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2026 K-World Dream Awards Celebrates 10th Anniversary with Spectacular Global K-Pop Festival

The global music community gathered at KINTEX in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province, on August 27 for the 2026 K-World Dream Awards. Commemorating a full decade since its launch in 2017 (originally founded as the 1st Soribada Best K-Music Awards), this milestone 10th-anniversary celebration brought together top artists, industry creators, and international fans under the unifying theme: "Everyone is a Grand Prize Winner."

​Co-hosted for the fourth consecutive year by the veteran duo Jeon Hyun-moo and Jang Do-yeon, the event combined massive interactive production with honoring key contributors across the entire K-pop ecosystem.

​A Synchronized Celebration Across Generations

​To mark the ten-year journey, the venue incorporated visual motifs highlighting the number "10," along with the ceremony's signature "self-awarding" segments, allowing artists to directly share milestone moments with their fans.

​Audience members were provided with synchronized light sticks that connected in real-time to the stage system, transforming the arena into a unified sea of light. A diverse lineup—spanning rookie sensations, global chart-toppers, bands, and trot stars—performed live, including ATEEZ, P1Harmony, RIIZE, LE SSERAFIM, QWER, ILLIT, MEOVV, and Park Ji-hyun.

​Star presenters added star power to the evening, including Kim Seon-ho, Jung Ryeo-won, Lee Seol, Lee Chae-min, Jin Ki-joo, Choo Young-woo, and professional billiards player Kim Ga-young.

​Major Honorees and Awards

​Winners were selected through a blend of global fan voting on the Panda One platform and comprehensive scoring by a 7-member expert evaluation committee alongside Hallyu media journalists.

  • ​Artist of the Year: BTS
  • ​Best Artist Award: LE SSERAFIM, ATEEZ
  • ​Journalist’s Pick Artist Award: RIIZE
  • ​Best Stage Award: ATEEZ, P1Harmony, ILLIT
  • ​Best Performance Award: RIIZE, 82MAJOR, MEOVV
  • ​Best Band Artist Award: QWER, Hi-Fi Un!corn
  • ​Best Digital Song Award: AKMU, Hwasa, I.O.I, IVE, aespa, Choi Ye-na
  • ​Best Album Award: BTS, ENHYPEN, NCT WISH, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, BLACKPINK
  • ​Super Rookie Award: Cortis, Andouble, AlphaDrive1
  • ​Popularity Awards (Solo & Group): Park Ji-hyun, Carmen (Hearts2Hearts) / ATEEZ, ILLIT
Full Winners List

Category

Winner(s)

Artist of the Year

BTS

Best Artist Award

LE SSERAFIM, ATEEZ

Journalist's Pick Artist Award

RIIZE

K-World Dream Artist Award

Andouble, AlphaDrive1, Cortis, Kiki, Hearts2Hearts, Kickflip, ILLIT, RIIZE, &TEAM, LE SSERAFIM, P1Harmony, ATEEZ, Stray Kids, BTS

Best Stage Award

ATEEZ, P1Harmony, ILLIT

Best Performance Award

RIIZE, 82MAJOR, MEOVV

Best Album Award

BTS, ENHYPEN, NCT WISH, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, BLACKPINK

Best Digital Song Award

AKMU, Hwasa, I.O.I, IVE, aespa, Choi Ye-na

Best Band Artist Award

QWER, Hi-Fi Un!corn

Trot Artist Award

Sungri, Park Ji-hyun

Best All-Round Musician Award

JB, Evan

Best Visual Content Award

Kiki, RESCENE, LE SSERAFIM

Super Rookie Award

Cortis, Andouble, AlphaDrive1

Global Next Leader Award

AMPERS&ONE, NOWZ, X-LOVERS

Global Spotlight Award

xikers, IDIT, A-N.O.P

Global Music Artist Award

&TEAM, Kickflip, Hearts2Hearts

Group Popularity Award

ATEEZ, ILLIT

Solo Popularity Award

Park Ji-hyun, Carmen (Hearts2Hearts)

Best Fandom Award

RESCENE, A-N.O.P

Listener's Choice Award

SeeYa

Best Producer Award

Jung Hae-chang (YH Entertainment)


Organized by YJ Partners, the ceremony was broadcast live via U-NEXT in Japan and streamed worldwide to international audiences through Panda One.



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