Stray Kids will not be part of the 2027 Grammy Awards race. JYP Entertainment, the group’s label, confirmed that the eight-member act did not submit any music for consideration at the 69th Grammy Awards, following BTS in a decision that has become the defining story of the upcoming awards season.
The move sits at the center of a fight over the Best Asian Pop Music Performance category, a new Grammy prize the Recording Academy has confirmed will debut at the 2027 ceremony. For K-pop fans in the United States, the question is no longer whether the category exists. It is whether treating Asian pop as its own lane expands recognition for the genre or quietly caps it.
What Stray Kids Did, and What Not Submitting Means
JYP’s confirmation was brief: “Stray Kids did not submit for the Grammys.” The statement did not use the word boycott, though the BBC, KBS, and the Korea Times have all applied that framing to both Stray Kids and BTS.
The mechanics matter here. Under Grammy rules, work that is not officially submitted cannot enter nomination review or appear on the voting ballot. Stray Kids let the eligibility period close on August 28 without filing their latest project, This and That.
At an August press conference, the group had already signaled where its priorities sat. “We have never once set award results or records as our goal,” Hyunjin said at the time. Seungmin framed it another way, saying the group had “never once set out to make an album chasing a particular award or record.”
BTS Went First, and the Timeline Explains Why
Stray Kids are following a path BTS laid out months earlier. The Recording Academy announced the Asian pop category in June. In July, all seven BTS members shared a statement saying they would not submit music for Grammy consideration in any category, expressing hope that music “can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language.”
The Academy initially left room for a rethink. After backlash and internal listening sessions, it confirmed in early October that the category would proceed. Less than a day later, JYP confirmed Stray Kids had sat out.
The category itself was years in the making, and its arrival followed a milestone: “Golden” from the film K-pop Demon Hunters became the first K-pop song ever to win a Grammy in February, a win that made the case for Asian pop in the main ceremony as much as it made the case for a dedicated prize.
Inside the Asian Pop Category and Its Language Rule
The Recording Academy describes the award as recognizing “artistic excellence in Asian pop music performances originating from or widely recognized within Asian markets.” Its stated scope covers K-pop, J-pop, and C-pop.
One detail drives much of the criticism. Nominated songs must make “meaningful use” of an Asian language, a requirement that ruled out the two most recognizable Korean acts in America, BTS and Blackpink, whose recent releases are primarily sung in English.
Critics argue the category confines Asian artists to a regionally defined space instead of letting them compete in major and established genre fields. Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. has defended the decision, saying the Academy held listening sessions with Asian music community leaders and heard candid feedback from both sides. “By far, the loudest feedback we heard was from people who were enthusiastic supporters of the category,” he said, while acknowledging the outcome “will not satisfy everyone.”
Why Stray Kids’ Absence Carries Weight in the U.S.
Stray Kids are not a marginal loss for the Grammys. The group has topped the Billboard 200 nine times, the second-highest tally for any group behind The Beatles. They have also headlined Governor’s Ball in New York, sharing the bill with Lorde and A$AP Rocky.
All eight members hold voting membership in the Recording Academy, a status they received this year, and all seven members of TWICE were added to the voting body as well. Artists with a formal say in how the Grammys work chose to step outside the submission process entirely.
Some online commenters argued the group’s chances of winning were low regardless. That reading is hard to support. Before the deadline, Stray Kids were widely named among the leading contenders for the new category, and the BBC described their exit as a significant blow to the Academy.
The Bigger Debate, and What Comes Next
The Asian pop fight echoes a longer argument in music. Latin artists have raised similar objections about Grammy categories such as best música urbana, arguing that regional and language-based prizes can separate artists rather than celebrate them. The counterevidence is real too: Bad Bunny’s Debí Tirar Más Fotos became the first Spanish-language album to win album of the year, and Rosalía’s Lux is expected to feature heavily in the next nominations.
Supporters of the new category see overdue recognition. Critics see a side door. Both positions are now part of a public conversation the Academy cannot fully control.
Attention is turning to who follows. Hongjoong, leader of ATEEZ, told Variety he sympathized with BTS’s stance, saying, “I think I agree (a little) with what BTS did,” while making clear he is still weighing his own position. No other major act has confirmed a decision.
The next concrete moment arrives on December 10, when the Recording Academy announces its nominations. That date will show how many Asian pop acts entered the race, how the new category’s field takes shape, and whether the debate over the language requirement carries into the award’s second year.