BTS deciding not to summit their work for the Grammys after knowing theyβd most likely win next year is precisely what integrity looks like and I wish a lot of Latin artists would do the same thing.
The Grammys didnβt create that βBest Asian Musicβ category this year to be diverse. They did it to continue boxing non English speaking artists but especially BTS, so they wonβt have to nominate them in the main categories with the rest of their peers. This was the Grammys telling BTS theyβll give them a Grammy win but under their own boxed category. We give you the scraps and you are supposed to take them. They said no.
Theyβve been doing this for years under the disguise of diversity. βBest Traditional Country Albumβ a new category introduced after BeyoncΓ© won in the Best Country Album category because they couldnβt stand a non white artist redefining that genre. βBest African Musicβ being introduced in 2024 to keep Tyla away from other pop girls. And βBest Latin Songβ being introduced for this year along with Best Asian Music after Bad Bunny right fully dominated all of the charts last year. And mind you, Brazilian artists cannot even submit their work for this category because the rules say it has to be 51% in Spanish, even when Brazilians speak Portuguese but are Latin people.
It was never about diversity. Itβs about boxing and categorizing these artists when global music (or more like non English music) is becoming bigger each year and this is the only way they can keep their American/British peers safe in their space.
In BTSβ latest album ARIRANG, they have a song called Alien where they describe feeling alienated by the industry duo to their xenophobic behavior. Them creating this category when they released one of the biggest albums of the year is proving them right. At the end, this was the right choice.