IRONICALLY, BTS’ SINGLE WOULD’VE BEEN EXCLUDED FROM THE ASIAN POP CATEGORY ANYWAYS”

BTS has announced that they will not submit tracks from their comeback album, *ARIRANG*, for consideration for the 2027 Grammy Awards.

The seven members of the K-pop supergroup (RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook) simultaneously posted the same statement on their respective Instagram accounts on Wednesday (July 29). The statement reads as follows:

“We have decided not to submit our work for the Grammys this year. We hope that music is heard and loved for what it is, rather than being defined by region or language. We thank ARMY and everyone who is always with us.”

This message effectively criticizes the judging criteria for the “Best Asian Pop Music Performance” category, a new addition to the Grammys announced last June. This category is one of five new ones introduced this year.

It is significant that the members mentioned both “region” and “language,” as the category stipulates that eligible songs must feature the “significant” or “meaningful” use of an Asian language.

Ironically, BTS’s English-language single “SWIM”, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, would not have even qualified for nomination in this new Asian Pop category, precisely because it is an English song.