PETALING JAYA: Hong Kong pop star Karen Mok will join American actor-cum-rock star Jared Leto as hosts of the MTV Asia Awards 2008 at the Arena of Stars in Genting Highlands on Aug 2.

An accomplished actress and singer, Mok has enjoyed great success throughout Asia since making her debut in 1993. In 2003, she became the first-ever female Hong Kong artiste to be crowned best female singer at Taiwan's prestigious Golden Melody Awards.

She also has almost 40 films under her belt, including box-office hits like Shaolin Soccer, The God of Cookery and So Close.

"I'm really excited to have the opportunity to host this year's MTV Asia Awards and celebrate the spirit and power of music with MTV and artistes from around the world," said Mok.

The sixth edition of the annual pan-regional awards show, which gives recognition to regional and international artistes for their achievements in the industry, will see 16 awards being presented, with nine regional and seven international ones.

The show is sponsored by edc by Esprit, Tourism Malaysia and Genting - City of Entertainment and Xpax, and will be broadcast to more than 291 million homes across the region.

The latest updates on the MTV Asia Awards 2008 can be found at the official website at www.mtvasiaawards.com.