What to know
- BTS will not submit its latest album, Arirang, for the 2027 Grammy Awards, citing concerns over music being categorized by language or region.
- The decision follows the Recording Academy’s introduction of a Best Asian Pop Music Performance category that requires meaningful use of an Asian language.
- Music commentator Eric Alper says the language requirement may leave some artists feeling their identities are being defined from the outside.
- BTS joins artists including The Weeknd and Drake, who have previously boycotted or withdrawn from Grammy consideration.
BTS says they will not submit its latest album for Grammy consideration, arguing music should not be defined by language or region, a move that experts say reflects a long history of artists using the awards to push for change.
The decision comes after the Recording Academy introduced five new Grammy categories, including Best Asian Pop Music Performance to represent Asian pop music including K-Pop, C-Pop and J-Pop.
Under the Academy’s eligibility rules, recordings submitted for the category must feature meaningful use of one or more Asian languages.
While BTS has released music in Korean throughout their career, the group’s biggest hit this year, Swim, is predominantly in English, making it ineligible for the new category.
In a statement posted to social media, BTS said they hope music can be “heard and loved rather than being distinguished by region or language.”
Expert says language requirement is at the heart of the criticism
Music commentator Eric Alper says the Recording Academy’s intentions may be positive, but the category’s language requirement is where some artists take issue.
“It’s the language requirement, the idea that a recording needs meaningful use of an Asian language to qualify, that can feel like it’s defining an artist’s identity from the outside,” Alper told Now Toronto.
For a group like BTS, whose recent music has increasingly featured English-language songs, Alper says the rule creates an unintended contradiction.
“I know where the Grammys are coming from with their support of as many artists as possible, but BTS is clearly saying, ‘We don’t need to sing in a specific language for anyone.'”
BTS joins a growing list of Grammy boycotts
BTS’s decision adds to a growing list of artists who have publicly boycotted or withdrawn from the Grammy Awards, including Toronto artists The Weeknd and Drake.
The Weeknd famously stopped submitting his music for Grammy consideration in 2021 after receiving no nominations despite the massive commercial and critical success of After Hours.
According to Alper, these decisions often stem from similar concerns.
“An artist feeling that the process behind the awards doesn’t match the scale or impact of the work, and using their platform to push for change,” he said.
Alper says artist boycotts can influence change over time, noting the Recording Academy has repeatedly updated its rules, eligibility requirements and award categories in response to industry feedback.
“A single boycott rarely changes anything overnight, but a pattern of artists speaking up clearly shapes how the Academy evolves,” he said.
Looking ahead, Alper believes continued dialogue between the Recording Academy and the artists the category is intended to recognize will be key.
“Categories like this tend to improve through iteration and ongoing dialogue. Given how much good faith BTS’s statement actually shows, this feels like an opening for a real conversation,” he said.
