A major event in Taiwan’s music scene—the nominees for the 37th Golden Melody Awards 2026 were announced on May 13, and the winners will be revealed on June 27. A total of 1,645 albums and 22,616 entries were submitted for this year’s competition, inevitably resulting in a mix of joy and disappointment.As Taiwanese-language music albums have seen a diversification of musical styles in recent years, with many Mandarin-language singer-songwriters now creating music in their native Taiwanese, this year’s Golden Melody Awards’ Taiwanese-language categories are generating even more anticipation.
What are the defining characteristics of the albums nominated for Best Taiwanese-Language Album at the 37th Golden Melody Awards? Who will take home the award? Here are the moderator’s thoughts:
The 37th Golden Melody Awards will be held on the evening of June 27 at the Taipei Arena. Which album will be named Best Taiwanese-Language Album for bridging the past and the future of the Taiwanese-language music scene? Below is a highlight video and detailed description:
1. Nominees and Highlights for Best Taiwanese-Language Album at the 37th Golden Melody Awards:
The nominees for Best Taiwanese-Language Album at the 37th Golden Melody Awards are *Full Moon, Partial Moon* / *Listening While Walking* (Cheng Yi-nong), *Be a Person Who Cherishes Love and Has a Tender Heart* / Warner Music International (Hsiao Huang-chi), *Theme Song* / Sony Music Entertainment Taiwan (Su Ming-yuan), *Brothers Who’ve Lost Their Pants* / Wind Music (Wu Yong-ji), and *I Say* / Rolling Stone Mobile (CJ MiT). The five nominated albums showcase a dynamic collision across generations and musical genres, ranging from heartfelt interpretations rooted in tradition to avant-garde experiments offering entirely new auditory experiences, demonstrating the diverse expansion of Taiwanese music’s aesthetic. The winner will be announced on June 27, 2026.
Below, we highlight the distinctive features of this year’s nominated Taiwanese-language albums, in the order in which the shortlist was announced:
A. “Full and Empty” | Listen While You Walk (Performed by Zheng Yinan):
a. A Brand-New Auditory Experiment:
Yuan Que deeply fuses Taiwanese vocal styles with electronic music and synth-pop, achieving a highly cohesive soundscape. The Taiwanese lyrics convey an unprecedented coolness and a whispering beauty, blazing a new trail in Taiwanese music.
b. Comprehensive understanding of literary concepts:
Centered on the themes of “perfection” and “imperfection,” *Yuan Que* features lyrics rich in literary depth and metaphor, elevating the level of abstract thought in Taiwanese-language songs.
c. Higher listening threshold:
“Yuan Que” features a strong electronic experimental style and philosophical lyrics; however, its highly experimental nature diminishes the directness and mainstream appeal typical of traditional Taiwanese-language songs, making it difficult for listeners who aren’t part of the literary youth or indie music scenes to relate to it.
【Full and Waning】 is a work of exceptional artistic merit—a groundbreaking piece that combines both vision and completeness—but it will take time for its appeal to the general public to develop and mature.
B. Be a Person Who Cherishes Love and Has a Tender Heart | Warner Music International (Performed by: Hsiang Huang-chi)
a. Top-notch vocal talent:
Hsiu Huang-chi has mastered the nuances of traditional Taiwanese “qi kou” to perfection, using his warm, rich voice to delicately portray an adult’s acceptance of love and regret. Nominated once again for Best Taiwanese Singer, he remains the undisputed top artist in the Taiwanese music scene.
b. Diverse and down-to-earth musical styles:
Produced by a major record label, the album features a range of musical styles, from ballads and songs about family bonds to upbeat tracks that boldly incorporate “hell-themed” humor, successfully catering to both the tastes of longtime fans and the interests of the younger generation.
c. The album’s framework is too safe:
The overall album production and musical style still lean toward the band’s usual “perfect comfort zone,” and the album feels somewhat conservative in terms of the overall concept’s element of surprise and innovation.
[Be a Person Who Cherishes Love and Has a Tender Heart] is a heartwarming album in the style of Hsiang Huang-chi that revolves around family, love, and observations of modern society. It blends the feel of traditional Taiwanese with modern pop arrangements, though the album as a whole lacks groundbreaking surprises.
C. Theme Song │ Sony Music Taiwan (Performed by Su Mingyuan):
a. Cross-genre fusion:
By skillfully blending urban music elements such as R&B, soul, funk, and lo-fi with Taiwanese, he has expanded the stylistic spectrum of male Taiwanese-language singers. The first cross-language collaboration between two-time Golden Melody Award winners Su Ming-yuan and Danbao on “Defense,” along with the album’s many ingenious arrangements, demonstrate an ambition to break through genre boundaries.
b. Strong narrative quality:
The lyrics demonstrate a strong sense of humanistic concern, using music to achieve the “healing and renewal” of one’s emotions, with a narrative that is both multidimensional and profound. The lyrics were discussed by this year’s judges; although they ultimately did not win an award, it is clear that they were evaluated as being above average!
c. The weakening of traditional “qi ports”:
Some of the songs feature arrangements that incorporate Western rhythms and innovative touches; at times, the vocals are slightly overshadowed by the instruments, softening the traditional Taiwanese pronunciation’s “breathiness.”
