BTS and BIGBANG are leading the nominations for the 2026 MAMA Awards, with the two K-pop groups earning recognition across major categories ahead of the ceremony scheduled for November in Japan. The nominations were announced on October 12 by CJ ENM, setting up a competitive race involving established acts, returning groups and newer names in the Korean music industry.

BIGBANG leads this year’s nominations with eight nods across the group’s work and solo projects by its members. BTS follows with seven nominations, while Tomorrow X Together, also known as TXT, collects six across the group and member Yeonjun. Seven other acts—MAMAMOO, aespa, ATEEZ, IVE, LE SSERAFIM, ILLIT and CORTIS—each received five nominations.

BIGBANG’s nominations include Best Male Group and Artist of the Year, along with Best Music Video and Best Dance Performance Male Group for its comeback single “BiiiG.” The group’s members also received recognition for their solo work. Taeyang earned nominations for Best Male Artist, Artist of the Year and Best Dance Performance Male Solo for “LIVE FAST DIE SLOW,” while G-Dragon was nominated in Best Collaboration for his feature on aespa’s “WDA (Whole Different Animal).” Daesung is also included in the group’s wider nominations tally.

The recognition arrives as BIGBANG marks its 20th anniversary. The group, which helped shape the international expansion of K-pop, has continued to attract attention through its members’ solo careers and reunion-related activities. G-Dragon was named Artist of the Year at the 2025 MAMA Awards, adding to the group’s history at the ceremony.

BTS received seven nominations, including Best Male Group and Artist of the Year. The group’s album ARIRANG is nominated for Album of the Year, while “SWIM” earned a nomination for Best Vocal Performance Group. The music video for “2.0” is also recognised in the Best Music Video category. J-Hope contributes two additional nominations through his feature on LE SSERAFIM’s “SPAGHETTI,” which is nominated for Best Collaboration and Best Dance Performance Female Group.

TXT follows with six nominations. The group is nominated for Best Male Group, Artist of the Year and Album of the Year for 7TH YEAR: A Moment of Stillness in the Thorns. Yeonjun earned individual recognition in Best Male Artist and Artist of the Year, as well as a Best Dance Performance Male Solo nomination for “Ice Cream.”

Among the other leading contenders, MAMAMOO’s nominations include recognition for the group’s special single “4 Flowers,” while member Hwasa earned four individual nominations, including Best Vocal Performance Solo and Best Music Video for “Good Goodbye.” LE SSERAFIM received multiple nominations, including two Best Collaboration nods involving “SPAGHETTI” and “ICONIC BY MISTAKE.” CORTIS was recognised in Best Choreography, Best Dance Performance Male Group and Album of the Year for GREENGREEN.

The Best New Artist category features ALPHA DRIVE ONE, AND2BLE, EVAN, H//PE Princess, hrtz.wav, LNGSHOT, MODYSSEY, OURBIRTHDAY, TUIDE and UNCHILD. The category highlights emerging acts competing for one of the ceremony’s key early-career honours.

Other major categories include Best Male Artist, where Doh Kyung Soo, Taeyang, Taeyong, Yeonjun and Young K are nominated, and Best Female Artist, which features Hwasa, Irene, Soyeon, Taeyeon and YENA. Best Female Group nominees include aespa, BABYMONSTER, BLACKPINK, Hearts2Hearts, ILLIT, IVE, LE SSERAFIM and NMIXX. The Best Male Group category includes ATEEZ, BIGBANG, BTS, CORTIS, ENHYPEN, NCT WISH, Stray Kids and TXT.

The 2026 MAMA Awards will take place on November 20 and 21 at Kyocera Dome Osaka in Japan, with the ceremony scheduled to stream internationally through Mnet Plus. Music released between October 1, 2025, and September 30, 2026, is eligible for this year’s awards. The first round of voting for the Fans’ Choice categories began after the nominations were announced and is scheduled to run through October 22.

The winners will be determined through different combinations of jury evaluations, streaming and download figures, physical album sales and fan votes, depending on the category. Song of the Year nominees are expected to be drawn from the Best Song Top 10 results, while Album of the Year eligibility is limited to albums that have reached the required million-copy sales threshold.

With BIGBANG and BTS at the top of the nomination count, the 2026 MAMA Awards will bring together major acts from different generations of K-pop alongside newer groups seeking their first major recognition. The ceremony is scheduled to unfold over two nights in Osaka, with fan voting and additional announcements continuing in the weeks leading up to the event.