{"id":439972,"date":"2026-05-22T12:05:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T12:05:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/439972\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T12:05:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T12:05:16","slug":"k-pop-artists-to-look-out-for-at-2026-american-music-awards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/439972\/","title":{"rendered":"K-pop artists to look out for at 2026 American Music Awards"},"content":{"rendered":"

BTS, Katseye, Jennie and fictional K-pop group Huntrix highlight the genre\u2019s growing reach across major AMA categories<\/p>\n

\"BTS BTS (Big Hit Music) <\/p>\n

K-pop artists are set to make a major showing at the 52nd American Music Awards, with acts ranging from BTS to Katseye earning nominations across some of the ceremony\u2019s biggest categories.<\/p>\n

According to the nominations announced on May 14, BTS secured three nominations, including one considered as the ceremony\u2019s top honor \u2014 artist of the year \u2014 as well as best male K-pop artist and song of the summer, with \u201cSwim,\u201d the lead track from its fifth LP \u201cArirang\u201d earning a nod in the latter category.<\/p>\n

It will be BTS\u2019 second time competing for artist of the year after becoming the first Korean act to win the award in 2021.<\/p>\n

This year, the group will be up against Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga and Harry Styles. BTS is also expected to make an appearance at this year\u2019s AMAs, marking its first in-person participation at the ceremony in five years.<\/p>\n

\"Katseye Katseye (Hybe x Geffen) <\/p>\n

Another breakout artist this year is Katseye, the global girl group produced by Hybe and Geffen Records. The group earned nominations for new artist of the year alongisde artists such as Alex Warren, Ella Langley, Leon Thomas, Sombr and Olivia Dean, as well as breakthrough pop artist and best music video for its hit song \u201cGnarly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Katseye is also set to perform at the AMAs, alongside artists such as Twenty One Pilots, Riley Green, Sombr and Teddy Swims.<\/p>\n

The rookie act, which has rapidly expanded its fan base in North America, Latin America and Europe, has already placed three songs \u2014 \u201cGabriela,\u201d \u201cInternet Girl\u201d and \u201cGnarly\u201d \u2014 on Billboard\u2019s Hot 100 chart despite debuting less than two years ago. The group\u2019s latest release, \u201cPinky Up,\u201d ranked 76th on the chart dated May 23, continuing its fifth week on the chart.<\/p>\n

The growing visibility of K-pop extended beyond traditional idol acts this year as well. Netflix’ animated film “KPop Demon Hunters” earned a nomination for best soundtrack, while “Golden” from the movie’s fictional girl group Huntrix received nominations for song of the year, best pop song and best vocal performance.<\/p>\n

\"From From left: Rei Ami, Ejae and Audrey Nuna of Huntrix perform onstage during the 98th Oscars at Dolby Theatre on March 15. (Getty Images) <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Jennie also joined the list of nominees through her remix collaboration \u201cDracula\u201d with Tame Impala, which was nominated for song of the summer alongside BTS\u2019 \u201cSwim.\u201d<\/p>\n

Competition within the K-pop categories is expected to be especially fierce this year.<\/p>\n

Along with BTS, Stray Kids, Ateez, Enhypen and Tomorrow X Together will be competing together for the best male K-pop artist category. The best female K-pop artist race includes Aespa, Blackpink, Illit, Le Sserafim and Twice.<\/p>\n

Hybe Labels artists were particularly prominent across this year\u2019s nominations, with BTS, Katseye, Tomorrow X Together, Enhypen, Illit and Le Sserafim all earning nods. Beyond K-pop, Hybe America-affiliated artists including Quavo, BigXthaPlug and Tyla also secured nominations across hip-hop, country, R&B and Afrobeats categories.<\/p>\n

\"Nominated Nominated artists for the 52nd American Music Awards’ best male and female K-pop artist categories (AMA) <\/p>\n

Unlike many music awards determined by industry voting panels, AMA nominations are based on fan engagement metrics including streaming, album sales, radio airplay and tour revenue, making this year\u2019s results particularly reflective of global fan consumption trends.<\/p>\n

The AMAs will be held May 25, local time, at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. In Korea, the event will be available to watch on streaming platform Paramount+ and CBS at 9 a.m. on May 26.<\/p>\n

lee.jungjoo@heraldcorp.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BTS, Katseye, Jennie and fictional K-pop group Huntrix highlight the genre\u2019s growing reach across major AMA categories BTS…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":439973,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[156,157,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-439972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-entertainment","tag-music","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=439972"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/439972\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/439973"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=439972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=439972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=439972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}