Rapper HAON (Kim Ha-on) was crowned the final winner of Mnet’s hip-hop survival show Show Me The Money 12.
During the live finale on April 2, Team Zico & Crush’s HAON beat fierce rivals NowaImYoung, TRAEBI, MILLI, and Mason Hom to take first place. Topping both the on-site evaluation panel and the real-time text vote, HAON walked away with the grand prize of ₩100 million (approximately $75,000).
“I envisioned this day from the moment I decided to join the program,” HAON said. “Huge thanks to Zico and Crush for guiding me here.” He added, “Please keep watching what I do next,” hinting at a bold new chapter.
Returning after roughly four years, Show Me The Money 12 drew massive attention even before its premiere. In particular, its collaboration with TVING on the expansion content ‘World of Yaksha’ introduced a revival system for eliminated contestants, a fresh twist that sparked buzz. The changes clearly helped viewership: the finale captured a staggering 92.1% real-time share on TVING, proving sky-high interest.
Related clips also exploded online, surpassing 1.1 billion cumulative views on official social channels. The show’s consistent No. 1 ranking in non-drama buzz throughout its run further underscored this season’s breakout success.
The music performance was just as strong. Mission track ‘TICK TOCK’ soared into the upper tiers of major charts, while ‘KISS KISS KISS’ hit No. 1 on Apple Music’s Korea chart—showing the program’s impact went far beyond TV.
HAON first broke out by winning the 2018 hip-hop audition show High School Rapper 2. He later finished runner-up on Rap:Public in 2024, before finally reaching the very top with Show Me The Money 12.