Grammy CEO “Saddened” By BTS Withdrawal, Defends Asian Pop Category

After BTS sent shockwaves through the music industry with their withdrawal from the 69th Grammy Awards, the Recording Academy’s CEO has responded.

On Wednesday, shortly after the K-pop removed themselves from consideration in apparent protest over the newly added Best Asian Pop Music Performance category, Grammy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said he was “saddened” but, “I understand and respect the decision.

“I am saddened to hear that BTS has chosen not to participate in the Grammy Awards process this year, but as a music creator, I understand and respect their decision,” he said in a statement.

 “I do want to clarify something that seems to be getting lost in the conversation,” added Mason. “The Asian Pop category was created to celebrate the depth, diversity and extraordinary growth of pop artistry coming out of Asia. The spirit of this new category is to shine a dedicated spotlight on these important artists. More categories mean more artists’ work is recognized. It’s never to divide, but to expand who is recognized by our 15,000 Grammy voters.”

Mason also clarified that submitting music to any genre category does not exclude an artist from submitting to general categories like Record of the Year, Album of the Year and Song of the Year. “Those categories remain open to any eligible recording, regardless of genre. Recognition in a genre category and recognition in the General Field are not mutually exclusive. An artist can absolutely pursue both,” he explained.

“The Grammy organization is here to serve music and all the people who make it,” Mason continued. “As we continue to expand the reach, our membership and our awards, regardless of geography or language, I want to emphasize that we will continue to listen to the global music community and work to honor and celebrate all the artists whose music moves the world.”

Earlier on Wednesday, BTS members RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V and Jungkook posted in a joint statement, “We have decided not to submit for Grammy consideration this year. We hope our music can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language. We thank Army and everyone who has always stood by us.”

The decision comes after the Recording Academy announced several new categories last month, including the Best Asian Pop Music Performance, which is designed to recognize artistic excellence in “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.”

In March, BTS released their 10th studio album Arirang, the group’s first in six years, after pausing to complete their mandator 18-month South Korea military service.