BTSโs biggest US hit this year would have been excluded from the Grammy category built to celebrate Asian artists like them.
โSwim,โ the lead single from their album Arirang, hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100, sung mostly in English. The Recording Academyโs new Best Asian Pop Music Performance category, introduced in June alongside four other new awards, requires meaningful use of one or more Asian languages, defined in the rulebook as playing a significant role within bilingual or multilingual song structures. A song succeeding specifically because of its crossover English appeal doesnโt qualify for the category created to recognize Asian pop music.
Thatโs the contradiction sitting underneath BTSโs decision. All seven members posted an identical statement to Instagram declining to submit any music for the 2027 Grammys, saying they hope music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than divided by region or language. The group was a legitimate frontrunner for major categories, including Album of the Year, on the strength of Arirangโs chart performance. Choosing to sit out entirely, rather than simply skip the new category, is a rejection of the framework itself, not just a snub of one award.
Grammys CEO Harvey Mason Jr. responded that he was saddened but understood and respected the decision, framing the new category as recognition of Asian pop musicโs growth rather than a constraint on it. That framing runs directly into the โSwimโ problem. A category meant to elevate Asian artists ends up measuring them by linguistic criteria that penalizes the exact kind of crossover success that made BTS a global act in the first place.
BTS closes out European tour dates and returns to MetLife Stadium for the next leg of World Tour Arirang starting August 1, the same venue where they performed at this monthโs World Cup final halftime show, the first in the tournamentโs 96 year history. The Grammy decision doesnโt touch any of that. Itโs specifically an answer to how the Recording Academy chose to define them.
FฤฐFA, en gรผzel sahneyi alan BANGTAN net. Bangtanฤฑm o kadar gรผzel yapmฤฑลki sahneyi ve ลarkฤฑ seรงimi รงok gรผzel. BANGTANIM DA BANGTANIM
#fifadรผnyakupasฤฑ#bts
โThe Best Asian Music Performance category isnโt the priority for BTSโtheyโve already outgrown that category. ARMY should put their energy into supporting Arirang for Album of the Year instead.โ
โ Record Academy member, Adem Merter Birson.
โBTS: The Comeback Live | Arirangโ has been submitted for consideration at the 78th Emmy Awards by production team Done+Dusted.
โ The special is being considered across multiple technical and variety categories.
๐จ I think I reached the sad conclusion that people dont really listen to lyrics anymore. so if my words reach anyone I hope theyโll listen to this album one more time and truly pay attention to the stories weโre trying to tell personally,thatโs still something I quietly hope for
๐จ: 2026 the love of the american music awards goes tooooo ARMY!!!
๐ฅ: congratulations!
๐จ: Guys it's a beautiful night and we are making history together. felt like I don't know like kind of very strange feelings because it reminds me of 2017. 9 years ago when we first attended the AMAs. We had... we literally had no room so, we had to, like, fix our make up in the hallway. So when the stars maybe just passed by we were like"oh, hey I am sorry"/"we are sorry", but last night we used the biggest room. And everyone - every legend, every staff they were so nice and kind to us. And we know it's because of you guys. And yeah, it was really strange to experience it last night... I just wanna say this - you know, it's all thanks to you and we'll never forget the night we had at the AMAs. I love you.
VEGAS looking like a BTS theme park right now ๐ญ
No other artist in the world has coordinated this entire major metropolitan city's infrastructure, painting the Las Vegas Strip in their own album colors, solely for a concert run!
BTS really is a rare global entity, peak of the music industry.
#BTS_THECITY_ARIRANG #BTS_THECITY_ARIRANG_LASVEGAS #BTS