On December 30, Big Bang wrapped up the year by winning the Rookie Newcomer Award at the 51st Japan Records Awards, beating other up & coming artists including Hilcrhyme (??????), Maya Sakura and SCANDAL. However, it looks like a number of Japanese netizens are anything but happy. A day after Big Bang won its award at the Japan Record Awards, Worldwide Arts Show, a popular news blog, and 2CH, a large internet community, were flooded with attacks and protests against Big Bang's victory, claiming that the judging criteria was flawed. "A Korean boy group that I haven't even heard of nor seen received the Best Newcomer Award through a shady judging process," an individual remarked. Netizens argued that Big Bang's record sales, which fell behind many other newcomers of the year, were overlooked by the judging panel. For example, Hilcrhyme sold 108,000 record copies, dominating Big Bang's 41,000 sales count. Furthermore, Hilcrhyme's track Shunkash?t? was ranked #1 on Japan's top-selling singles list for the week of September 22, whereas Big Bang has yet to make the list with any of its tracks. "Record sales are an important part of judging criteria, so what kind of criteria did the judges use?" many netizens questioned. Interestingly enough, Big Bang's Best Newcomer Award at the 42nd Japan Cable Daesang earlier in December, which also beat Hilcrhyme and Maya Sakura, was met without a ruckus. Others have pointed out that Hilcrhyme's Shunkash?t? was released in September, whereas Big Bang released Let Me Hear Your Voice in November, which may have resulted in Big Bang's lower sales count. Although I'm a fan of Big Bang myself, I can understand the Japanese netizens' argument - after all, it'd be strange if a rookie Japanese artist that didn't have a list of smash singles or overwhelming fame swooped in and won a rookie award in Korea. When you take into account how difficult it was for TVXQ to rise to the top in Japan, it's hard to assume that Big Bang's solid popularity in Korea would so easily transcend to the Japanese market. Considering the excitement that Big Bang's 2010 comeback announcement has created, it's weird to hear news about people getting so negatively riled up about Big Bang. Regardless, good luck to these boys as they continue their breakthrough into Japan and eventually return to Korea this summer! Make sure to visit BBVIP Forums for more on Big Bang. Source: Kukinews, Recording Industry Association of Japan