K-pop idols Jang Won-young of girl group IVE and Sung Han-bin of nine-piece boy band ZEROBASEONE, or ZB1, have been selected as emcees for the 2024 Asian Artists Awards (AAA).
The organizing committee confirmed on 30 Sept. through its co-organizer and media outfit, Star News, that the young artists will collaborate again to host the AAA on 27 December.
Venue details are still unknown.
The Asia Artists Awards (AAA), organized by the South Korean media outfit Money Today and its subsidiaries Star News and MTN, is an award ceremony created in 2016.
Its inauguration was held at the Hall of Peace at Kyung Hee University in Seoul the same year.
Although the award-giving body predominantly recognizes artists in the South Korean music and entertainment industry, it has extended honors to Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Thai and British acts for their exemplary contributions to television, film and music on an international scale.
Together with actors Kang Daniel and Han-bin, Won-young kicked off the previous ceremony on 14 December 2023, at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan, where actresses Melissa “Melai” Cantiveros-Francisco and Kathryn Bernardo bagged “Best Actor” and “Fabulous” accolades, respectively.
The AAA has seen multiple changes in its emcees yearly, with Super Junior member Leeteuk being its only main headliner for six consecutive years from its inception until 2021, when he was first paired with Won-young as a co-host.
She would later take over his post as AAA’s primary emcee for three years, from 2022 to the present day, after the AAA committee’s confirmation to have the young artist co-lead the conferment.
Won-young’s upcoming hosting stint would be her fourth time opening the AAA, while Han-bin’s would be his second since last year.
Along with Chinese member Zhao Hao, Sung Han-bin leads ZB1, which was formed through the 2023 reality show Boys Planet, where idol aspirants compete with each other in a race to become part of a K-group (for male finalists) or G-group (for female finalists).
Jang Won-young is a member of the all-girl sextet IVE, consisting of Yujin, Gaeul, Rei, Liz and Leeseo, managed by Starship Entertainment, which also handles girl group Cosmic Girls and boy groups Monsta X and Cravity.
Won-young competed in the South Korean reality show Produce 48 with fellow member Yujin in 2018 and was a previous member of the now-defunct project girl group Iz*One.
Won-young and Han-bin’s groups have also been recipients of numerous AAA honors in the past few years.
IVE won Song of the Year in 2022 for their song “Love Dive” from their second single album of the same name, as well as “Rookie of the Year” alongside female acts NewJeans and LE SSERAFIM during that period.
In 2023, ZB1 also doubled their luck when they snagged the “Rookie of the Year” and “Best Musician” awards, earned with “In Bloom,” their lead single from their EP Youth in the Shade.