RIIZE” with subtitles on Viki below:
