Stray Kids will not compete at the 69th Grammy Awards, joining a growing movement of K-pop acts pushing back against the Recording Academy’s newly established Best Asian Pop Music Performance category.
JYP Entertainment confirmed the eight-member boy band did not submit any material ahead of the August 21 deadline. The management agency declined to provide a specific reason for the omission or comment on its connection to the ongoing award restructuring.
The decision carries extra weight this year because all eight Stray Kids members recently accepted invitations to join the Recording Academy. Their new status grants them full voting rights for the upcoming nominees and winners, yet they have opted out of personal contention.
Industry pushback and BTS boycott
The current controversy centres on the Grammys’ decision to debut a dedicated Asian Pop category in 2027. The award stipulates that eligible submissions must feature a «meaningful use» of an Asian language. While the Recording Academy intended to acknowledge the global surge of genres like K-pop, J-pop and C-pop, the move has drawn intense criticism.
Musicians and industry executives argue the specific classification segregates artists based on geography and language rather than allowing them to compete purely on musical merit.
Stray Kids’ withdrawal follows a boycott by BTS. The septet announced in July that they would also refuse to submit their music for consideration at the upcoming ceremony.
«We hope that music will be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being categorised by region or language,» BTS shared in a joint statement across their social media accounts.
Recording Academy defends changes
Despite the mounting boycotts from South Korea’s biggest musical exports, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr recently confirmed the Best Asian Pop Music Performance award will move forward as planned for the February 7 ceremony.
Mason defended the structural change by stating it was designed to expand recognition for Asian genres rather than marginalise them. He clarified that artists competing in the new genre-specific division remain eligible for major general field prizes including Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
