Stray Kids Join BTS in Skipping 2027 Grammy Submissions Over New Asian Pop Category

A Quiet Snub With Loud Implications

Stray Kids have joined BTS in stepping back from the 2027 Grammy Awards process. According to reports from outlets including BBC and Variety, JYP Entertainment confirmed on Friday (Oct. 2) that the eight-member group did not submit any music for consideration at the 69th Annual Grammy Awards. The label did not elaborate on the decision, but the timing points squarely at the Recording Academy's newly introduced Best Asian Pop Music Performance category — the same category that prompted BTS to announce their own boycott in July.

For a group that has spent the past several years rewriting record books, the move is less a retreat than a statement. Stray Kids have never been shy about controlling their own narrative — they self-produce much of their catalog through the internal team 3Racha — and skipping the Grammys is another way of refusing to let an institution define their worth.

What the New Category Actually Says

The Recording Academy announced the Best Asian Pop Music Performance category in June 2026, alongside several other new awards including Best R&B Collaboration or Duo/Group Performance and Best Latin Song. The category is designed to honor recordings described as contemporary popular music originating from or widely recognized within Asian markets, including K-pop, J-pop, and C-pop. It sits in the Pop & Dance/Electronic field, and the award goes to the performing artist(s).

At the time of the announcement, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. framed the addition as a reflection of music's global growth, stating that the changes "speak to the breadth of today's music industry." But BTS saw it differently. When the group announced their boycott in July, they objected to awards being "divided by region or language." Mason responded at the time by saying he was "saddened" but respected their decision, and he emphasized that submitting in localized genre categories does not prevent artists from being considered in the general categories.

In early September, the Academy held a virtual call with more than 80 artists, executives, and stakeholders from the Asian music community to review the category's efficacy. By Oct. 1, the Academy confirmed it would move forward with the award. Mason acknowledged that the Academy heard from people who did not support the category's continuation, but said the loudest feedback came from supporters. "We understand this conclusion will not satisfy everyone," he said. "But at the same time, we are confident it's the right conclusion for the music community overall."

Why Stray Kids Had Every Reason to Submit

On paper, Stray Kids were exactly the kind of act the new category seemed built for. Over the past year alone, the group topped the Billboard 200 twice — with November's EP DO IT and August's THIS & THAT — and the title track from the latter reached No. 38 on the Billboard Hot 100.

That run is part of a much longer ascent. Since signing with Republic Records for U.S. promotions in 2022, Stray Kids have debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with every one of their entries, becoming the first act to achieve that feat with their first nine chart-topping releases. The streak includes Oddinary and Maxident (both 2022), 5-Star and Rock-Star (both 2023), Ate and Hop (both 2024), and the 2025 releases Karma and Do It, followed by 2026's This & That. Their 2023 album 5-Star was certified for five million sales by the Korea Music Content Association, making them only the third group in South Korea to reach that milestone.

As of May 2026, the group has sold more than 40 million albums across Korean and Japanese releases. Their 2023 Japanese EP Social Path / Super Bowl (Japanese Ver.) earned their first million certification in Japan, and Rock-Star's lead single "Lalalala" became their first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. Add in appearances on Time's Next Generation Leaders list in 2023 and Forbes Asia's 30 Under 30 in 2025, plus a Prime Minister's Commendation in South Korea, and the case for Grammy consideration was strong by any commercial or critical measure.

The Precedent Is Still Fresh

Asian pop music has historically been an afterthought at the Grammys. BTS became the first Korean artists to earn a nomination when "Dynamite" was recognized in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category at the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2021. They repeated the feat with "Butter" and again with "My Universe." A K-pop song did not win a Grammy until "Golden" from the film K-pop Demon Hunters took Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 68th Annual Grammy Awards in 2025 — and that was a visual media category, not a pop performance one.

Seen in that light, the new Asian pop category could be interpreted as progress. But the Academy's own framing — that it exists to honor music "originating from or widely recognized within Asian markets" — is precisely what critics like BTS and now Stray Kids appear to reject. For artists who have already conquered global charts, being slotted into a regional box can feel like a ceiling rather than a spotlight.

What Comes Next

Stray Kids have not issued a detailed statement, and the Recording Academy has not publicly responded to their decision. Billboard has reached out to representatives for both sides. What is clear is that the 2027 Grammy cycle will now proceed without one of the biggest acts in the world — a group that, by the numbers, could have been a frontrunner in the very category at the center of the controversy.

Whether this becomes a broader movement among Asian pop artists remains to be seen. But two of the genre's most influential acts choosing to sit out sends a message the Academy will have a hard time ignoring. For Stray Kids, the decision fits a career built on independence: they have always preferred to write their own rules rather than wait for an institution to write them.