Grammys CEO 'saddened' by BTS' non-participation in the awards
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. is dismayed at BTS' refusal to submit their music for the 2027 Grammy Awards.
In a statement obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, Mason Jr. sympathized with the K-Pop boy group's decision.
“I am saddened to hear that BTS has chosen not to participate in the Grammy Awards process this year, but as a music creator, I understand and respect their decision,” he said.
He went on to defend the new Best Asian Pop Music Performance category.
"The Asian Pop category was created to celebrate the depth, diversity and extraordinary growth of pop artistry coming out of Asia. The spirit of this new category is to shine a dedicated spotlight on these important artists. More categories mean more artists’ work is recognized," he added.
In June, the Grammy Awards introduced Best Asian Pop Performance among four other new categories, describing it as recognizing "artistic excellence in Asian pop music performances originating from or widely recognized within Asian markets, including but not limited to K-pop, J-pop and C-pop, with meaningful use of one or more Asian languages.”
The award has since received mixed reactions, with some arguing that it could prevent Asian acts from proper recognition in the general categories.
Mason Jr. clarified that "submitting music in a genre category such as Asian Pop, or Jazz or Country does not exclude an artist from also submitting and being considered in the General Field categories."
“Recognition in a genre category and recognition in the General Field are not mutually exclusive. An artist can absolutely pursue both," he added.
Mason Jr. added that the aim of the new categories is "never to divide, but to expand" who is recognized by Grammy voters.
On July 29, BTS said that they will not submit any music for consideration in the 2027 Grammy Awards.
Other major recording artists such as The Weeknd, Drake, and Morgan Wallen have also publicly criticized the Grammys and refused to submit their music for recognition.
The Recording Academy is made up of 30,000 members, working songwriters, performers, producers, engineers, and music professionals. It presents the prestigious Grammy Awards to recognize excellence in the recording arts and sciences in a peer-based voting process.