"Let music be heard for what it is, not judged by the language it's sung in or the country it comes from."
THAT'S ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL STATEMENTS BANGTAN EVER MADE
[Forbes] With the success of their most recent album, ARIRANG, dominating the charts and breaking numerous sales records, many experts have slated it as a leading contender for the Grammy Awards.
The BTS members have spoken in the past about their desire for the golden gramophone.. But as time went on, BTS grew even bigger, breaking records and receiving other awards and recognition. Over their 13 years as a group, BTS has won over 500 awards domestically and internationally.
So when the album did eventually release and received global and critical acclaim, with the poise to dominate this awards season, the Recording Academy announced in June that there would be several rule changes and five new categories for the upcoming 69th Grammy Awards next year including Asian Category.
But with the Asian Pop Performance category, BTS’s refusal to participate in the Grammy Awards is a sign of protest over the new category that is meant to divide. The group has proven with this album, ARIRANG, that language has no barrier, as the group continues to embark on their World Tour across North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America, Oceania, and more from all walks of life will sing along to the traditional Korean folk song, “Arirang,” during their “Body-to-Body” segment.
BTS’s lack of presence in “music’s biggest stage” is their way of saying they’ve had enough with them. The members have mentioned their disdain towards the awards show
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#westandwithbts
BTS announced their hiatus. When nobody expected them to. They fulfilled their country's national duty. Without hesitation. They came back after four years. People doubted them. Said they were over. Said the industry had moved on. Then they released ARIRANG. The biggest. The boldest. The most artistically ambitious projects of the year. Ended the Western Darlings.
And now they've chosen NOT to submit their music to the Grammys, taking a stand against a system they believe categorizes music by region and language.
That's power. Not chasing the industry.
That's how history is written. That's how the industry changes.
I don't think people fully understand the magnitude of this decision.
Some of the music industry's most respected producers, writers, engineers, and creatives worked on ARIRANG. A project built to the highest artistic standard. One producer even spoke publicly about hoping the album would receive Grammy recognition.
Then the Recording Academy introduced a category specifically for Asian pop.
And BTS chose not to submit.
Think about that. The biggest musical project of the year. One of the strongest commercial and artistic contenders. A project that could have competed across multiple major categories. It simply won't be in the race because the artists chose principle over prestige.
Moves like this don't happen often. When artists at BTS' level willingly walk away from the biggest stage in music, the conversation shifts because of what they refused to endorse.
Wow, this crazy clear audio and you can hear Jungkook singing Arirang perfectly like he is beside the one taking the video and j-hope in the background with his mind blowing adlibs! The Golden Duo is on FYA🔥