MMA2026 Global TOP10 voting hits 1.7 million ballots in one week, fans from 202 countries participating
Overseas fan voting for MMA2026's newly created Global TOP10 award crossed 1.7 million votes seven days after opening on October 30, with the ceremony set for November 14–15 at Gocheok Sky Dome.
1.7 million votes in seven days
Overseas fan voting for MMA2026's Global TOP10 category crossed 1.7 million cumulative votes exactly one week after opening on October 30, Kakao Entertainment announced on November 10. Fans from 202 countries cast ballots during that first week, and voting remains open through November 13.
The Global TOP10 is new this year — the first main award category at MMA where overseas fans can vote directly. Thirty candidate acts were shortlisted using cumulative Global-K Chart scores, which aggregate streaming performance on Melon, China's Tencent Music, and Japan's LINE Music alongside fan activity indicators.
The final 10 winners will be decided by combining chart performance (60%), judging (20%), and voting (20%). Within the voting component, domestic ballots cast on Melon and overseas ballots cast on Berriz count at a 1:1 ratio.
The 30 candidates
The full candidate pool spans multiple generations of K-pop:
- BIGBANG, IU, G-DRAGON, EXO, BTS, SEVENTEEN, TWICE, BLACKPINK
- NCT DREAM, Stray Kids, (G)I-DLE, Jennie, Tomorrow X Together, aespa, ENHYPEN
- Rosé, IVE, Choi Ye-na, NMIXX, LE SSERAFIM, NewJeans, BOYNEXTDOOR, RIIZE
- BABYMONSTER, TWS, NCT WISH, ILLIT, Lisenne (리센느), Hats to Hats (하츠투하츠), Cortis (코르티스)
One concrete sign of the voting's reach: Berriz user registrations in Indonesia and Mexico each doubled between October 29 and November 5.
November 14–15 at Gocheok Sky Dome
MMA2026 runs November 14–15 at Seoul's Gocheok Sky Dome, with Kakao Bank serving as title sponsor. The ceremony's slogan is K-POP CONNECT: The New Pulse, built around the keyword "Connect" (연결).
A Kakao Entertainment official said Berriz will "present various events and content so that fans around the world can enjoy every moment of anticipation before MMA2026 as a pleasant fan experience."
The ceremony will be broadcast live via the Melon app and web, Wavve, Japan's U-NEXT, Taiwan's TVBS42 and CatchPlay+, WonderK, and the Melon YouTube channel.
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