South Korean boy band BTS left the Grammys without an award in hand on Sunday (March 14), Los Angeles time, but still the journey goes on.
BTS was nominated in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category at the 63rd Grammy Awards for its megahit single Dynamite. This year’s ceremony took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center without a live audience.
The group vied against four other nominees, and Rain On Me by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande grabbed the final prize. The song is from Lady Gaga’s sixth studio album, Chromatica, released last May, and was the first collaborative work by female artistes to debut atop the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.
The other nominees in the category were Justin Bieber’s Intentions featuring Quavo, Taylor Swift’s Exile featuring Bon Iver and Un Dia by J Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny and Tainy.
BTS is the first K-pop act ever to be nominated for a Grammy. The band is also the first Asian act to be shortlisted in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category, which was established in 2012.
“The chances didn’t seem so low, with Dynamite staying long inside the topmost ranks of the music charts, and even climbing back up recently. But the other nominees were just too strong a competition, ” pop music critic Jung Min-jae told The Korea Herald.
But the fact that BTS made it to the nomination stage at all can be seen as a huge step for the Grammys, which are notoriously conservative toward songs from new genres, those from non-Western artistes and those sung in languages other than English.
“We cannot deny that nomination itself holds huge significance. Not just K-pop acts, such as BTS, but it’s not common that a boy band or a girl group gets nominated or wins an award at the Grammys, ” Jung explained.
Indeed, the Backstreet Boys – a legendary US boy band – has been nominated eight times since their debut in 1993 but haven’t even won once. Jonas Brothers has also fallen short of a win despite two nominations since the band’s formation in 2005.
BTS was invited to the US music award ceremony for the third consecutive year, although it took place virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic. The group presented the best R&B album award at the 61st edition in 2019, then went on to perform at the annual event last year. Finally, this year, the seven musicians took part as both nominees and performers.
.@BTS_twt seriously deserve all their success and love Continue lighting it up like it's Dynamite!! #GRAMMYs #BTSARMY pic.twitter.com/k74vYVxi0q — Paramount+ (@paramountplus) March 15,2021
Despite not winning a Grammy, BTS made history with Dynamite.
Upon its release Aug 21, the all-English single debuted atop the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the first song from a Korean artist to top the American singles chart.
After staying there for three weeks at its peak, Dynamite has repeatedly rebounded back up the chart and ranked within the top 50 for 28 nonconsecutive weeks.
The video garnered a record 101 million views within 24 hours of its release on YouTube.
Expressing disappointment at this year’s Grammy results, cultural studies professor Lee Gyu-tag of George Mason University Korea said: “Their Grammy debut nomination itself was too late, as it should have come a year or two ago. The belated nomination had already proved how closed the Recording Academy was.”
Lee added, “It feels especially shameful as the members themselves had expressed anticipation. They had achieved almost everything else they could and seemed to consider this their final goal, in terms of winning an award.
"But I don’t doubt they’ll have another shot in the future, perhaps in the big four categories. After all, this was their first time being nominated.” – The Korea Herald/Asia News Network
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
