Stray Kids and BTS will not submit music for the 2027 Grammy Awards. The two major South Korean acts announced their boycott in response to a new Grammy category for Asian pop music. Critics argue the new prize will segregate K-Pop and J-Pop from mainstream awards like album and song of the year.

BTS first announced their non-submission in July. Stray Kids followed the same path after their label JYP confirmed the group did not enter any work. The decision aligns with the band's long-standing focus on audience connection over industry trophies.

"We have never once set award results or records as our goal. Our top priority is for our fans to be happy and satisfied," Hwang Hyun-jin said during a press conference for their latest album in August.

Grammy chief Harvey Mason Jr confirmed the Asian pop category will move forward at the 2027 ceremony. He said the Recording Academy held listening sessions with Asian music leaders and received strong backing from creators.

"Over the past several weeks, the Academy has been conducting listening sessions and have been in dialogue with leaders of the Asian music community. 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," Mason Jr said.

The category, announced in June, honors artistic excellence in Asian pop music. It requires nominated songs to make meaningful use of an Asian language. This rule automatically excludes BTS and Blackpink, whose recent releases rely heavily on English.

Some industry observers compare the backlash to past complaints from Latin artists about segregated genre categories. The Recording Academy maintains the prize reflects the genre's growing global footprint, a point reinforced when Golden won the first K-Pop Grammy in February.

Other artists are watching the situation closely. Ateez leader Kim Hong-joon told Variety Magazine he shares some of BTS's concerns about the category's origins.

"I'd love to think about that too... But it seems like, for me... I agree [a little] with what BTS did," Kim said.

Grammy nominations will be revealed on 10 December.