BTS' 'Aliens' Tops iTunes Charts in 78 Regions Following Grammy Withdrawal
Key Takeaways
- •All seven BTS members announced their withdrawal from Grammy consideration through identical Instagram statements expressing hope that their music would not be divided by region or language.
- •The Recording Academy recently created a best Asian pop music performance category for the 69th Grammy Awards scheduled for February 7, 2027.
- •BTS' track "Aliens" reached No. 1 on iTunes Top Songs charts in 78 regions following a fan-organized streaming campaign.
- •The song "Aliens" compares the group's experience in the global pop industry to aliens arriving on Earth and addresses identity challenges faced as Korean artists in Western markets.
- •Producer Mike WiLL Made-It, Tablo of Epik High, and director Maggie Kang were among the industry figures who publicly supported BTS' decision to withdraw from Grammy consideration.
BTS' "Aliens," a B-side track from the group's fifth studio album "ARIRANG," has reached No. 1 on iTunes Top Songs charts in 78 regions, driven by a fan mobilization in support of the septet's decision to withdraw from consideration for next year's Grammy Awards.
All seven BTS members announced their withdrawal on Wednesday through identical statements posted on their respective Instagram accounts. The statements expressed their hope that their music "can be heard and loved for what it is, rather than being divided by region or language."
Within hours, the group's official fandom, ARMY, organized a coordinated streaming campaign that propelled the track to the top of iTunes charts across countries including the U.S., the U.K., France, Brazil, India, and Australia.
The Korean-language track draws a comparison between the group's experience navigating the global pop industry and aliens arriving on Earth. Its lyrics have since been revisited by listeners as a pointed response to what critics describe as the Grammys' effort to relegate K-pop into a distinct "Asian pop" category.
The song addresses the identity challenges the members have encountered as Korean artists operating within Western music markets. BTS has previously been nominated for Grammy Awards, including for their English-language singles "Dynamite" and "Butter," but has not won.
Support for the group's decision also emerged from within the U.S. music industry. Mike WiLL Made-It, the American producer behind "Aliens," publicly endorsed BTS on social media. Tablo of the hip-hop trio Epik High and Maggie Kang, the Korean Canadian director of Netflix's animated hit "KPop Demon Hunters," also voiced their backing.
The boycott follows the Recording Academy's recent announcement of a best Asian pop music performance category for the 69th Grammy Awards, scheduled for Feb. 7, 2027. The category is part of a set of changes introduced by the Academy for the upcoming ceremony cycle.
The Grammy Awards have faced longstanding accusations of racial and genre-based gatekeeping from prominent artists. Frank Ocean declined to submit "Blonde" for the 2017 ceremony. The Weeknd ceased submissions after "Blinding Lights" was excluded from nominations in 2020. Drake withdrew his 2022 nominations, and Zayn Malik has publicly accused the academy of favoritism in its nomination process.