BTS Wins Grand Prize at Golden Disc Awards for 6 Consecutive Years... IVE Sweeps Rookie and Grand Prizes Simultaneously

BTS J-Hope "Members envision the moment to reunite and be together"
IVE, LE SSERAFIM, NewJeans share Rookie of the Year award

BTS member J-Hope is giving his acceptance speech immediately after winning the Grand Prize in the album category. Photo by TikTok screen capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] The group 'BTS' and girl group 'IVE' became the main stars of the '37th Golden Disc Awards with TikTok' stage.

At the '37th Golden Disc Awards with TikTok' held on the afternoon of the 7th at Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, BTS set a new record by winning the Album Division Grand Prize for six consecutive years. IVE won both the Rookie Award and the Digital Music Division Grand Prize at the Golden Disc Awards.

IVE won the Digital Music Division Grand Prize with their second single title track 'LOVE DIVE.' On this day, IVE achieved a triple crown by winning the Rookie Award, Digital Music Main Award, and the Grand Prize. Additionally, Starship Entertainment's PD Seohyun Joo received the Producer Award.

BTS made new history at the Golden Disc Awards by winning the Album Division Grand Prize for six consecutive years. BTS's anthology album 'Proof,' released in June last year, sold over 3 million copies. This album, which summarizes their nine-year history, sold more than 2.15 million copies on the day of release according to Hanteo Chart, setting a double million-seller record. Furthermore, it debuted at number one on the US Billboard main album chart 'Billboard 200' (June 25 issue) and remained on the chart for 29 consecutive weeks until the latest chart dated January 7 this year.

On this day, BTS won three awards including the Album Division Grand Prize, Main Award, and TikTok Popularity Award. Member J-Hope, who released his solo album 'Jack In The Box' in July last year, received the Thai Fans Support with Baozi Award.

In his acceptance speech, J-Hope said, "While working on 'Proof,' I recalled moments from the past 10 years, and every year, every album, every song was precious." He added, "Recently, except for Jin hyung who enlisted, I met the BTS members after a long time and had a drink. I couldn't have been happier. I imagined the moment when the members gather again and share this moment together. Congratulations to ARMY, thank you for your hard work, and I love you," expressing gratitude on behalf of the members.

Group IVE. Photo by Golden Disc Awards

IVE, who set another record by winning both the Rookie Award and the Grand Prize simultaneously in Golden Disc history, had only members Ga-eul, Rei, and Jang Wonyoung attend the ceremony due to COVID-19 positive diagnoses among other members. In her acceptance speech for the Grand Prize, Ga-eul said, "It was a valuable award received in a short period, and it was a very happy year, but there was also a lot of anxiety." She continued, "IVE will strive to move forward without fearing anxiety." Jang Wonyoung said, "Starting 2023 with an honorable award feels like being cheered on," and added, "In the new year, I will become an artist who delivers healthy energy with a healthy appearance."

The 'Artist of the Year' category was awarded to Psy, who made a comeback after five years with his 9th full album 'Psy 9th' last year. Psy actively promoted last year with the title track 'That That,' featuring BTS member Suga. The Most Popular Singer Award went to the groups (G)I-DLE and Stray Kids. Both teams also won main awards in the digital music and album divisions, drawing attention. The group Seventeen (SVT) earned a triple crown with the Album Main Award, Best Performance, and Thai K-pop Artist Award.

In addition to BTS, Stray Kids, and Seventeen, eight teams including ENHYPEN, NCT, NCT 127, NCT Dream, and BLACKPINK were named for the Album Main Award. The Digital Music Main Award was given to eight teams including IVE, (G)I-DLE, Kim Minseok, NewJeans, Park Jaebeom, Big Bang, Psy, and Lim Youngwoong.

This year's Golden Disc Award winners were selected by combining evaluations from an expert judging panel consisting of executive committee members, reporters in charge of popular music, music program PDs, popular music critics, and domestic distributors (40%) with Circle Chart streaming and album sales data (60%). The selection targeted music and albums released from early November 2021 to mid-November 2022, reflecting streaming and sales data compiled until the end of November last year.