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Global K-pop sensation BTS announced this Wednesday that they will not submit their music for next year's Grammy awards, following the Recording Academy's introduction of new categories including Best Asian Pop Music Performance.
The South Korean megastars were expected to compete for several of the top Grammy awards, including Album of the Year, after their comeback album, ARIRANG, became one of the biggest bestsellers of this year.
"This year we have decided not to submit ourselves to the Grammys," the members of BTS announced in coordinated posts on their personal Instagram accounts.
"We hope that music is heard and loved for what it is, rather than defined by region or language," they added.
BTS is the first all-South Korean group to top the Billboard singles chart in the United States, an achievement they reached with their 2020 track "Dynamite," their first hit sung entirely in English.
Despite performing at the Grammys and receiving several nominations, including Best Music Video, the group has never won.
ARIRANG, which takes its name from a South Korean folk song, includes songs with English lyrics and explores themes encompassing Korean identity following the band's hiatus for mandatory military service.
However, it would not have met the requirements for the new Grammy category for Best Asian Pop Music Performance, one of five new categories announced last month, because it requires that entries make "significant use" of at least one Asian language.
The Recording Academy stated that the new award aims to honor "artistic excellence in Asian pop music performances that originate from or are widely recognized in Asian markets, including, but not limited to, K-pop, J-pop, and C-pop."
The move sparked mixed reactions on the internet, with some critics pointing out that it boxes Asian artists into a separate category rather than recognizing them alongside their global peers.
[Publicidad]