The best ever MAMA (Mnet Asian Music Awards)
I absolutely loved this year's Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA), which was pure perfection in every aspect, from the attending celebrities to the exhilarating performances.
MAMA 2015, the undisputed biggest event on the annual K-pop calendar, was held last week at the massive 16,000-capacity AsiaWorld-Arena in Hong Kong.
Like most local viewers, I caught it live on Channel M.
The show was so mind-blowing it made me forget some of the low points of previous MAMA editions. Remember 2013, when Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis did their silly song The Fox and danced awkwardly with Crayon Pop on Bar Bar Bar? Cringe.
It wasn't just the sheer size of the award ceremony, the A-list actors and actresses like Park Shin Hye, Lee Kwang Soo and Han Hyo Joo, or the fact that the 2015 event was a gorgeous three-hour fest full of eye candy.
MAMA 2015 managed to hit the bullseye on these three moments...
SURPRISE!
I screamed when all four members of 2NE1 - including Park Bom, who has been on hiatus since last July due to her alleged involvement in drug smuggling - appeared on stage to sing I Am The Best and Fire, looking as fierce and sassy as ever.
I'm pretty sure I wasn't alone. The quartet's set was THE highlight of the night.
According to K-pop news site Soompi.com, 2NE1's reunion was so hush-hush that they did not participate in MAMA rehearsals and their names were not included in any official rundown lists or cue sheets.
Even the girls' flight to Hong Kong was kept a secret from reporters. Bravo.
FUN!
Did anyone think a bromance could brew between two top superstars from rival companies? Well, fans were in for a treat.
While singing Bae Bae, Big Bang's Seungri propped himself on a seat between Exo's Chanyeol and Sehun, got Sehun to rest his head on his shoulder and playfully caressed Sehun's hair, eliciting deafening shrieks from supporters of both boy bands.
Big Bang and Exo might be the stalwarts of South Korea's competing entertainment companies YG and SM, but usually, there is no love lost between their artists.
NOSTALGIA!
I'm a firm believer of the adage "old is gold" - which is why two of my favourite moments involved veteran entertainers.
British electronic music duo Pet Shop Boys did a medley of tunes with eclectic K-pop girl group f(x), breathing new life into their classic 80s number What Have I Done To Deserve This.
Psy, who performed his ubiquitous hit Gangnam Style, was also a winner. He invited Hong Kong actor Chow Yun Fat to do the famous dance moves with him. Chow, still suave at 60, gamely obliged.
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