G-Dragon dominates 2025 Melon Music Awards with seven wins

G-Dragon emerged as the undisputed winner of the 2025 Melon Music Awards, sweeping seven trophies — including all three grand prizes — at the annual ceremony held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, Saturday.

Hosted by Kakao Entertainment’s music platform Melon and sponsored by KakaoBank, the 17th edition of the awards drew more than 18,000 fans. A total of 29 categories were presented, along with large-scale performances showcasing the year’s most influential artists and releases.

G-Dragon sweeps top honors

The night firmly belonged to G-Dragon, who won artist of the year, KakaoBank Album of the Year and song of the year, in addition to Top 10, Millions Top 10, best male solo artist and best songwriter.

His third album, “Ubermensch,” released in February, surpassed 1 million streams within four hours of release, becoming the fastest solo album to enter Melon’s “Millions Album” Hall of Fame. “Home Sweet Home (feat. Taeyang and Daesung)” was named song of the year after ranking as Melon’s most-streamed song in the first half of 2025.

Accepting the album of the year award, G-Dragon reflected on the meaning behind the record.

“I tried many things for the first time, so the album took a long time to make,” he said. “I titled it ‘Ubermensch’ partly because it sounded strong, but for me, it was more like a personal mantra — a wish to keep pushing beyond myself.”

He went on to thank fans, his Big Bang bandmates, family, friends and colleagues, calling the year deeply meaningful.

Jennie received record of the year for her first solo album, “Ruby,” released in March. Its lead track, “Like Jennie,” entered Melon’s Top 100 immediately upon release and has remained on the chart for 10 months, underscoring her sustained digital performance.

Rookie of the year shared

The rookie of the year award — given only once in an artist’s career — was jointly awarded to coed group Allday Project and girl group Hearts2Hearts.

Allday Project debuted in June and made headlines when its first single “Famous” topped Melon’s Top 100 just three days after release, the fastest ascent by a debut song since the chart’s 2021 revamp. Hearts2Hearts cemented its rise with three releases — “The Chase,” “Style” and “Focus” — all of which performed strongly on Melon’s Top 100 and Hot 100 charts.

In the popularity-based best artist categories, Blackpink’s Rose won best female solo artist for her album “Rosie.”

Ive claimed best female group following the success of “Rebel Heart,” which topped Melon’s monthly chart in February. BoyNextDoor was named best male group for its hit breakup anthem “If I Say, I Love You.”

Best OST went to “Golden” by Huntrix from the Netflix hit film “KPop Demon Hunters,” while Ed Sheeran won best pop artist for his May album “Play.”

Performance-driven spectacle

The ceremony once again underscored the MMAs’ reputation for cinematic, artist-centered stages.

Riize delivered a trilogy of performances — “Fame,” “Bag Bad Back” and “Fly Up” — tracing themes of growth and self-realization. Ive followed with a high-energy run of hits including “Rebel Heart,” “Attitude” and “XOXZ.”

Exo marked a powerful return with a career-spanning sequence from “Wolf” to “Growl,” before premiering “Back It Up,” a track from its upcoming eighth album. Aespa unveiled a special medley, while Jennie commanded the stage solo with “Seoul City” and a theatrical rendition of “Like Jennie.”

G-Dragon closed the night with performances of “Drama,” “Home Sweet Home” and “Crooked.” The final moments of his performance — dancing among fellow artists including Allday Project and Zico — became one of the ceremony’s most talked-about scenes.

“The 2025 MMAs were designed to spotlight artists’ achievements for a global audience while rewarding Melon’s longtime users,” Kakao Entertainment co-CEO Joseph Chang said.

“Melon will continue to champion K-pop’s value and lead its global celebration.”