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Stray Kids are 1 of K-Pop's biggest unrecorded acts, and precocious headlined the Rock In Rio Festival, alongside Elton John
One of the world's biggest K-pop groups, Stray Kids, are joining BTS successful boycotting the 2027 Grammy Awards.
The determination comes aft the instauration of a arguable caller class for Asian popular music, which critics fearfulness volition ghettoise genres similar K-Pop and J-Pop.
BTS announced they would not taxable songs for information successful immoderate category successful July, saying they hoped their euphony "can beryllium heard and loved for what it is, alternatively than being divided by portion oregon language".
Stray Kids, who precocious scored their ninth US fig 1 album, person present followed suit. In a abbreviated statement, their grounds statement JYP simply said: "Stray Kids did not taxable for the Grammys."
Stray Kids had antecedently refrained from giving a nonstop reply to questions astir the awards.
During a property league for their latest album, This and That, successful August, vocalist Hwang Hyun-jin said: "We person ne'er erstwhile acceptable grant results oregon records arsenic our goal.
"Our apical precedence is for our fans to beryllium blessed and satisfied," helium added.
The quality volition travel arsenic a stroke to the Recording Academy, which organises the Grammys.
Stray Kids are phenomenally popular successful the US, and precocious headlined the Governor's Ball festival successful New York, sharing the measure with Lorde and A$AP Rocky.
Earlier this year, each 8 members of the set were fixed voting privileges astatine the awards, which gives further value to their determination to withdraw. BTS are besides voting members of the Academy.
Image source, Getty Images
Before their determination to boycott the Grammys, BTS had performed astatine the ceremonial and received 5 nominations - though they person yet to triumph a prize
Stray Kids' announcement came hours aft Grammys brag Harvey Mason Jr confirmed the caller Asian popular class would spell up astatine the 2027 ceremony.
"Over the past respective weeks, the Academy has been conducting listening sessions and person been successful dialog with leaders of the Asian euphony community," helium said successful a statement.
"We heard candid feedback from radical successful our assemblage who don't enactment the continuation of this category. We besides heard from radical who didn't person close accusation astir the category, and having abstraction to wide up misperceptions has been particularly valuable.
"But by far, the loudest feedback we heard was from radical who were enthusiastic supporters of the category, chap euphony creators expressing their encouragement for keeping it."
He acknowledged that the determination "will not fulfill everyone" but said the Academy would proceed to person discussions implicit the improvement of the award.
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Harvey Mason Jr said the Grammys would "keep striving to honour" euphony from Asia
The Recording Academy announced the caller class successful June, saying it would recognise "artistic excellence successful Asian popular euphony performances originating from oregon wide recognized wrong Asian markets".
The prize had been nether treatment for years. It was yet introduced aft Golden, from the movie K-pop Demon Hunters, became the archetypal K-Pop opus ever to triumph a Grammy this February.
"As Asian pop's power has continued to turn wrong our process, our members and trustees felt this was the close infinitesimal to make a class that much accurately reflects the genre's scale, artistry and planetary impact," organisers said astatine the time.
But the grant received a decidedly mixed reception. Many felt it would halt Asian artists from receiving designation successful the main categories.
Others were upset by a stipulation that nominated songs should marque "meaningful use" of an Asian language.
That request ruled retired the 2 astir recognisable Korean acts successful America, BTS and Blackpink, whose latest releases are chiefly sung successful English.
The arguments against the Asian popular grant are akin to those made by Latin artists astir Grammy categories specified arsenic champion música urbana.
While the intent is to recognise euphony of a definite geographic oregon linguistic origin, immoderate musicians consciousness it ends up being exclusionary, with their euphony segregated from mainstream prizes similar medium oregon opus of the year.
That cognition was challenged this year, erstwhile Bad Bunny's Debí Tirar Más Fotos became the archetypal Spanish-language medium to triumph medium of the year. Rosalía's Lux is besides expected to diagnostic heavy successful the nominations for adjacent year's awards.
Nominations owed successful December
BTS and Stray Kids would person been eligible to vie for those prizes, but person decided to nonstop a connection to the Recording Academy instead.
Other large acts whitethorn person followed suit.
Earlier this week, Kim Hong-joon, person of the fashionable boyband Ateez, said helium had been impressed by BTS's stance.
"I'd emotion to deliberation astir that too," helium said successful an interrogation with Variety Magazine.
"I'm not definite due to the fact that no-one tin cognize astir the existent crushed they tried to marque that [category]. No-one tin recognise the existent reason.
"But it seems like, for me... I hold [a little] with what BTS did."
We volition find retired who did determine to participate their euphony for information erstwhile the Grammy nominations are revealed connected 10 December.
English (US)·