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BTS decline to enter music for consideration at 2027 Grammys
Developed over time first seen 4 months ago
BTS have confirmed they will not submit their music for consideration at the 2027 Grammy Awards, in a co-ordinated statement posted to Instagram by all seven members. The band said they hoped music could "be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language" — widely read as a swipe at the Grammys' new best Asian pop music performance category, introduced a month earlier, which requires "meaningful use" of an Asian language and would have excluded their largely English-language material.
The group had been tipped for major nominations, including album of the year for their record Arirang and song of the year for its US number one single Swim, but more than 80% of Arirang's lyrics are in English. BTS, who have never won a Grammy despite five nominations since 2020, thanked their fanbase, the "Army", in their statement, and now join a list of acts who have boycotted the ceremony for various reasons, including The Weeknd, Morgan Wallen, Frank Ocean and Will Smith. The Recording Academy had not responded to the withdrawal at the time of reporting.
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In short
- BTS will not enter their music for the 2027 Grammys
- Move seen as protest at new "Asian pop" category rules
- Band has never won despite five prior nominations
How this story developed
- 4 months ago Coverage was refined further, clarifying that the disputed category specifically requires "meaningful use" of an Asian language and reframing the group's actions alongside other artists as "snubbing" rather than "boycotting" the ceremony, while the Recording Academy's silence on the matter continued.
- 4 months ago The band's withdrawal was confirmed rather than merely announced, with reporting adding that the contested Asian-language category had been introduced only a month earlier and that BTS had used their statement to thank their fan base, the Army.
- 4 months ago BTS announced via a joint Instagram statement by all seven members that they would withhold their music from 2027 Grammy consideration, a move widely read as protest against the ceremony's new best Asian pop music performance category that would have excluded their largely English-language work.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The Grammy Awards' new category represents an overdue recognition of Asian pop music's extraordinary global cultural significance and addresses a historical gap where this music has been marginalised in mainstream awards despite massive influence. Like the Academy's existing regional categories, this category provides dedicated recognition for artists performing in Asian languages, mirroring how music institutions worldwide honour diverse linguistic traditions. This is a reasonable corrective to underrepresentation and need not prevent multilingual artists from competing in other categories.
The case against
BTS's position reflects a principled concern that music's artistic merit and cultural impact should transcend linguistic boundaries, particularly in an era of global collaboration and multilingual expression. Requiring 'meaningful use' of an Asian language potentially gatekeeps Asian representation by implying Asian artists need to perform in Asian languages to receive recognition as authentically Asian. If the category aims to celebrate Asian pop music's significance, excluding an artist's most successful and most-heard work seems to undermine rather than serve that purpose.
Explained simply
BTS are one of the world's biggest pop acts, known for blending Korean lyrics with English-language hits and a hugely dedicated fanbase called "Army". The Grammy Awards, run by the US Recording Academy, are the American music industry's top honours, and despite years of commercial success BTS have never actually won one.
For 2027, the Grammys introduced a new category for best Asian pop music performance, requiring "meaningful use" of an Asian language. BTS's recent album and single are mostly in English, which would have ruled them out of that category while still leaving them eligible for the main, more prestigious awards.
The row matters because it touches on how award shows classify artists by region or language rather than genre or quality, a debate that has followed K-pop acts before. BTS's decision not to enter any category at all is being read as a protest against that framing, adding them to a growing list of major artists who have opted out of Grammy consideration in recent years.
Coverage · 2 sources
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Originally published by BBC Entertainment as “BTS say they won’t submit music to the Grammy Awards”.