BTS will not submit for the Grammys... Mason CEO says "I understand but it's unfortunate"

BTS has announced that they will not submit entries for next year’s Grammy Awards, and Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy, which organizes the Grammys, has released an official statement. On the 29th, CEO Mason Jr. expressed through official social media that ″While it is unfortunate that BTS has decided not to participate in this year’s Grammys, we understand and respect their decision as music creators.″ Earlier, BTS stated on social media that they would not submit entries for the Grammys, mentioning, ″We hope music is heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language.″ Regarding criticism that the newly established Best Asian Pop Music Performance (APMP) category intends to separate K-pop artists from the mainstream market, Mason Jr. explained, ″It was created to honor the depth, diversity, and growth of pop music coming out of Asia,″ adding, ″It is not meant to segregate but to allow more artists to be recognized.″ He also added, ″Submitting to this category does not exclude artists from being considered for the main awards (General Fields) such as Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Song of the Year.″ Meanwhile, the controversy began not over the possibility of winning major awards but over the issue of categorizing music based on the artist’s region and language. There are ongoing criticisms that grouping different musical backgrounds and industry structures by country into a single category called ″Asia″ reflects a Western-centric classification.