The 29th Golden Melody Awards Ceremony will be grandly held on 23 June, 2018 at the Taipei Arena, and the hosts for both the ceremony and the walk of fame respectively were announced on Tuesday (22 May, 2018). In accordance with the theme of this year's GMA “Future-ing”, emphasizing on the originality and forward-thinking prospects, the organizer has invited GMA laureate Jam Hsiao to host this year's ceremony. With such an industry veteran at the helm, this year's GMA promised to be an outstanding display of industry talents. “This is a historic first for me” said Hsiao.
Hsiao is both a charming and extremely talented individual who has a long history with the Golden Melody Awards, he was nominated for best new artist at the 20th GMA, and won the best male vocalist mandarin category of the 24th GMA. According to one of the judge at the time, he “…simultaneously possess the quality of a star and a real talent in singing, with a unique and wonderful vocal quality and technique that pleasantly surprised us. His interpretation for both the lyrics and melodies were also highly appreciated, truly touching the heart of the audience”. Hsiao was also nominated for the best musical group category at the 28th GMA leading the band Lion. One of the GMA organizers personally extend the invitation for Hsiao to play such an important role – arguably the heart soul of the event – with the GMA, however Hsiao's immediate response at the moment was one of stoic silence. Everyone was prepared for a long session of convincing Hsiao to reconsider, when he suddenly nodded in agreement. Reminiscing about the scene, Hsiao said “I was completely non-responsive at the moment, they were properly scared within an inch of their lives, but since I did agree to host it, I definitely promise this will be an enchanted event!”
Unencumbered by the logic of established rules in this brand-new era, Hsiao has always enjoyed the new challenges brought about by a whole new different field. Befitting his nickname as “Mr. Entertainment”, the sky's the limit when it comes to hosting the event, as he not only seeks to serenade the audience with musical melodies, but also his unique sense of humor and a somewhat alternative take on the GMA ceremony itself.
“I am Mr. Entertainment. Wherever they need me, I'll be there!” said Hsiao, “as an entertainer, nothing is more exalted then the art of bringing happiness to other people!” Hsiao also generously disclosed his lucky charm for the ceremony, he said “Everyone says you should wear red underwear when hosting the GMA, no! let me tell you, it should be gold!” In preparation for his hosting the award ceremony, Hsiao surprised everybody during the press conference on 22 May, 2018 by releasing a VCR from his residence, where all his inspiration originated from. The VCR also showed how Hsiao was well prepared, and ready to present his best in this year's ceremony.
The walk of fame will be hosted by Dennis Chu and Lulu Huang, for their ninth and third time in this role respectively. This will be the duo's third time hosting together. “It's not easy hosting for the ninth time, I truly enjoy the pageantry that is GMA, and with Lulu and TTV as familiar partners, I truly feel at ease” said Dennis. Lulu on the other hand was grateful for everyone's acknowledgement, “I have been studiously preparing all relevant information for the event and will arrange meetings over coffee with Dennis”. She also lamented, “originally I had hoped to attend the walk as a nominee, but now all I want is to be the best host I can be”. But Lulu also whimsically remarked that “maybe I can attend the walk next year as an artist, and let Dennis do the talking”.
The 29th Golden Melody Awards and Ceremony will be held at on 23 June at the Taipei Arena, organizer Taiwan Television will be broadcasting live from the walk of fame at 5pm and the ceremony at 7pm on TTV main channel. The 2018 GMA series events will be held between 20 June and 22 June, including the showcase, conference, networking, biz matching center, exhibition, pitching and GMA Heat.
