One of the biggest and richest K-pop groups, and Stray Kids, are boycotting the upcoming 2027 Grammy Awards. BTS became the first group to take the move after the Recording Academy introduced the new category for Asian pop music, which is the centre of the ongoing controversy.
Earlier in July, BTS said that they would be opting out of the upcoming Grammys by not submitting their songs for consideration in any category. In a statement, they said that they hope that their music “can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language”.
More recently, followed BTS’ footsteps by not submitting their songs for Grammys this year.
“Stray Kids did not submit for the Grammys,” read an excerpt from their official statement, as quoted by Soompi.
While Stray Kids didn’t initially reveal the reason behind their decision, recently their member Hwang Hyun-jin briefly commented on it. At a press conference for their new album, This and That, Hwang Hyun-jin was quoted as saying by BBC, “We have never once set award results or records as our goal. Our top priority is for our fans to be happy and satisfied,” he added.
BTS’ seven members collectively is said to hold an estimated ₩162.7 billion worth of HYBE shares as of March 2026, according to a report by the Korea CXO Institute cited by Korean media. This alone makes them one of the wealthiest K-pop groups even without including their personal assets.
Even now, popular girl group couldn’t submit their songs in the category due to ineligibility.
The Asian pop category mentions that the songs submitted must contain at least one Asian language. “This Category recognizes artistic 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. Awards are presented to the performing artist(s),” reads the official description.
Except for BLACKPINK’s Jump, all other songs in the group’s latest album Deadline are in English, making them ineligible. Interestingly, Jump was released prior to the Deadline album in July, which also makes it before the eligibility period for the 69th, ie., August 31, 2025 to August 28, 2026.
The new Asian Pop category is argued to be controversial by critics and fans. Many fear that categorising songs regionally and linguistically may lead to ghettoisation, possibly reducing the chances of Asian music to quality and winning across major categories such as Record of the Year or Song of the Year. Some have also called it “discriminatory” on the internet.
With big names out of the race, the category is likely to put focus on lesser-known K-pop groups.
