The Grammy Asian Pop category is facing major uncertainty as global K-pop powerhouses BTS and Stray Kids have officially declared a boycott and refused to submit their music, while BLACKPINK has also been found ineligible due to strict criteria.
Grammy’s New ‘Asian Pop’ Category Faces Backlash
On the 1st (local time), the Recording Academy, which hosts the Grammy Awards, announced the introduction of the ‘Best Asian Pop Music Performance’ category (hereinafter referred to as ‘Asian Pop’) for the 69th Grammy Awards to be held next February. This category targets contemporary popular music from Asian markets such as K-pop, J-pop, and C-pop. It requires that at least one Asian language be used with a meaningful proportion in the song, while entirely English tracks are excluded.
Following the announcement, BTS members took to their personal SNS accounts last July to express their opposition, stating, “We hope music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being categorized by region or language,” thereby declaring a boycott and refusing to submit entries to the Grammys. Subsequently, it was confirmed that Stray Kids also did not submit any music to the 69th Grammy Awards.
BLACKPINK Fails to Meet Eligibility Criteria
Amid the Grammy boycotts by BTS and Stray Kids, attention turned to who might become the inaugural winner of the ‘Asian Pop’ category. While BLACKPINK, who leads the global popularity of K-pop alongside the two groups, was frequently mentioned, it was revealed that their released tracks do not fit the ‘Asian Pop’ criteria.
According to the official regulations of the 69th Grammys, the eligibility period for this year’s submissions covers songs released from August 31 of last year to August 28 of this year. However, all tracks on BLACKPINK’s 3th mini-album ‘DEADLINE’, released last February, are entirely in English except for ‘JUMP’, making them ineligible for the ‘Asian Pop’ category. Furthermore, ‘JUMP’ was pre-released in July of last year and had already been submitted to the 68th Grammy Awards.
Uncertain Future for the New Category
Consequently, BLACKPINK falls far short of the ‘Asian Pop’ requirements, and the members’ solo tracks are either entirely in English or fall outside the eligibility period, leaving them unable to meet the criteria.
As BTS and Stray Kids’ boycotts are followed by BLACKPINK’s ineligibility, doubts continue to grow regarding the purpose and viability of the ‘Asian Pop’ category. Meanwhile, Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, claimed, “After weeks of conversations with leaders in the Asian music community, the voices supporting the creation of the Asian Pop category were much louder.”
Despite the Grammy’s persistence in establishing the ‘Asian Pop’ category, intense curiosity remains over who will ultimately claim the inaugural award.
