BTS confirmed today that it will not submit any music for consideration at the 2027 Grammy Awards, a move the group directly linked to the Recording Academy’s newly created Best Asian Pop Music Performance category.
In a statement shared via Instagram stories, the group said: “We have decided not to submit our music to the Grammys this year. We hope music can be heard and loved as music itself, rather than being divided by region or language.”
BTS Withdraws from Grammy Consideration
The decision follows a landmark year for K-pop at major awards. The song “Golden” from the film KPop Demon Hunters became the first K-pop track to win Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 2026 Grammys and Best Original Song at the 2026 Academy Awards.
BTS released its latest album, ARIRANG, in March. The record debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, while its single “SWIM” topped the Hot 100.
Recording Academy CEO Responds
Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, issued a statement addressing the group’s withdrawal:
I am saddened to hear that BTS has chosen not to participate in the Grammy Awards process this year, but as a music creator, I understand and respect their decision. I do want to clarify something that seems to be getting lost in the conversation. The Asian Pop category was created to celebrate the depth, diversity and extraordinary growth of pop artistry coming out of Asia. The spirit of this new category is to shine a dedicated spotlight on these important artists. More categories mean more artists’ work is recognized. It’s never to divide, but to expand who is recognized by our 15,000 Grammy voters. I also want to be very clear: submitting music in a genre category such as Asian Pop, or Jazz or Country does not exclude an artist from also submitting and being considered in the General Field categories, including Record of the Year, Album of the Year and Song of the Year.
