The Hallyu Wave is still on, and I was caught in the phenomenon.
I recently attended the Asia Artist Awards 2023 at the Philippine Arena, and it was an overwhelming and exhilarating experience for me to get to know more about other K-pop groups and Asian Artists.
We had an early call time and arrived at the Philippine Arena at 7:30 AM. They say Kpop fans are trained to go early to these types of events, and big thanks to our friends from Metrobank Philippines for the invitation and for taking care of us.
Months before the biggest Hallyu event, Metrobank hosted ticket pre-sale events and raffle for VIP & UVC tickets for its cardholders. One of the perks of being a Metrobank cardholder is early access to ticketing sales and entertainment events.
Before the start of the event, we had a grand time at the Fan Zone!
Our first stop was at the Metrobank booths where we got to write a message to our bias. As expected, I wrote a message for BTS Suga. 💜
The Metrobank booth had benches where we sat down and rested. Event-goers also got the opportunity to apply for a credit card.
We lined up at several booths and got to meet other K-pop fans – and one thing that is common among us is that we are all BTS Army’s! 💜
From photo cards to fans, and light stick laces, we got gifts from dedicated fans who passionately prepared all these for their communities.
We then headed to the Philippine Arena and settled at our seats to enjoy the 6-hour show. I didn’t get to take photos and videos during the event, but we had a great view of the whole stage to see the whole production and light work. It was also nice to see different light sticks that represent different fandoms, casting a colorful spectacle across the arena.
I like that there is a real-time translations/subtitle of the artists’ speeches displayed on the LCD screen. Big cheers to see our very own, SB19, Ben & Ben, Melai, Daniel Padilla, and Kathryn Bernardo.
It was nice to discover new artists and see live performances from K-pop groups that my friends had been raving about – like Stray Kids and Seventeen’s sub-unit. From our view, we could see everyone having fun, artists included! I felt like the whole arena was shaking during the final performance.
Here is the list of Asia Artist Awards 2023 Winners:
Here is the full list of 2023 Asia Artist Awards winners:
AAA Focus: HORI7ON, LUN8, YOUNGHOON, Ahn Dong Gu
AAA Potential: Lapillus, ATBO, Paul Blanco, Yoo Seon Ho
AAA New Wave: Yaochen, KINGDOM, Ash Island, Jae Chan
AAA Best Creator: 3RACHA (Stray Kids producers and hip-hop subunit composed of CB97, SPEARB, and J. ONE)
AAA Best Producer: Seo Hyun Joo
AAA Icon: TEMPEST, NMIXX, Kep1er, Cha Joo Young
AAA Popularity Award: Lim Young Wong, Sakurazaka46, Lee Jun Ho, Kim Sejong
AAA Hot Trend: NewJeans, SB19, Lim Young Woong, Ahn Hyo Seop, Lee Jun Ho
AAA Emotive: ONEUS, BOYNEXTDOOR, &Team, EXO’s Suho
AAA Asia Celebrity: NewJeans, LE SSERAFIM, Jang Wong Young, Kentaro Sakaguchi, Kim Seon Ho
AAA Rookie: ZEROBASEONE, Moon Sangmin, Lee Eun Saem
AAA Best Choice: Ben&Ben, NMIXX, Dreamcatcher, Lee Young Woung, DINDIN, Kang Daniel, Lee Young Ji, BOYNEXTDOOR, &Team, NewJeans, Kim Jae Joong
AAA Acting Performance: Kim Young Dee, Lee Jun Young, EXO’s Suho, Mun Ka Young
AAA Fabulous: NewJeans, Stray Kids, Lee Young Woung, Kathryn Bernardo, Daniel Padilla
AAA Best Musician: KARD, STAYC, ZEROBASEONE, Kwon Eun Bi, Sakurazaka46
AAA Scene Stealer: Jung Sung Il
AAA Best Actor: Melai Cantiveros, Kim Sejeong, Lee Dong Hwi, Ahn Hyo Seop, Lee Jun Hyuk
Top of K-Pop Record: Kim Jae Joong
AAA Best Performance: LE SSERAFIM
AAA Best Artist, Singer: SB19, AKMU, ITZY, THE BOYZ, LE SSERAFIM, IVE
AAA Best Artist, Actor: Kentaro Sakaguchi, Kim Seon Ho, Kim Ji Hun
AAA Grand Prize, Fandom of the Year, Star Ranking King of Kings: Lim Young Woung
AAA Grand Prize, Performance of the Year: SEVENTEEN – BSS (subunit composed of DK, Hoshi, and Seungkwan)
AAA Grand Prize, Stage of the Year: Stray Kids
AAA Grand Prize, Song of the Year: NewJeans, “Ditto”
AAA Grand Prize, Album of the Year: SEVENTEEN, “FML”
AAA Grand Prize, Singer of the Year: NewJeans
AAA Grand Prize, Actor of the Year: Lee Jun Ho
Despite facing an emergency, I was grateful to have had the chance to experience AAA.
It was nice to see artists celebrate their well-deserved recognition; appreciate others’ crafts, and performances; and enjoy meaningful cultural connections.
Thank you again Metrobank for inviting me! 💙
