Is 2015 MAMA Excluding YG Artists From the Event?

Though 2015 has been a good year for YG Entertainment with the debut and comeback of several artists, the label  is unsure of its artists’ appearances in the 2015 Mnet Asian Music Awards (2015 MAMA).

According to a high ranked YG official, there has been no communication between YG and the event team, although there are only two months left. The usual protocol for large-scale overseas events like MAMA is to start contacting artists before the two month mark.

“None of YG artists, including BIGBANG have received an official offer. Though we need a heads up two months before the event in order to organize a stage, our hands are tied for now,” the official said. “At this point, we’re unsure of our participation. We’re a little taken aback at how any talk of participation or stage organization hasn’t surfaced at all.”

YG has been dominating the music scene since May with BIGBANG’s comeback and iKON’s debut. It will likely be a blow to MAMA if their artist do not participate.

In response, MAMA has released an official statement.

“We are currently preparing for the 2015 MAMA, which will be held at Hong Kong on December 2, by collecting award candidates before voting starts later this onth. We are also planning performances,” Mnet said on October 13. “MAMA will be inviting all artists who have put on a good show in 2015, and we will do everything in our power to present the best stages.”

They also denied any accusations of excluding YG, saying, “We’re still early on in the process, so we have no idea why conversations like this are even surfacing.”

Lately, there has been some tension between Mnet and YG, in particular regarding the exclusion of iKON from the  “M!Countdown” music chart, leading to more attention being paid to the MAMAs which YG artists have previously played a big role in.

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