BTS, BLACKPINK, Stray Kids and CORTIS named Best Artist at 2026 KGMA
The 2026 Korea Grand Music Awards announced BTS, BLACKPINK, Stray Kids and CORTIS as Best Artist winners ahead of the November 7 Artist Day ceremony at Gocheok Sky Dome, with BTS also taking Best Selling Album for 'ARIRANG'.
The 2026 Korea Grand Music Awards opened its two-day run with a set of winners revealed before the main ceremony. According to KGMA's official announcement, as reported by Maeil Business Newspaper and Edaily, BTS, BLACKPINK, Stray Kids and CORTIS were each named Best Artist, and BTS added Best Selling Album for their fifth full-length album 'ARIRANG' for two awards in total.
The same reports list TREASURE as Best Hip-Hop winner, LUCY as Best Band, DAY6's Young K for Best O.S.T, Dayoung as Style Icon and NCT WISH's Yushi for the fan-voted Hallyu Popularity Award. Artist Day starts at 5 p.m. KST on November 7 at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, followed by Music Day on November 8.
Confirmed
- The official KGMA winner graphics (credited to the KGMA Organizing Committee) show BTS, BLACKPINK, Stray Kids and CORTIS each as 'Best Artist' (베스트 아티스트) at the 2026 Korea Grand Music Awards.
- Maeil Business Newspaper (Star Today) and Edaily both report, citing KGMA's official announcement, that BTS won Best Artist and that their fifth full-length album 'ARIRANG' was named Best Selling Album, giving BTS two awards.
- Both outlets report that 2026 KGMA runs November 7 (Artist Day, 5 p.m. KST) and November 8 (Music Day) at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro District, Seoul.
Reported by other outlets
- MK and Edaily report other pre-announced winners: TREASURE (Best Hip-Hop), LUCY (Best Band), DAY6's Young K (Best O.S.T), Dayoung (Style Icon) and, in fan-vote categories, NCT WISH's Yushi (Hallyu Popularity Award).
- MK reports RESCENE's Woni and actor Nam Ji-hyun host day one, and IVE's Liz and actor Kim Jae-won host day two.
Analysis
2FC NEWSROOM: Pre-announcing the Best Artist slate before the broadcast puts BTS's 'ARIRANG' year front and center, with CORTIS sharing the top category alongside three established acts; the remaining categories are decided across the two ceremony nights.