【Theme Song】 is a Taiwanese-language album that breaks away from conventional ballads, boldly blending various modern musical elements in an attempt to reach a wider audience, once again showcasing lawyer-turned-singer Su Mingyuan’s profound songwriting skills.
D. “The Brother Who Took Off His Pants” │ Fengchao Music (Performed by Wu Yongji):
a. Full of vitality and quintessentially Taiwanese:
The lyrics and music are extremely direct and powerful, offering a precise and accurate portrayal of the bonds of brotherhood and life at the bottom of society during his father’s era.
b. High on-site tension:
The rock foundation is incredibly solid, and the songs possess an intense live-performance energy that delivers a direct and full-bodied rock rush.
c. The subject matter is set in a more distant past and is therefore less likely to resonate with readers:
While the production style and musical genre still bear a strong resemblance to “The Chairman Band,” the fact that the songs are set in the era of the artist’s father makes it difficult to resonate with the target audience, limiting the project’s ability to stand out and innovate.
【The Brother Who Took Off His Pants】 is an album by Chairman Band’s Ji Dong that embodies a tough-guy-meets-tender-heart style, brimming with grassroots energy and authentic Taiwanese rock. However, the album’s subject matter and the band’s distinct style limit its innovativeness.
E. I Say│Rolling Stone Mobile (CJ MiT):
a. Modernization of the auditory system:
With a production style that resonates deeply with the younger generation and exudes a modern sensibility, it has breathed new life into Taiwanese music and offered a fresh listening experience.
b. Relatively limited depth:
Compared to the other nominated works, it feels slightly lacking in depth in terms of the pronunciation of the Taiwanese dialect, the cultural depth of the lyrics, and the emotional weight.
[I Say] is an album that represents a fresh voice in the Taiwanese music scene, showcasing the perspective of the younger generation and a modern approach to pop music production.
Note: The images of the nominated albums above were taken from official websites or the internet.
2. Who will win Best Taiwanese-Language Album at the 37th Golden Melody Awards?
The five albums nominated for the 37th Best Taiwanese Language Album award span three age groups (50s, 40s, and 30s) All are works by musicians who bridge Mandarin and Taiwanese, presenting a showdown between “the ultimate deepening of traditional emotions” and “avant-garde cross-genre experimentation.” The final outcome will depend on the preferences of this year’s judges. However, compared to previous years, this year’s list of nominees for the Taiwan category is somewhat unusual, adding an element of suspense to the question of who will ultimately take home the award.
As the moderator is unable to ascertain the preferences of this year’s judges, the following criteria—musicality/vocal ability (25%), personal breakthrough/ Reaching a Wider Audience (20%), Storytelling/Social Significance (20%), Maturity of Composition and Production (25%), and Word-of-Mouth and Audience (10%).Considering that the Golden Melody Award for Best Taiwanese-Language Album typically carries the responsibility of bridging the past and the future of the Taiwanese-language music scene, given that *Be a Sentimental and Tender-Hearted Person* and *The Brothers Who Took Off Their Pants* lack the boldness to break boundaries and innovate, and *I Say* lacks sufficient depth, the moderator predicts that the ultimate winner of the Best Taiwanese Album award will be either *Theme Song* (Su Mingyuan) or *Full and Waning(Zheng Yinnong)】A clash of titans.
Su Ming-yuan, a two-time Golden Melody Award winner for Best Taiwanese-Language Male Singer, has once again proven his irreplaceable talent for storytelling. The album 【Theme Song (Su Ming-yuan)】 not only broke through to a wider audience and showcased innovative and ingenious arrangements—earning a high score of 93—but the fact that it wasn’t nominated for any other awards is a cause for concern; 【Full and Empty (Cheng Yi-nong)】scored highly in “Personal Breakthrough” and “Production Maturity,” showcasing the future potential and artistic excellence of Taiwanese music to the fullest, also earning a high score of 93; however, its relatively high barrier to entry is a cause for concern. Overall, this year’s Golden Melody Awards for Best Taiwanese-Language Album is shaping up to be a head-to-head contest between two powerhouses: the “Golden Melody Awards perennial winner” and the “Golden Indie Music Awards perennial winner.”
Given that the Golden Melody Awards focus on the commercial appeal, popularity, and production quality of the overall pop music market, the forum moderator predicts that this year’s Best Taiwanese-Language Album will go to 【Theme Song (Su Mingyuan)】.。
Source: KOCPC Chinese