K-pop makes small inroad at the Grammy's

It’s official: When it comes to the Grammys, the Recording Academy is still playing the same tired game of "look, but don't touch" with K-pop.

Despite Rosé and Bruno Mars practically blowing the roof off the building with their opening performance of "APT" at the Grammy awards Sunday, the night ended in a way that felt all too familiar to anyone who’s been paying attention.

Katseye's performance of their hit "Gnarly" nominated Best New Artist and Best Performance by a duo/group, reinforced the high energy and entertainment value of K-pop.

If you’re feeling a sense of déjà vu, you’re not alone. This year’s shutout of Rosé in the major categories—losing Record of the Year and Song of the Year—mirrors the frustrating history of BTS at the Grammys. For years, the Academy used BTS for ratings, inviting them to perform "Dynamite" and "Butter," yet repeatedly denied them a win in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category.

A trophy for K-pop

There was one win, however: the Grammys finally "gave" K-pop a trophy this year, but even that felt like a backhanded compliment. The win for "Golden" from the KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack happened in the Visual Media category during the pre-show, away from the main stage.

The team for "Golden" meant Grammys for EJAE (Kim Eun-jae), the Korean-American singer, songwriter, and producer, also known as the voice of character Rumi and her co-singers Korean Americans Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami; producers Teddy Park and Park Hong Jun and Yu Han Lee, Hee Dong Nam and Jeong Hoon Seo, songwriters and producers.

Filipino American winner

Asian Americans were not completely shut out at the Grammy's. Marco Paguia, the Filipino American music director/pianist and the original cast of the Buena Vista Social Club. won Best Musical Theater Album for their work on the Broadway musical.

Paguia's Grammy win, follows the Tony Awards’ Best Orchestrations and a special Tony  that he earned last June for his work on the Buena Vista Social Club.

SCREEN CAPTURE

The 6-member K-pop group Katseye performed at the Grammys Sunday night.

For K-pop, the pattern is clear: the Academy loves the global viewership and the high-octane energy K-pop brings to the telecast, but they still refuse to grant these artists the "prestige" of a General Field win. 

Rosé was good enough to open the show, but apparently, her historic impact wasn't "enough" to take home the hardware.

View from the edge

The Grammy's problem is that it tries to be all things to all genres, and when a new genre comes along like K-pop, it doesn't know how to categorize it. "APT" and "Gnarly" tried to bridge the gap with English lyrics, but, apparently, to no avail. However, "Golden" was able to break through which perhaps signals an opening.

Years ago, the recording industry was criticized for not recognizing country music and hip-hop so it had to make new categories to give those genre's their deserved recognition. The academy had the same problem with Latin music and gospel. The solution was the same.

Does the Academy need a complete overhaul of its voting block to finally recognize K-pop as global pop, or are these "performance-only" invites just the new normal?

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. 

Filipino American hockey star left off US Olympic team

NHL

Jason Robertson, one of the top scorers in the NHL didn't make the Olympic team.

 

In the high-stakes world of international hockey, where the 1980 "Miracle on Ice" legacy still casts a long shadow, USA Hockey GM Bill Guerin made a move that has fans and pundits buzzing: leaving Filipino American Jason Robertson off the 2026 Olympic roster. 

General Manager Bill Guerin and Head Coach Mike Sullivan emphasized "stylistic fit" and "balance". They chose more physical, defensively responsible forwards like Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller to handle specific checking roles that they felt did not suit Robertson's "pure scorer" style.

Robertson didn't hide his disappointment. While he was left off the Four Nations roster last year, he felt this season's star-making goal production had proven he belonged. 

The Dallas Star winger admits the snub "hurts your ego" but maintained a professional front.

“I thought that this year was different from last year. Obviously last year [for 4 Nations], I didn’t think I was good enough," he told reporters. "Now, I think I did. It’s their choice and their decision, and that's it."

Management’s logic was simple, if controversial: they aren't just picking the 12 best players; they’re building a team with specific roles. While Robertson entered 2026 leading all American-born NHLers in points, Guerin and Coach Mike Sullivan prioritized "two-way play" and "physical presence".

View from the edge

Sullivan, who is the New York Rangers' head coach,  selected two members of the Rangers, Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller, despite having significantly less than half of Robertson's total.

Management’s logic was simple, if controversial: they aren't just picking the 12 best players; they’re building a team with specific roles. Guerin and Sullivan emphasized building a cohesive team rather than just selecting top point-producers.

Guerin said Trocheck and Miller fit the physicality of the  "grit-and-grind" style established during the 2025 Four Nations Face-Off.

Robertson's absence is akin to leaving NBA star scorer Stephen Curry off the Olympic basketball team because he's not a great defender. As we saw in the 2024 Paris Olympics, it was his scoring, not his defense, that won the Gold Medal for the US.

It should be noted that the two NHL players scoring more than Robertson, Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, were named to Team Canada.

Critics argue that leaving home three of the top seven American goal-scorers—including Robertson—is a massive risk if the US struggles to find the back of the net in Milan. Even Dallas' goalie, Jake Oettinger, who did make the cut, called Robertson the "most pure goal-scorer" he’s ever played with.

“I think they leaned into familiarity,” said Malia Poblete, a writer for The Hockey News based in Eugene, Oregon. “A lot of the players had opportunities to connect in their careers earlier. However, there are no doubts these picks still have talent.”

FYI: The Olympic hockey games begins on Wednesday, Feb. 11, with  Slovakia taking on Finland. Team USA begins action on Thursday, Feb. 12, on NBC.

Robertson, born and raised in California, is one of several NHL players playing for US and Canadian teams of Asian heritage. They include:

• Nick Robertson (Filipino/American, Jason's brother): Toronto Maple Leafs
• Kailer Yamamoto (Japanese/American): Edmonton Oilers (recently with Seattle Kraken/Utah)
• Nick Suzuki (Japanese/Canadian): Montreal Canadiens
• Matt Dumba (Filipino/Canadian): Minnesota Wild (now Arizona Coyotes/Tampa Bay Lightning)
• Kiefer Sherwood (Japanese/American): Colorado Avalanche (now Nashville Predators)
• Kole Sherwood (Japanese/American): Columbus Blue Jackets
• Jonas Siegenthaler (Thai/Swiss): New Jersey Devils
• Akito Hirose (Japanese/Canadian): Vancouver Canucks

Robertson was named to the reserve Olympic team. If there are injuries he'd be the first off the bench, but as of now, he'll have to watch from the sidelines as Team USA tries to reclaim gold for the first time since 1980.

Despite the blow to his ego, Robertson stated he won't change his style: "I'm not going to change the way I play. I’m happy to keep doing what I do ... I just strive to be the best at whatever I can be. It so happened that this year was the Olympic year, and that's not gonna stop me from doing that the rest of the season. I love the game. I just keep playing. And that's the beauty of it."

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge.