Miist
Chinese American recording artist Miist is stepping into the conversation around the Recording Academy’s new Best Asian Pop Music Performance category, which has sparked debate about representation, language and what the new category could mean for Asian artists.
The discussion comes as BTS has reportedly decided to withdraw from Grammy consideration.
In a new op-ed for Billboard, Miist explains why she has chosen a different path: submitting the Chinese-English version of “It’s Too Late To Love You” for consideration in the new category.
“I understand why some artists may decide that the strongest statement they can make is refusing to participate, and I respect that choice,” Miist writes in Billboard. “Mine is different. I would rather participate and help demonstrate what this category could become.”
The new category has raised questions about whether music from vastly different Asian cultures should be placed under one umbrella. There are also concerns that a language requirement could make things more complicated for Asian artists who primarily sing in English.
Miist understands those concerns firsthand. Born in China and launching her professional music career in the United States, she has spent much of her life and career moving between cultures and languages. She became the first native Chinese artist to reach the Top 25 of Billboard’s Pop/Adult Contemporary chart when the original version of “It’s Too Late To Love You” gained attention at U.S. radio.
Since then, her music has crossed Mandarin, English, Spanish and Italian.
In her Billboard essay, Miist says she believes the Recording Academy could have involved a broader group of Asian and non-Asian musicians in shaping and explaining the new category. She also raises a fundamental question: Should language determine an artist’s musical identity?
At the same time, Miist sees a real opportunity in the category.
For independent artists making music in Mandarin, Japanese, Korean and other Asian languages, she says the new category could help put their music in front of Recording Academy members who might otherwise never discover them.
But she doesn’t want that opportunity to come with a separate lane for Asian artists.
Miist believes Asian musicians should have the same chance as anyone else to compete for the Recording Academy’s biggest awards, including Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Album of the Year.
“Most of all, I hope the category becomes a doorway rather than a destination,” Miist writes.
That tension is at the heart of the current debate. Some artists may choose to step away from the new category, while Miist believes participating can also be a way to help shape what it becomes.
“There are musicians across Asia, including independent artists whose names American audiences have never heard, creating extraordinary work right now,” Miist writes. “Giving those artists another opportunity to be heard does not have to diminish anyone else. It can expand the conversation.”
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