Eight nominations, no wins. That is BLACKPINK's record at Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards by Wikipedia's count, and the eighth puts the group in Favorite Music Group or Duo — the category BTS won every year from 2020 to 2023.
That race is the headline, but the Kids' Choice Awards 2026 K-pop list runs to 12 nominations: three for BTS, one each for BLACKPINK, Rosé, Jennie and KATSEYE, and five for KPop Demon Hunters. Nominations were announced and voting opened on October 8, and the winners are chosen by fans. Alex Warren hosts the show live from Television City in Los Angeles on Saturday, November 14, at 8pm ET / 5pm PT on CBS and Nickelodeon, per Showbiz Junkies and Herald Corp. Deadline reported in April that this is the first year the KCAs are simulcast on CBS.
Every Kids' Choice Awards 2026 K-pop nomination, in one table
The 12 needs one caveat. KATSEYE is a HYBE x Geffen global group, and KPop Demon Hunters is a US animated film about a K-pop group, so neither is a Korean act in the usual sense. I count both because K-pop is the whole pitch of each, and Soompi's nominations roundup puts both in its headline next to BTS and BLACKPINK.
| Nominee | Category | For |
|---|---|---|
| BTS | Favorite Music Group or Duo | The group |
| BTS | Favorite Song | “SWIM” |
| BTS | Favorite Album | ARIRANG |
| BLACKPINK | Favorite Music Group or Duo | The group |
| Rosé | Favorite Female Artist | As a solo artist |
| Jennie | Favorite Music Collaboration | “Dracula,” with Tame Impala |
| KATSEYE | Favorite Female Breakout Artist/Group | The group |
| KPop Demon Hunters | Favorite Animated Movie | The film |
| KPop Demon Hunters | Favorite Song from a Movie | “Golden” (EJAE, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami) |
| Arden Cho | Favorite Female Animated Voice | Rumi, KPop Demon Hunters |
| Ahn Hyo-seop | Favorite Male Animated Voice | Jinu, KPop Demon Hunters |
| Arden Cho, Ji-young Yoo, May Hong | Favorite On-Screen Duo/Trio | Rumi, Zoey and Mira |
Three of the 12 go straight through Taylor Swift. Swift leads the whole ballot with six nominations, per Showbiz Junkies, and she is in Favorite Song with “The Fate of Ophelia,” Favorite Album with The Life of a Showgirl and Favorite Female Artist — BTS's song and album categories, and Rosé's. Sabrina Carpenter, on five nominations with Ariana Grande, is in the same three. KPop Demon Hunters reaches five by itself, level with both; BTS's three are the most for any act on this list.
BTS's four straight wins against BLACKPINK's zero
BTS won Favorite Music Group at the KCAs in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023, and this year's nomination is a shot at a fifth, Herald Corp reported. Wikipedia's BTS awards list also has the group winning Favorite Global Music Star in 2018 and Favorite Song for “Dynamite” in 2021. Five years after “Dynamite,” it is back in Favorite Song with “SWIM,” and in Favorite Album with ARIRANG against Swift, Carpenter, Drake, Cardi B, Justin Bieber, Bruno Mars and Olivia Rodrigo. For the group's other big American awards night this year, see our BTS VMAs 2026 report.
BLACKPINK's side reads the other way. Wikipedia's BLACKPINK awards list tallies 0 KCA wins from eight nominations, this year's included. The earlier seven: Favorite Global Music Star in 2019, 2023 and 2024; Favorite Music Collaboration in 2021, for “Ice Cream” with Selena Gomez; Favorite Ticket of the Year in 2024, for the Born Pink World Tour; and Favorite Music Group in 2021 and 2023.
The head-to-head count. Set those last two years against BTS's run: BLACKPINK was up for Favorite Music Group in 2021 and 2023, and BTS won the category both times. November 14 is the third time the two groups share this race, and BLACKPINK has lost the first two to BTS. The rest of the 2026 field is Jonas Brothers, Maroon 5, Twenty One Pilots and Weezer, so K-pop holds two of six slots. Fans decide it, as they decide every KCA; for how fan votes are weighted at K-pop's own year-end show, see our MAMA Awards 2026 guide.
Rosé, Jennie and KATSEYE away from the group race
Rosé is in Favorite Female Artist, an eight-name field: Ariana Grande, Cardi B, Karol G, Miley, Olivia Rodrigo, Rosé, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift. Jennie's line is Favorite Music Collaboration, for “Dracula” with Tame Impala. Add the group nod and BLACKPINK's name reaches the ballot three ways, in three different categories.
KATSEYE's category has the sharpest storyline. The HYBE x Geffen group is up for Favorite Female Breakout Artist/Group against ADÉLA, Ella Langley, Olivia Dean, RAYE and Stella Lefty, and Soompi points out that ADÉLA was a contestant on The Debut: Dream Academy, the survival show that formed KATSEYE. For the group's lineup news, see our KATSEYE update on Sophia.
One absence stands out. The Asia slot in Favorite Global Music Star, the category BTS won in 2018 and BLACKPINK was nominated in three times, went to BINI from the Philippines, per Wikipedia's 2026 KCA page. No Korean act is in that category this year.
KPop Demon Hunters' five, and a category in its first year
KPop Demon Hunters has five nominations. It is one of eight in Favorite Animated Movie, against Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender, Minions & Monsters, Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Toy Story 5 and Zootopia 2. “Golden,” credited to EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami, is up for Favorite Song from a Movie. Arden Cho, as Rumi, and Ahn Hyo-seop, as Jinu, are nominated for animated voice work.
The fifth is the one to notice. Cho, Ji-young Yoo and May Hong are up together as Rumi, Zoey and Mira in Favorite On-Screen Duo/Trio, which debuts this year alongside Watch Party: Kids' Choice and Favorite Clutch Player of the Year, per Wikipedia. If the trio is why you are voting, our guide to KPop Demon Hunters immersive experience tickets covers the Netflix House version of their story.
Mina's Take
The BTS-versus-BLACKPINK framing will lead most coverage, and it is the least open race on this ballot. BLACKPINK has met BTS in this category twice, in 2021 and 2023, and lost both; across seven earlier KCA nominations it has not won once. A fan vote rewards whoever turns out for this particular show, and BTS's fans have done it four times in a row. The race I'd watch is KATSEYE against ADÉLA: a group formed by The Debut: Dream Academy against one of the show's own contestants. My call: BTS wins Favorite Music Group or Duo on November 14, its fifth win in the category, and BLACKPINK's KCA record goes to 0 for 8. If BLACKPINK wins, I misread how far this audience has moved since 2023.
What to watch next
- The voting deadline. Voting is open in 36 categories at kidschoiceawards.com, and none of our sources gives a closing date as of October 11. Check the site rather than assuming it runs to show day.
- Saturday, November 14, 8pm ET / 5pm PT, CBS and Nickelodeon. Favorite Music Group or Duo settles the BTS–BLACKPINK question and the call above.
- The same night: KATSEYE against ADÉLA in Favorite Female Breakout Artist/Group, and the first-ever Favorite On-Screen Duo/Trio winner.
