In July, all eight members of Stray Kids were invited to vote on the Grammys. By the August 21 entry deadline, the group had entered none of its own music.
JYP Entertainment confirmed the second half on Friday, October 2, a day after Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said the Grammy Asian pop category, Best Asian Pop Music Performance, will go ahead at the 69th Grammy Awards on February 7, 2027. "Stray Kids did not submit any work to the Grammys," a JYP representative told Soompi, which adds that the agency gave no reason and did not say whether the new category was behind it. BTS said in July that it would not submit either. Under Grammy rules, Soompi notes, work that was not formally entered cannot be nominated or appear on a ballot. Both acts are out of every category for 2027, not only this one.
What the Grammy Asian pop category asks of a song
The Recording Academy announced it on June 16 as one of five new categories for 2027. In the Academy's words, it recognizes "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 language clause does the sorting. Per the category page, a recording "must feature meaningful use of one or more Asian languages." One sung entirely in an Asian language qualifies; isolated words, ad-libs or brief phrases do not, and a recording performed entirely in English is not eligible here. The rulebook, as Wikipedia quotes it, adds that "the musical style is determinative of eligibility, not the ethnicity or nationality of the performer(s)." The test is the song, not the singer: a Korean group's all-English single is outside the category.
BTS's case is less simple than the headlines. Its lead single "SWIM" is mostly performed in English, and NBC News reported it might not have qualified for the new category at all. What BTS gave up sits elsewhere. In July, Mason said a genre entry "does not exclude an artist from also submitting and being considered in the General Field categories," the Korea Times reported. The same paper notes that ARIRANG debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and "SWIM" reached No. 1 on the Hot 100. Neither will be on a Grammy ballot.
Who sat out, who went in, and the dates between
BTS went first. On July 29 all seven members posted the same statement on Instagram, which NBC News renders as "I hope that music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language." The group's Grammy record is five nominations from 2021 to 2023 and no wins, per the Korea Times; three of them came in Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, for "Dynamite," "Butter" and "My Universe," per the same Wikipedia page. That page credits the first K-pop Grammy win to "Golden" from KPop Demon Hunters, in Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 68th ceremony: a film-songwriting category, not a regional one. In September BTS won Song of the Year at the VMAs without attending, part of a three-trophy sweep.
Stray Kids followed. In the Korea Herald's reading, the eight-member group, which has repeatedly topped the Billboard 200, had been seen as a potentially prominent contender in the new category. No source we read names a single K-pop entrant. Complex reports a "robust" number of submissions for the category, with no figure.
The calendar, read against the decisions. Every dated step so far, in order:
| Date | Step | Source |
|---|---|---|
| June 16, 2026 | Best Asian Pop Music Performance announced, one of five new categories | Recording Academy |
| July 14 | Park Jin-young, TWICE and all eight Stray Kids members invited as Academy voting members, 18 artists in all | Korea Times, per JYP |
| July 29 | BTS says it will not submit | NBC News; Korea Times |
| August 21 | Online entry closes | Soompi; Rolling Stone |
| August 28 | Eligibility period ends (it opened August 31, 2025) | Wikipedia |
| October 1 | Mason: the category goes ahead | Complex; Rolling Stone |
| October 2 | JYP confirms Stray Kids did not submit | Soompi; Korea Herald |
| October 12–22 | First-round voting | Korea Herald |
| November 16 | Nominations announced | Korea Herald; Rolling Stone |
| February 7, 2027 | 69th Grammys, Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles; on ABC, Disney+ and Hulu | ABC News; Wikipedia |
Three gaps matter. Stray Kids' invitation came 38 days before entry closed. On the same day, JYP's CEO, Jung Wook, and chief strategy officer Shin Hyun-kook were made professional members, who per the Korea Times have no Grammy vote but may take part in the submission process. The agency had two executives cleared for submissions and entered nothing. Mason's October 1 decision came 41 days after entry closed: whatever his "listening sessions" concluded, no act could still enter because of it. And it landed 11 days before first-round voting.
What fans can and cannot do before November 16
None of these steps is a fan vote. Per the Korea Times, Recording Academy voting members vote in both the nomination and the final round, unlike the VMAs' Best Group, decided by fans on MTV's Instagram Stories. Soompi notes that the invitation makes Stray Kids' members eligible to vote, which would put the group on the ballot side of a category it is not in. Fan effort does count at K-pop's own shows: our MAMA Awards 2026 guide shows which prizes take app votes and which do not.
Quick answers
What is the Grammy Best Asian Pop Music Performance award?
A new category, announced June 16, 2026, for Asian pop performances, including K-pop, J-pop and C-pop, with meaningful use of one or more Asian languages. It is first presented at the 69th Grammys on February 7, 2027.
Can an English-language K-pop song compete in it?
No. Recordings performed entirely in English are not eligible, and isolated words, ad-libs or brief phrases in an Asian language do not qualify.
Which K-pop acts did not submit for the 2027 Grammys?
BTS, which announced it on July 29, and Stray Kids, confirmed by JYP Entertainment on October 2. None of the sources we read names a K-pop act that did submit.
Mina's Take
The category did not keep BTS off the Grammy ballot; the decision did. Mason said in July that a genre entry does not block the General Field, and NBC News reported that "SWIM" might not have fit the new category anyway. So the real price of sitting out is Album of the Year, where NBC says observers had expected BTS to contend. I would have entered the main field and left the new category alone. Stray Kids' case is the one coverage skips: asked to vote in July, absent as an entrant in August, with two JYP executives cleared for submissions. My call: when nominations land on November 16, at least one K-pop act is among the Best Asian Pop Music Performance nominees. If none is, two absences emptied the category, and I underrated them.
What to watch next
- October 12–22. First-round voting, per the Korea Herald.
- November 16. Nominations: the first public list of names in Best Asian Pop Music Performance, and the test of the call above.
- February 7, 2027. The category's first winner is named at the 69th Grammys.
Sources
- Stray Kids Confirmed To Have Not Submitted Music For 2027 Grammy Awards — Soompi
- Stray Kids join BTS in skipping Grammy submissions — The Korea Herald
- Five New Categories And Rule Updates Take Effect For 2027 Grammys — Recording Academy
- Best Asian Pop Music Performance — Recording Academy
- K-pop group BTS won't submit its music for Grammy Awards — NBC News
- BTS spent years chasing Grammys; Now tables have turned — The Korea Times
- Park Jin-young, TWICE, Stray Kids join Grammy voting body — The Korea Times
- Recording Academy Says Asian Pop Performance Grammy Category Will Stand — Complex
- Grammys CEO: Best Asian Pop Music Performance Category to Debut in 2027 Despite Controversy — Rolling Stone Australia
- Grammy Award for Best Asian Pop Music Performance — Wikipedia
- 69th Annual Grammy Awards — Wikipedia
- Grammys add 5 new categories, including 1st Asian pop award — ABC News
