NEWSCutting Ties! Following Major Grammys Snub, The Weeknd Is Boycotting The Awards 'Because Of The Secret Committees'
It's safe to say that one person who will not be watching the Grammys on Sunday, March 14, is The Weeknd, who announced that he will boycott the awards from now on.
The 31-year-old said his reasoning is because of the award show's "secret committees." His album After Hours received no nominations, despite "Blinding Lights" being a No. 1 single on the highly acclaimed record.
"I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys," The Weeknd, who was born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, added.
"We’re all disappointed when anyone is upset," Harvey Mason Jr., who is the interim president and chief executive officer of the Recording Academy, responded to The Weeknd’s statement. "But I will say that we are constantly evolving. And this year, as in past years, we are going to take a hard look at how to improve our awards process, including the nomination review committees."
Mason said that the album and its singles were not up for Grammys simply because they did not receive enough votes.
The "Save Your Tears" hitmaker was reportedly in talks to perform at the ceremony this year, but talks were said to become "testy" when he was allegedly pushed to choose between the Super Bowl LV halftime show or the Grammys.
THE WEEKND PUTS FULL FACE ON DISPLAY AT HALFTIME SHOW, BUT RECEIVES ABYSMAL REVIEWS: WATCH
"People told me I was going to get nominated. The world told me. Like 'This is it; this is your year.' We were all very confused," The Weeknd recalled to Billboard, as his team "did everything right."
"Look, I personally don’t care anymore," he said of his past Grammy wins but pointed out that "the last 61 years of the Grammys, only 10 Black artists have won Album of the Year. I don’t want to make this about me. That’s just a fact."
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"During such a difficult year and time in our society, the Grammy Awards nominations announced yesterday were a bold reminder to the world and our industry, yet again, of the groundbreaking global impact, influence, and contributions of Black music," a statement from the Grammys released last year reads.
The Academy reiterated that "the mission to be more inclusive continues."
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"The changes have been transformative," Mason said of initiatives such as the "Women in the Mix" pre-Grammy event this week to celebrate women in engineering and production, as well as the Black Music Collective to "amplify Black voices."
"If his peers didn’t vote for him, that’s a shame. … We don’t really believe that’s the truth; there’s just no way," music executive Chris Anokute said, but explained that he does trust Mason.
Zayn Malik is the latest to criticize the Grammys, after A-listers such as Kanye West, Nicki Minaj and Drake have also expressed grievances.
"F**k the grammys and everyone associated," Malik tweeted earlier this week. "Unless you shake hands and send gifts, there’s no nomination considerations. Next year I’ll send you a basket of confectionary."
The New York Times was the first to report that The Weeknd will boycott the Grammys.
