Golden Disc Awards

The Golden Disc Awards are South Korea's most prestigious music awards, organized by the Korea Music Content Association since 1986. Often called the "Korean Grammys," the ceremony evaluates winners based primarily on physical album sales, digital downloads, and streaming data from the Circle Chart (formerly Gaon Chart). The 40th ceremony took place on January 10, 2026, at Taipei Dome in Taiwan, hosted by Sung Si-kyung and Moon Ga-young.

At the 40th ceremony, Jennie closed the show with a medley of "Filter," "Damn Right" (featuring Childish Gambino and Kali Uchis), and "like JENNIE." Backed by a mega-crew of dancers, she delivered the closing stage in a black outfit with paired choreography alongside a male dancer. Korean media described the performance as feeling like a full solo concert. Jennie won four awards total that night, including the inaugural Artist of the Year Daesang, a Digital Song Division Bonsang as a soloist, a Digital Song Division Bonsang as a member of BLACKPINK for "JUMP," and the Global Impact Award with Prizm.

How the Golden Disc Awards Work

The Golden Disc Awards use a data-driven selection process that differs from fan-voted ceremonies:

1. Eligibility: Works released between early November of the previous year and early November of the current year qualify. For the 40th ceremony, this covered releases from early November 2024 to early November 2025.
2. Nominations: Nominees are determined by quantitative data from the Circle Chart, including physical album sales, digital download figures, and streaming numbers. Nominations for Digital Song Bonsang, Album Bonsang, and Rookie of the Year were announced on November 25, 2025.
3. Judging: Winners are determined by a combination of sales data (approximately 60% weighting), a judging panel evaluation, and limited fan voting. The judging panel consists of music industry experts, critics, and producers.
4. Grand Prizes (Daesang): Three grand prizes are awarded. Digital Daesang (Song of the Year) goes to the highest-scoring digital release. Album Daesang (Album of the Year) goes to the highest-scoring physical album. Artist Daesang (Artist of the Year) was newly introduced for the 40th ceremony, recognizing overall performance across both digital and physical metrics.
5. Popularity Awards: Fan-voted categories for Most Popular Artist (Male and Female) run separately from the data-driven categories.

The Bonsang (main prize) categories are split into Digital Song Division and Album Division, each recognizing approximately 10 winners per year.

Real-World Example: 40th Golden Disc Awards (2026)

The 40th ceremony made history as the first Golden Disc Awards held outside South Korea, taking place at Taipei Dome in Taiwan on January 10, 2026. G-Dragon won the Digital Daesang (Song of the Year) for "HOME SWEET HOME" featuring Taeyang and Daesung, marking his BigBang reunion track. Stray Kids won the Album Daesang for "KARMA." Jennie won the inaugural Artist Daesang, recognizing her solo success with "Like JENNIE" and album "Ruby."

The Digital Song Division Bonsang winners included aespa ("Dirty Work"), BLACKPINK ("JUMP"), IVE ("REBEL HEART"), LE SSERAFIM ("HOT"), Rosé ("toxic till the end"), and ZO ZAZZ ("Don't you know"). The Album Division Bonsang winners included ATEEZ, ENHYPEN, G-Dragon, IVE, NCT WISH, RIIZE, SEVENTEEN, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, and ZEROBASEONE.

Rookie Artist of the Year was shared by ALLDAY PROJECT and CORTIS. G-Dragon, IVE, and Jennie each won three awards, making them the most decorated artists of the ceremony.

Past Winners by Category and Year

The Golden Disc Awards have been presented annually since 1986. Below is a reference table of Daesang (grand prize) winners from the last four ceremonies. The Artist Daesang was introduced for the 40th ceremony in 2026; prior ceremonies awarded only two grand prizes.

SEVENTEEN won the Album Daesang in both 2024 and 2025, making them the first act to win consecutive Album Daesangs since BTS won six in a row from 2018 to 2023. BTS's 2023 Album Daesang for "Proof" was their sixth consecutive, extending a record that began with "Love Yourself: Her" in 2018. aespa's "Supernova" won the Digital Daesang in 2025, the same song that also won Song of the Year at the 2024 Melon Music Awards. NewJeans' "Ditto" won the Digital Daesang in 2024, capping a breakout year for the group that also included Rookie Artist of the Year at the same ceremony.

At the 40th ceremony, Stray Kids accepted the Album Daesang for "KARMA" from presenters Hong Jung-do and Song Joong-ki. The group also received an Album Division Bonsang earlier in the ceremony. Member Bang Chan noted during their Bonsang acceptance that the group had released two albums in the eligibility period and thanked fans for their support.

TWS performed a medley of "Nice to See You Again," "OVERDRIVE," and their debut single at the 40th ceremony. The group was among the Rookie Artist of the Year nominees and received a Digital Song Division Bonsang for their debut single.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

The Golden Disc Awards are sales-based, meaning chart performance and streaming numbers matter more than label lobbying or fan voting. This creates a more level playing field than purely fan-voted ceremonies. However, the scale of the Korean music market means independent artists face intense competition from major label acts with massive promotional budgets.

For independent K-pop or Korean indie artists, the Rookie Artist of the Year category is the most accessible entry point. ALLDAY PROJECT and CORTIS won in 2026, showing that newer acts can earn recognition. Strong Circle Chart performance through your distributor is the primary path to nomination.

If you are an independent artist targeting the Korean market, focus on building streaming numbers and physical sales through your distributor. Use our Streaming Royalty Calculator to estimate your earnings and track your chart performance. Check the Golden Disc Awards website for eligibility windows and submission requirements.

Related Resources

• Streaming Royalty Calculator - Track streaming performance that feeds into Golden Disc nominations
• Target Streams Calculator - Set streaming goals for awards eligibility
• Performance Rights Organizations - Korean PROs like KOMCA collect royalties for award-winning songwriters
• Advanced Royalty Calculator - Calculate earnings across multiple platforms
• Music Awards Directory - Browse all music awards in our directory
• Melon Music Awards - The other major data-driven K-pop ceremony, based on Melon streaming data
• Seoul Music Awards - A major K-pop ceremony where fan voting carries significant weight
• MAMA Awards - The Mnet Asian Music Awards, a fan-voted K-pop ceremony
• Circle Chart Music Awards - Awards based on Circle Chart data, the same chart used for Golden Disc nominations
• Korean Music Awards - A critics-based Korean music awards ceremony
• Golden Disc Awards Official Site - Eligibility windows and submission requirements