BTS, Blackpink Among 10 K-pop Acts Nominated for 2026 AMAs

Mo. Basuony

Published: April 15, 2026 12:14 AM ET

BTS, Blackpink Among 10 K-pop Acts Nominated for 2026 AMAs

BTS is in contention for Artist of the Year at the 52nd American Music Awards. The nomination list was revealed on Tuesday ahead of the 2026 AMAs.

Artist of the Year contenders

BTS is the only K-pop act nominated in the top artist category. Other nominees include Bad Bunny, Bruno Mars, Harry Styles, Justin Bieber, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, Morgan Wallen, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift.

A win would make BTS the only Asian artist to take Artist of the Year twice. The group first won the honor in 2021.

K-pop across multiple categories

Ten K-pop acts earned nominations across the AMA ballot. The field spans boy bands and girl groups in separate male and female K-pop categories.

The male group nominees are Ateez, BTS, Enhypen, Stray Kids and Tomorrow X Together. Female group contenders include Blackpink, ILLIT, Le Sserafim and Twice.

Solo artists and pop categories

No solo K-pop performer landed nominations in the Best Male Pop Artist or Best Female Pop Artist slots. K-pop’s presence is concentrated in group and genre-specific categories.

Notable track nominations

BTS’s lead single “Swim” is nominated for Song of the Summer. Blackpink’s Jennie also appears, with her collaboration “Dracula” with Tame Impala up for the same prize.

HYBE and new acts

HYBE’s U.S.-based girl group Katseye received three nominations. The group is up for Breakthrough Pop Artist, New Artist of the Year, and Best Music Video for “Gnarly” (2025).

HYBE is also the agency representing BTS.

Film soundtrack and standout song nominations

Netflix’s animated movie KPop Demon Hunters (2025) received a Best Soundtrack nomination. It will compete against soundtracks such as F1 The Album (2025) and Wicked: For Good (2025).

The song “Golden” from KPop Demon Hunters is nominated for Song of the Year, Best Pop Song and Best Vocal Performance. The track features EJAE, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami as the only Korea-related nominees in those categories.

For Song of the Year, “Golden” joins Olivia Dean’s “Man I Need,” Alex Warren’s “Ordinary,” Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild,” and Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia.”