What Does the BTS Fallout Mean For the Grammys’ New Asian Pop Award?
Categoria: Musica
The Grammys set out to highlight Asian music, only to wind up with controversy. What is the best path forward?
Por Billboard | 01/10/2026
On Sept. 3, native Chinese singer Miist found herself on a Zoom call with more than 80 other artists, executives and stakeholders from the Asian music community, as well as trustees and governors from the Recording Academy. She was there to explain her point of view on the recent introduction of the Grammy category for best Asian pop music performance. The new category, one of five to be introduced for 2027, had come under fire after K-pop juggernaut BTS alluded to its introduction as the reason the group would not be submitting its music, including monster comeback album ARIRANG , for consideration at the forthcoming Grammy Awards — prompting the academy to call for a review process. “We all understand this new category needs to evolve, but everybody mostly had the attitude of, ‘We’re here to help,’ ” Miist says of the meeting, called A Conversation With Leaders in Asian Music, one of several that the academy convened following the BTS blowback. “Asians make up over 50% of the world population. If the Grammys represent the best in the world, shouldn’t Asia be represented?” Related ‘Every Moment Is Massive and Magnificent’: Noah Kahan Reflects on a Monumental Year — And Eyes a Grammys Breakthrough Aventura and Don Omar's 'Ella y Yo' Enters YouTube's Billion Views Club The Avalanches Set 2027 Tour of Australia Backlash was not what Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. had in mind when introducing the new category. Upon the announcement in June, he said he was excited to recognize the impact being made by Asian performers on music around the world. “As Asian pop’s influence has continued to grow within our process, our members and trustees felt this was the right moment to create a category that more accurately reflects the genre’s scale, artistry and global impact,” he wrote in a statement about the new category, which would be classified under the pop field. “Asian pop music is one of the most significant and sustained forces in the global music industry. Its impact is well-established, and it continues to grow and shape music culture around the world.” The category — designed to honor “excellence in Asian pop music performances originating from or widely recognized within Asian markets, including but not limited to K-pop, J-pop and C-pop, with meaningful use of one or more Asian languages” — had been under discussion for years, as the academy sought a way to acknowledge the global rise and wild popularity of K-pop acts in particular. And its addition felt even more urgent after the record-setting success of animated film Kpop Demon Hunters and its breakout single, “Golden,” in 2025, when the song spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 . “As we move forward,” Mason added, “we can continue to explore additional ways of recognizing even more creators within the broader Asian music community.” That enthusiasm didn’t last. Six weeks after the category’s announcement, the