BTS snubbed? Why ARMY is mad about the Grammy nominations
BTS arrived at the 2021 Grammy nominations with the kind of chart dominance and global fan devotion that usually guarantees multiple nods. Instead they received one. ARMY logged on and made their displeasure known, but the single nomination for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance still marked a line in the sand for K-pop at the Recording Academy. The story did not stop there. Over the next two years the group collected four more nominations, performed live at the ceremony, and watched the wider K-pop landscape shift in ways the 2021 snubs could not have predicted.
First for K-pop
BTS earned the first major-category nomination for any K-pop act when “Dynamite” landed in Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. The song competed against tracks from J Balvin and Dua Lipa, Justin Bieber and Quavo, Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande, and Taylor Swift and Bon Iver. The group posted a reaction video that racked up millions of views within hours. While BTS had previously won Best Recording Package for Love Yourself: Tear, this was their first recognition in a performance category. The moment also set the total at five nominations across subsequent cycles, none of which resulted in a win.
Was it enough?
Most fans and several outlets argued that one nod understated the year’s output. Map of the Soul: 7 moved more than four million copies, and “Dynamite” had already surpassed hundreds of millions of streams. The Recording Academy ultimately gave the award to Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande for “Rain on Me.” BTS later received two additional Best Pop Duo/Group Performance nominations, for “Butter” in 2022 and “My Universe” with Coldplay in 2023, but the pattern of recognition without a trophy remained.
Lackluster Album of the Year?
Observers also questioned the Album of the Year field, which overlooked The Weeknd, Chloe x Halle, Megan Thee Stallion, and Harry Styles. Coldplay’s Everyday Life and projects from Jacob Collier and Black Pumas appeared instead. The category later reflected broader industry movement when K-pop-adjacent tracks earned Record of the Year and Song of the Year nominations by 2026, signaling that the Academy’s earlier blind spots were beginning to narrow.
BTS's Additional Grammy Nominations
After the 2021 breakthrough, BTS added four more nods. “Butter” competed in Best Pop Duo/Group Performance in 2022. In 2023 the group received another nod in the same category for “My Universe” alongside Coldplay, while the parent album Music of the Spheres earned an Album of the Year nomination. A fourth nomination arrived that same year for the music video of “Yet to Come” in the Best Music Video category. None converted to a win, yet the cumulative total confirmed sustained visibility.
Impact of Military Service on BTS's Career
The nomination cycle overlapped with the start of mandatory military service for all seven members, which began in 2022. The agency confirmed the group would pause collective promotions and reconvene around 2025. That hiatus removed BTS from the 2024 and 2025 eligibility windows, creating a natural break between the five Grammy nominations and any future contention once the members return as a unit.
Evolution of K-pop at the Grammys
The landscape shifted again when Rosé’s collaboration “APT.” with Bruno Mars secured major-category nominations in 2026, the first time K-pop artists reached Record of the Year and Song of the Year. The Recording Academy also announced a new Best Asian Pop Music Performance category for the 2027 Grammys, explicitly designed to include K-pop. These developments reframed the 2021 nomination from an isolated milestone to an early chapter in a longer adjustment by the institution.
BTS Grammy Performance Highlights
Beyond the nomination itself, BTS made history at the 2021 ceremony by performing “Dynamite” live from a rooftop setup. The appearance marked the first time a K-pop group performed its own song on the Grammy stage. The broadcast segment reached an international audience that had followed the group’s rise through streaming platforms and social media, underscoring the performance’s role in widening the Academy’s visible platform.
The original disappointment from ARMY reflected real expectations after years of global sales and streaming numbers. Subsequent nominations and structural changes at the Grammys show that the 2021 moment opened a door rather than closing one. BTS’s five total nominations and the later inclusion of other K-pop acts in major categories provide a clearer timeline of gradual recognition that continues to unfold.
