The New York Times: "BTS, seeking to break down racial barriers just as Michael Jackson did" [K-EYES]

*This content was translated by AI.

In an op-ed published in the prestigious New York Times, a professor from New York University addressed BTS's boycott of the Grammys regarding the newly created category "Best Asian Pop Music Performance," describing it as "a mechanism designed to prevent K-pop's influence from encroaching on major award categories."

Dan Cha Na-seu (Prof.) of the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at New York University (NYU) published an op-ed titled "Pop Music Is the Problem" in the New York Times on the 9th (local time).

He pointed out that the number of Grammy categories has expanded from 28 in 1959 to 100 today. He noted that after Beyoncé became the first Black woman to win "Best Country Album," the Academy split the category into "Traditional" and "Contemporary." Similarly, following the massive success of songs from the animated film "K-Pop: Demon Hunters," a dedicated Asian Pop category was established. He argued that such segmentation has repeatedly reinforced racial boundaries.

Cha Na-seu (Prof.) also raised the fundamental question, "What exactly is pop music?" He noted that while the Dance category has specific judging criteria like "dynamic rhythm," the only qualification for the Pop category is simply being "pop."

He explained that American pop music was originally formed by excluding Black artists, citing Michael Jackson as evidence. Jackson was excluded from major Grammy categories in 1980 with his album "Off the Wall," and even his follow-up "Thriller" was only broadcast on MTV after the president of CBS Records pressured him to remove all his label's artists from the channel.

Unlike white artists who were readily called "King of Swing" or "King of Rock and Roll" without much proof, Jackson had to claim the title "King of Pop" himself.

He further noted that K-pop, which absorbed R&B, dance, hip-hop, and rock, is also a genre rooted in Black music. He evaluated BTS as "the only Korean group with the negotiating power to lead such change, potentially becoming the world's largest artists since Michael Jackson." As a solution, he proposed that the Academy should stop creating new categories based on race, nationality, or language.

After the op-ed was released, fans spread the hashtag "#ArtHasNoAliens" on X (formerly Twitter), sharing the phrase. However, some cautioned against misinterpreting the expression "the biggest since Michael Jackson" as meaning "BTS is bigger than Jackson," urging a more careful attitude.

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*This content was translated by AI.