October 16 KPOP, KDRAMA News: ‘MAMA Awards’ Opening, Global Leap and New Technology of Hallyu
KPOP News
Yesterday (16th), CJ ENM raised expectations from fans around the world by announcing the official nomination of the “2025 MAMA Awards.” This year’s award ceremony will be held at Tokyo Dome in Japan on Nov. 28 and 29, and the first round of voting for “Fans’ Choice” has already begun. The nominees include a large number of popular global groups such as New Jeans, SEVENTEEN, Stray Kids, Aespa, Ive, and TOMORROW X TOGETHER, which is expected to see fierce competition.
In Hanam, Gyeonggi Province, preparations for the “2025 Global KPOP Dance Challenge in Hanam” will be held from the 21st to the 23rd. Twenty teams from influencer with 70 million followers from Australia, Ukraine, and Thailand will participate in the dance competition, and all seats were sold out in advance, drawing attention. The event is a sign of the promotion of the K-culture complex and also a venue to declare a vision to grow Hanam City into a global performance center.
In addition, in Seoul, Apple Music announced that it will introduce a Korean pronunciation notation function and a dedicated interactive platform for KPOP fans. This function, which helps overseas users learn Korean lyrics more easily while singing along with the native pronunciation, is expected to be a strategic turning point in the expansion of the global fan base.
Meanwhile, in New York, the U.S., the Dream Festival, which combines K-startup and K-culture, opened. The event featured Korean start-up founders and K-pop artists to showcase technology-culture convergence models, highlighting the possibility of K-culture’s expansion.
Key Issues in KDRAMA
In the K-drama category, the lineup will be released one after another in the second half of 2025, drawing global fans’ attention. JTBC’s new drama “Behind You” is an emotional thriller about the wounds and recovery of relationships, starring actors Kim Sun-ho and Kim Ji-won, and its Asian premiere on Netflix has been confirmed. In addition, SBS announced that it will premiere “The Promise of a Star” starring Han Tae-ri at the end of October. This work is expected to be a new concept “time romance” genre that combines fantasy and romance.
On October 16, 2025, Hallyu news was a day that could be recorded as ‘K Culture New Wave Day’ where global awards, cover dance festivals, and technology-based content innovation were announced side by side
