Stray Kids join BTS in walking away from the Grammys, with label JYP Entertainment telling media outlets including the BBC and Variety As of Friday, October 2, the boy band has not submitted anything for consideration at the 2027 awards.
The company would not elaborate on the eight-piece band’s decision to skip the Grammy Awards, but it seems likely that it comes in response to the Recording Academy’s recent installation of a Best Asian Pop Music Performance category. In July, the members of BTS announced they would not be attending the Grammys – despite their massive year with an album’s three weeks at the top of the Billboard 200. ARIRANG – to protest against the fact that the awards “are divided by region or language”.
Billboard reached out to representatives for Stray Kids and the Grammys for comment.
Adding the best Asian pop music concerts to the ballots has been a hot topic for months. At the time of the BTS boycott announcement, Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, said, “I am saddened to learn 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 want to clarify something that seems to be getting lost in the conversation,” he continued, emphasizing that submission in localized categories based on genre does not prevent artists from being considered in general categories. “The Asian Pop category was created to celebrate the depth, diversity and extraordinary growth of art pop from Asia. The spirit of this new category is to shine a spotlight on these important artists. More categories mean more artists’ work is recognized. It’s never about dividing, but expanding the number of people recognized by our 15,000 Grammy voters.”
As recently reported Billboardthe academy continued its discussions on the category in light of the controversy. In early September, a virtual call was held with more than 80 artists, leaders and stakeholders from the Asian music community, as well as trustees and governors of the Recording Academy, to assess the effectiveness of the new award.
However, on Thursday October 1, the academy confirmed its intention to move forward with recognition for the best performance of Asian pop music.
“Over the past few weeks, the academy has held listening sessions and engaged with leaders in the Asian music community,” Mason Jr. said. “In this case, we’ve heard candid feedback from people in our community who don’t support maintaining this category. We’ve also heard from people who don’t have accurate information about the category, and having space to clear up misconceptions has been especially valuable. But by far the strongest feedback we’ve heard “came from people who were strong supporters of the category, with other music creators expressing encouragement to keep it.”
“We understand that this conclusion will not satisfy everyone, and that never feels good,” he added. “But at the same time, we are confident that this is the right conclusion for the music community as a whole.”
Although they haven’t been recognized at the Grammy Awards, the Stray Kids have had an incredible run as of late. In the past year alone, the group has reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 twice with its November EP. DO IT and that of August THIS AND THAT. The latter’s title track reached number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100.
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