BTS, the K-pop group, pulls out of the Grammys over new Asian Pop category

All seven members of BTS posted identical statements to their individual Instagram accounts on July 29, announcing they would not submit any of their music for consideration at the 2027 Grammy Awards. "We have decided not to submit to the Grammys this year," the group wrote, adding, "We hope music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language." The withdrawal keeps the band's comeback album Arirang out of contention, and the statement did not name the specific category behind the decision, though the timing pointed at one.

The category in question is Best Asian Pop Music Performance, which the Recording Academy unveiled on June 16 as one of five new awards arriving at the 69th Grammy Awards. The Academy described it as meant to "recognise artistic excellence in Asian pop music performances originating from or widely recognised within Asian markets," covering K-pop, J-pop and C-pop acts who use one or more Asian languages.

BTS records within the wider world of pop music and has twice topped the IFPI global artist chart, and being funneled toward a regional award rather than categories like Album of the Year and Record of the Year carries its own message for a group with that reach. Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. defended the new category within days of the BTS statement, saying that "submitting music in a genre category does not exclude an artist from also submitting and being considered in the general field categories."

Mason added that he was "saddened" by BTS's decision but that he understood and respected it, framing the category as a way to put "a dedicated spotlight" on artists from the region rather than a demotion. That tone shifted by mid-August. In a statement issued Friday, August 14, he said the Academy had spent two weeks talking with stakeholders across K-pop, J-pop, C-pop and Indian music, including labels, managers and BTS's own label HYBE, and acknowledged that for some artists "this category isn't representing the music they work so hard to create."

Billboard first reported that the Academy was reconsidering the award altogether, a reversal covered in more detail in the Grammys' move to rethink the category.