By Jason Yu
The MAMAs have been a powerhouse, a mainstay in the Korean music industry since it’s inception in 1999. In the past 25 years, the end-of-the-year awards show has stayed within Asia, bouncing around Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, and Vietnam.
Until now.
For the 2024 MAMAs, the prestigious event was held outside of Asia for the first time in Los Angeles. The awards show would span three days: day 1 in Los Angeles (Nov. 21) and day 2 and 3 in Osaka, Japan (Nov. 22 and 23).
This announcement would surprise many, as fans were curious how the MAMAs on American soil would turn out.
Splitting the MAMAs to two locations
A big reason for holding the MAMAs in Los Angeles is to further expand K-pop to the west. During a private press conference called media day, JY Park, better known as JYP, and head of CJ ENM convention business Park Chan-uk explained the strategy behind this.
The two wanted to create more localized acts, such as VCHA (more on this on the next section). By having the show more accessible to Americans in-person – located at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood – this aimed to make K-pop more normalized in the US.
The starting time would also favor the American audiences for once, as day 1’s Los Angeles leg of the concert started at 7:00 pm PST on Thursday (Nov. 21). In past years, American fans had to stay up during late hours to catch the live streams in Asia.
MNet, a subsidiary of CJ Entertainment and main organizer of the MAMAs, planned day 2’s red carpet to start in Osaka just one hour after the Los Angeles show ended. When the curtains fell on the American segment around 10:00 pm PST (Nov. 21), it was already 3:00 pm JST the next day in Japan (Nov. 22) with the red carpet starting at 4:00 JST.
The two far-flung locations also meant that the pool of artists and special guests would be split among Los Angeles and Osaka. JY Park and Park said that they wanted to bring out the newer groups that are setting the trend today, while inviting notable Hollywood celebrities.
JYP confirms VCHA will come back
Credits: CJ ENM
During media day, one Korean media member asked about VCHA and when they’ll be back.
JYP answered confidently, stating “We are preparing for full activities next year for VCHA. Our plan is to differentiate this group from our existing K-pop artists with special and unique contents.”
He further explained why VCHA has been absent for some time, saying “The prep period is taking a little longer than usual because the preparation effort is taking longer than expected.”
Then JY Park told media members his vision of VCHA by saying, ““I wanted to make sure they’re not K-pop as far as music and visuals. Even though they’re produced by a K-pop company, I don’t want them to be K-pop. I want them to be what they are.”
JYP acknowledged the girls’ upbringing in the U.S. by adding, “They’re not born and raised in Korea, they’re not influenced by Korean culture, they are talented kids who are born and raised here. We are trying to make sure the next upcoming album is themselves. Unlike our K-pop and Korean artists, I think the creative teams will be a combination with American producers, musicians, choreographers, and making sure it’s them. It’s going to be very different. The new music, the album, the new video will be very different from JYP.”
No better person to represent the LA stop than JYP
Credits: CJ ENM
The leading star for the MAMAs in Los Angeles had to be JYP himself. The co-founder, singer-songwriter, and producer showed his multilingual skills during media day, switching between Korean and English with ease. From judging the vibe in the media room, the respect that both the Korean and American media had for him was immense.
His appreciation of American music scene was best illustrated when he talked about his admiration for American music. He gushed about his love for American R&B, soul, and funk. JY Park had a lot of admiration for Anderson .Paak, the 8-time Grammy Award winner, and how he looked forward to performing with .Paak at the MAMAs.
His understanding of American culture – having lived in New York for three years as a teen – shined when he described VCHA earlier, as he acknowledged the girls being born and raised in America. He also created several K-pop groups that had Gyopos, overseas Koreans that grew up outside of Korea, such as the U.S., Canada, and Australia, etc. His groups would often blend Korean culture and Western culture, making them more of an international K-pop group than a pure Korean one.
JYP also had a surprise for the Los Angeles audience.
During the final act of the show, JYP was shown in a video with amnesia, having lost his memories. A computerized voice tells JYP, “Just before you lost your memories, you were finalizing preparations for the debut of KickFlip set to launch next year.” KickFlip would consist of contestants from the music survival show, LOUD, back in 2021.
After the KickFlip announcement, both fans and reporters were excited, wanting to know more about JYP’s newest project.
Hollywood pulled actors and singers as special guests
While Korea tapped into famed actor Park Bo-gum to host the event, Park would be flanked by several Hollywood elites throughout the show.
Lance Bass of *NSYNC fame, iconic actor Dustin Hoffman, actresses Da’Vine, director Lee Isaac Chung, and Anderson .Paak all presented awards throughout the night.
Katseye and the LA Rams cheerleaders collab
Credits: CJ ENM
One of the highlights of the show was the collaboration between Katseye and the LA Rams cheerleaders. Katseye performed “Debut” and “Touch,” while being flanked by the cheerleaders throughout the performance. The triple splits done by Katseye, the fluid choreography by the cheerleaders, and the energy and fire brought on by both groups made this an incredible feature to watch.
The last minute of “Touch,” where the cheerleaders throw away their pom-poms and start doing the “Touch” choreography in lock step with Katseye elicited many loud cheers from the audience.
New groups pushed to the grand stage
Credits: CJ ENM
One of the emphasis of the MAMAs in Los Angeles was showcasing the newer K-pop groups that debuted in the last two or so years. Katseye, Young Posse, Illit, RIIZE, and TWS would headline the new generation of K-pop here on Day 1 of the MAMAs.
JYP’s “brother from another mother”: Anderson .Paak
Credits: CJ ENM
JY Park would eventually get his wish of performing with Anderson .Paak in the show’s finale. The “brother from another mother” quote that JYP would say to Anderson .Paak alludes to the Korean joke that the two are related.
Anderson’s last name, Paak, is actually spelled Park originally. After the Korean War, many Koreans were trying to find their long, lost relatives. Many lost contact through the war or were adopted overseas. Since many Koreans’ surnames were Park, some families decided to change their last name to Paak instead to make it easier for their relatives to find them.
From all this, JYP said that since they both have the same last name, they’re related jokingly, with the “brother from another mother” quote.
During JYP’s segment, the K-pop entertainer would perform a variety of funk, soul, and R&B songs, before Anderson .Paak appeared in the back as a drummer to collab. JYP brought the energy, telling the crowd to stand up if they really like music. With no one disagreeing with the K-pop legend, everyone stood on their feet to sing and dance along to his performance.
After performing the final two songs together, Anderson .Paak presented JYP with the “Inspiring Achievement” award.
As JYP accepted the award, the other groups paid huge homage to him. Young Posse, Illit, RIIZE, and Katseye all encouraged the audience to loudly clap and cheer on JYP.
After the final performance, a TV showing the livestream of the Osaka, Japan MAMA was shown. In about an hour, the second day of the MAMA’s red carpet ceremony would commence.