The glamorous curtain rises on the new festival of K-pop stars, the '1st D Awards.'
Hosted by Sports Dong-A and organized by 'upick' and WSM, the K-pop awards ceremony 'D Awards with upick' will take place today (22nd) at the Hwajung gymnasium of Korea University in Anam-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul.
A total of 14 performance artists and 16 presenters have gathered, making it the best lineup you could ask for. The MCs who will kick off the event are actress Ko Min-shi, representing 'K Storytelling,' and 'hot icon' Lee Jong-won from the home theater.
# A lineup you won't see anywhere else
The dazzling performance lineup is the reason fans have been eagerly waiting for the 'D Awards.' N.Flying, P1Harmony, ENHYPEN, FIFTY FIFTY, tripleS, ZEROBASEONE, RIIZE, 82MAJOR, YOUNG POSSE, QWER, TWS, NCT WISH, UNIS, and KickFlip are preparing stages that can only be seen at the 'D Awards.' They will maintain their unique group colors while adding a 'kick' for the 'D Awards.'
The faces of the presenters are also notable. Stars from various fields, including Cha Seung-won, Park Sun-joo, Hwang Chan-sung, Ko Kyung-pyo, Bang Min-ah, Kang Nam, Noh Jeong-ui, Park Jin-young, Ahn Eun-jin, Lee Hak-joo, Kim Ji-eun, Jo Yi-hyun, Jeong Geon-joo, Bae In-hyuk, and Seo Beom-jun, will be presenting awards. Additionally, a very special corner hosted by MimiMimiNu (Kim Min-woo) is also prepared. In celebration of the Year of the Snake, artists featured at the 'D Awards' from the snake zodiac will join together for a special event.
# Fair results based on sales and judging
The awards ceremony will award two main sectors. The 'D Awards Delights,' a major award for K-pop artists who have excelled over the year, and 'D Awards Dreamers,' awarded to outstanding newcomers who will lead K-content in the future.
'Years' that illuminated K-pop in 2024 will be divided into categories such as Artist of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Performance of the Year, Trend of the Year, and Rookie of the Year. In addition, the 'D Awards Iconic' will be selected to meaningfully spotlight and support the creators, producers, and planning teams that have formed the foundation of global K-pop, encompassing its past, present, and future.
Also, the global fandom platform 'upick' has taken on the role of naming sponsor, bringing anticipation for the 'D Awards Fanpick,' which is one of the major award categories and awarded through 100% fan participation. The judging criteria for the 'D Awards' will select award winners based on a combination of online voting, music and album sales, and judging by a panel of judges.
# Pre-award winners in genres and special sectors
The 'D Awards' revealed the pre-award artists on their official social media. 'Best Choreography' went to TWS and ILYT, while 'Best Band' was awarded to DAY6 and QWER. The 'Discovery' award for this year went to FIFTY FIFTY, tripleS, 82MAJOR, YOUNG POSSE, UNIS, and KickFlip. 'Best O.S.T.' was awarded to N.Flying, and 'Best Video' went to aespa and RIIZE, while 'Best Tour' was secured by ENHYPEN and TREASURE. 'Best Stage' was awarded to ZEROBASEONE and P1Harmony, and 'Best Group' went to ENHYPEN and RIIZE.
Additionally, the 'upick Popularity Award' winners included 'Best Male Group' ENHYPEN, 'Best Female Group' tripleS, 'Best Male Solo' Lee Seung-yoon, and 'Best Female Solo' Red Velvet's Wendy. The 'upick Global Choice Male' award went to ZEROBASEONE's Zhang Hao, and the 'upick Global Choice Female' award was given to TWICE's Chaeyoung.
The '1st D Awards' will be held today (22nd) at 6 p.m. at the Hwajung gymnasium of Korea University in Anam-dong, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, and will be exclusively broadcast from 10:30 p.m. on Channel A and the Channel A YouTube play channel.
[Photo] Provided by 'D Awards'