Will new category help BTS, Blackpink finally break the K-pop Grammy curse?

BTS or Blackpink might finally break the Grammy Awards curse that has left them empty-handed multiple times — thanks to a newly-created category: Best Asian Pop Music Performance.

On Tuesday, the Recording Academy announced the addition of five new categories: Best Asian Pop Music Performance, Best R&B Collaboration or Duo and Group Performance, Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance, Best Traditional Folk Album and Best Latin Song.

The Best Asian Pop Music Performance, by definition, would not be limited to K-pop acts. Within the category, K-pop artists are expected to compete with musicians across Asia.

“This category 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 Recording Academy said in its rulebook. 

The Grammy additionally noted that such changes reflect “today's dynamic musical landscape” and “extraordinary growth” across the industry.

The artists’ ethnicity or nationality will not be a criterion for eligibility, which will instead be determined by each song’s musical style.

The Recording Academy additionally clarified that recordings performed only in English would not meet the requirement of the new category, as eligible recordings must feature a considerable portion of one or more Asian languages.

This would mean the category would exempt K-pop songs whose lyrics are fully in English, such as BTS’s “Butter” (2021) and Blackpink’s “Typa Girl” (2022).  

Further, only briefly using Korean ad-libbing or having a few stray Korean words within mostly English lyrics would also disqualify a submission. 

Finally, duplicate submissions of the same recording but in different languages within performance categories are also not allowed, according to the rulebook.

The Grammy statuettes for Best Asian Pop Music Performance will be given to the performing artists.

"Golden" (2025), the chart-topping anthem from the original soundtrack of the hit animation “KPop Demon Hunters” (2025), became the first Korean song to win Best Song Written for Visual Media at the 68th Grammy Awards in February.

However, despite the tremendous global success of many K-pop groups, none of their recordings or performances has won a single Grammy Award. BTS was nominated for three consecutive years between 2021 and 2023, while Rosé of Blackpink earned three nominations in the latest edition of the awards, but neither managed to bring home any hardware. 

The upcoming Grammy Awards, which will be the first to feature the new categories, will be held on Feb. 7, 2027.

BY LEE SOO-JUNG [[email protected]]