Updated

Updated · Deadline · Jul 30

Grammy CEO Defends New Asian Pop Category After 7 BTS Members Boycott 69th Awards

Updated

Updated · Deadline · Jul 30

Grammy CEO Defends New Asian Pop Category After 7 BTS Members Boycott 69th Awards

Q: Why did the world's biggest pop group just reject the Grammys' attempt to honor Asian music?

BTS rejected the Grammys’ new Asian pop category because they appear to see it as a form of separation, not recognition. The group’s seven members said they would not submit music for the 2027 awards because they want their work to be “heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language.” That statement, posted by each member on Instagram, came just weeks after the Recording Academy created Best Asian Pop Music Performance for K-pop, J-pop and C-pop songs with meaningful use of Asian languages. The move is widely being read as a polite protest. BTS and many fans worry the new category could effectively ringfence Asian artists into a regional lane instead of strengthening their path into the Grammys’ top prizes, where BTS has long sought recognition. The group has been nominated several times, including in pop duo/group and music video categories, but has never won. Harvey Mason Jr., the Recording Academy’s CEO, pushed back on that interpretation. He said the category was designed to broaden visibility for Asian artists, not sideline BTS, and stressed that artists can still compete for general-field honors such as Record, Song and Album of the Year. Even so, BTS’s refusal reflects a deeper frustration with how non-Western pop is classified by major U.S. institutions. For a group whose global success has already crossed language barriers, accepting a region-defined category may have looked less like progress than a new boundary.

3 articles · Updated · Deadline · Jul 30

Harvey Mason Jr. said he was “saddened” by BTS’s decision to skip Grammy consideration this year, while saying he respects the group’s protest.
The Recording Academy chief argued the new Best Asian Pop Music Performance category was created to expand recognition for Asian artists, not to separate them from the main awards.
General Field races such as Record, Album and Song of the Year remain open to any eligible recording, Mason said, stressing that genre-category submissions do not block broader Grammy contention.
All 7 BTS members said earlier Wednesday they would not submit because they want their music heard “for what it is,” not divided by region or language.
The dispute follows last month’s rollout of new Grammy categories, including one for Asian-market pop performances using 1 or more Asian languages.