Yahoo Movies The Weeknd Says Grammys 'Remain Corrupt' After Receiving No Nominations, Recording Academy Chair Responds
The Weeknd Says Grammys 'Remain Corrupt' After Receiving No Nominations, Recording Academy Chair Responds
"You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency..." the singer tweeted
The Weeknd is speaking out after he was left off the nomination list for next year's Grammy Awards.
The 30-year-old singer sent out a scathing tweet about his lack of recognition from the Recording Academy on Monday, hours after the nominees for the 63rd Grammy Awards were announced.
"The Grammys remain corrupt," he wrote. "You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency..."
Amid The Weeknd's tweet and a TMZ report that The Weeknd's snub may have stemmed from his decision to headline next year's Super Bowl, Harvey Mason Jr., Recording Academy Chair and Interim President/CEO, tells PEOPLE in a statement "that in no way could" The Weeknd's headlining of the Super Bowl "have affected the nomination process."
A representative for The Weeknd did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for further comment.
Kevin Mazur/WireImage The Weeknd
The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency...
— The Weeknd (@theweeknd) November 25, 2020
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Despite seeing success, The Weeknd's latest album, After Hours, failed to receive an album of the year nod. His single "Blinding Lights," which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent 40 weeks in the Top 10, also did not make it onto the list of final nominees for song and record of the year.
"We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated," Mason Jr. says. "I was surprised and can empathize with what he's feeling. His music this year was excellent, and his contributions to the music community and broader world are worthy of everyone's admiration."
According to TMZ's report, the Grammys officials issued the singer-songwriter an ultimatum between the two events, but came to an agreement where the musician could perform at both after heated negotiations.
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The Weeknd Says He and Usher Never Had a Feud: 'He’s One of the Reasons Why I Make Music'
"I have nothing bad to say about Usher. The sweetest, most down-to-earth guy ever," the "Starboy" singer told Esquire
"We were thrilled when we found out he would be performing at the upcoming Super Bowl and we would have loved to have him also perform on the GRAMMY stage the weekend before," Mason Jr. adds in his statement. "Unfortunately, every year, there are fewer nominations than the number of deserving artists. But as the only peer-voted music award, we will continue to recognize and celebrate excellence in music while shining a light on the many amazing artists that make up our global community."
Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images The Weeknd
"To be clear, voting in all categories ended well before The Weeknd's performance at the Super Bowl was announced, so in no way could it have affected the nomination process. All GRAMMY nominees are recognized by the voting body for their excellence, and we congratulate them all," the statement continues.
Sources close to the situation tell PEOPLE, "There were many conversations between the Grammys and The Weeknd team about his performance slated for the 2021 Grammys. There was an ultimatum given resulting in a struggle over him also playing the Super Bowl that went on for some time and was eventually agreed upon that he would perform at both events."
One of the insiders adds, "The Grammys had their nomination ballots as of Oct 12th and had all these convos with The Weeknd team in the past month and today on Nov. 24 The Weeknd had not one nomination and is now completely ignored by the Grammys. This was the year that they were supposed to rise up. What is the process and where is the transparency?"
The Weeknd has won three Grammys in his career so far. His last win was in 2017 when he picked up an award for best urban contemporary album for Starboy.
Currently, Beyoncé tops the 2021 nominations with a total of nine nods, while Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa and Roddy Ricch trailed closely behind with six nominations each.
