By TAKUYA SUZUKI/ Correspondent
April 5, 2022 at 17:13 JST
BTS performs "Butter" at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards on April 3 in Las Vegas. (AP Photo)
SEOUL--South Korean media expressed disappointment on April 4 after BTS failed to win a Grammy, blaming the awards' "traditional" nature, but praised the pop group for being nominated for the second consecutive year.
The seven-member boy band’s mega-hit single “Butter” was nominated in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category for the 64th Grammy Awards.
South Korean media outlets reported it as breaking news when “Kiss Me More” by Doja Cat Featuring SZA won in the category at the awards ceremony in Las Vegas late in the afternoon of April 3.
“BTS failed to win a Grammy for the second consecutive year,” South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency said in its coverage of the news.
The South Korean TV news broadcasting station YTN said the K-pop superstar group failed to collect the prize despite fans’ high expectations apparently because of the awards’ traditional nature, which places a higher value on the quality of the music than an artist's popularity.
The broadcaster noted it still carries significance that the exclusive awards institution nominated a BTS’ single like they did last year, when the group’s other mega-hit “Dynamite” received a nomination.
YTN praised the artists' achievements, saying no Asian pop singers have ever won a Grammy, the highest honor in pop music.
The digital version of Dong-A Ilbo, South Korea’s major newspaper, also gave BTS credit for “marking a new chapter in the history of K-pop” by being nominated two years in a row.
“It again captivated many people,” the newspaper said of the group’s performance at the awards ceremony. “The members, who performed on the stage wearing tight-fitting black jackets, elevated BTS’ status even higher.”
A 41-year-old reporter of Munhwa Ilbo, another South Korean newspaper, describes herself as a big fan of the group.
“I had high hopes for them to win a Grammy, so I was really disappointed,” she said. “Over the past year, BTS has brought great joy not only to the Army (their fans) but also other music fans around the world by staying active despite the COVID-19 pandemic. It doesn’t matter to fans whether the group wins a prize or not.”
K-Pop’s BTS marks year of the pandemic with ‘BE’ album, and single ‘Life Goes On’
November 20, 2020Attention! K-pop boyband BTS have to do military service
November 22, 2019Global K-pop fans emerge as political force, but some in S. Korea worry
June 23, 2020
South Korean fans head overseas to catch first BTS concert since the pandemic
November 26, 2021
South Korea passes law to allow BTS to postpone military service
December 2, 2020
Hitmakers BTS stamp their authority on American Music Awards
November 22, 2021
Stories about memories of cherry blossoms solicited from readers
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
A series on the death of a Japanese woman that sparked a debate about criminal justice policy in the United States
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
