Grammys Retain 'Asian Pop' Category for 2027 Amidst Artist Submissions Debate

Grammys will keep ‘Asian Pop’ category for 2027 awards, as Stray Kids follow BTS in declining to submit music

October 5, 2026 By Mandy Dalugdug

The Recording Academy will go ahead with its Best Asian Pop Music Performance category at the 2027 Grammy Awards .

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Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr. confirmed the decision in a statement published by Variety on Thursday ( October 1 ), saying the organization was “confident it’s the right conclusion for the music community overall.”

On Friday ( October 2 ), JYP Entertainment confirmed that Stray Kids did not submit any music for consideration at the 69th Grammy Awards before entries closed on August 21 .

The K-pop group joins BTS , whose members announced on July 29 that they would not submit music for the 2027 awards.

That decision kept the album ARIRANG out of contention , as MBW reported at the time.

The Academy unveiled the Asian Pop award on June 16 , as one of five new categories for the 69th Grammys .

In August , Mason said the Academy was reconsidering the category .

Grammy leaders had been in talks with musicians, labels, and managers across K-pop, J-pop, C-pop, Indian music, and beyond, according to the Academy , which said HYBE was among the companies it had spoken to.

“It’s clear from our numerous conversations with many stakeholders over the past two weeks that, regardless of our intent and desire to be even more inclusive, there are some artists in this space who feel that this category isn’t representing the music they work so hard to create, in the way they wish,” Mason said on August 14 .

“Over the past several weeks the Academy has been conducting listening sessions and have been in dialogue with leaders of the Asian music community,” said Mason in Thursday’s statement. “The journey has been rewarding and inspiring. Our organization is at its best when we engage deeply with music people and go the extra mile to understand their lived experiences.

“In this case, we heard candid feedback from people in our community who don’t support the continuation of this category. We also heard from people who didn’t have accurate information about the category, and having space to clear up misperceptions has been especially valuable. But by far, the loudest feedback we heard was from people who were enthusiastic supporters of the category, fellow music creators expressing their encouragement for keeping it.

> “We understand this conclusion will not satisfy everyone, and that never feels good. But at the same time, we are confident it’s the right conclusion for the music community overall.” Harvey Mason jr., The Recording Academy

“We understand this conclusion will not satisfy everyone, and that never feels good. But at the same time, we are confident it’s the right conclusion for the music community overall.

“As is the case with all our categories, we will continue to diligently engage with the music community and keep striving to honor this music – and all music – in the best possible way. We look forward to celebrating the Asian Pop Music Performance nominees at the 2027 Grammy Awards .”

The Academy also said it had received a “robust” number of submissions for the category, according to Variety .

JYP Entertainment did not give a reason for Stray Kids ‘ decision, according to The Korea Herald .

“Stray Kids did not submit for the Grammys,” the company was quoted as saying by the BBC .

In July, JYP said that all eight members of Stray Kids had been invited to join the Recording Academy , a step that would allow them to vote on Grammy nominees and winners.

The group has topped the Billboard 200 nine times, most recently with This & That in August.

Awards-prediction site Gold Derby had named Stray Kids among the contenders for the first Asian Pop award after BTS withdrew, as MBW reported in July.

The BTS members did not name the category in their July posts.

“We hope music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language,” they wrote, in a statement translated from Korean .

BTS have earned five Grammy nominations across three ceremonies but have never won a Grammy .

“This is not a boycott at the company level,” a HYBE official said in a statement to Korean media in July.

Mason defended the category in July , in a statement posted to Instagram .

“More categories mean more artists’ work is recognized. It’s never to divide, but to expand who is recognized by our 15,000 Grammy voters,” he said.

Mason added that entering a genre category does not prevent an artist from also being considered in the General Field, which includes Record of the Year , Album of the Year , and Song of the Year .

Under the Academy ‘s rules for the category , eligible recordings must feature “meaningful use of one or more Asian languages.”

Recordings performed entirely in English are not eligible for the award but remain eligible in other categories.

The rules state that musical style, rather than the ethnicity or nationality of the performer, determines eligibility for Best Asian Pop Music Performance .

A recording entered in another performance category also cannot be entered in the Asian Pop category in a different version featuring an Asian-language performance.

First-round voting for the 69th Grammy Awards runs from October 12 to October 22 , and nominations will be announced on November 16 .

The ceremony takes place on February 7, 2027 , and will air on ABC , Disney+ , and Hulu . Music Business Worldwide

News United States South Korea BTS Grammy Grammys Harvey Mason Jr. HYBE JYP Entertainment Recording Academy Stray Kids The Recording Academy

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_Originally reported by [Music Business Worldwide](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/grammys-will-keep-asian-pop-category-for-2027-awards-as-stray-kids-follow-bts-in-declining-to-submit-music/)._