Fans of K-pop boyband B.A.P. were both shocked and saddened after learning on Sunday, March 5, that the group’s 2012 Mnet Asian Music Awards trophy was sold in a second-hand shop in the Philippines for ₱200 (₩4730.26 or $4).
The news spread after a user from TikTok shared a photo of the trophy. She claimed that her mother purchased the item at a flea market without knowing the item’s significance.
“My mom bought this in 2020, (when I didn’t know) K-pop,” the TikTok user said in the post’s caption. “I know now K-pop, and I was shocked to know (what) this (was).”
B.A.P. received the trophy for winning the 2012 Mnet PD’s Choice Award. However, no one knows how it ended up in the Philippine shop.
Because of the viral news, numerous B.A.P. fans were enraged because it was the very first major prize received by the group after their debut in January 2012.
Some fans were blaming the group’s former agency TS Entertainment for mishandling the trophy. They also want the agency to find a way to return the item to the members.
B.A.P. was under TS Entertainment until they decided to disband in February 2019. The agency dealt with a series of legal problems with the artists under their management from 2014 until they decided to close in July 2021.
According to media outfits, TS Entertainment might have sold everything in their office during their trying times, including the trophy.
Some fans were trying to return the trophy to B.A.P. members, while others believe that they should just let the new owner take care of the recognition.
