The Weeknd has doubled down on claims the Grammys are ‘corrupt’ after failing to nab a single nomination for this year’s awards.
The Canadian talent, 30, alluded to the controversy once again on Instagram Wednesday, calling out the Recording Academy amid reports the snub was in retaliation for his choice to perform at the Super Bowl instead of the awards.
‘Collaboratively planning a performance for weeks to not being invited?’ he wrote in white text on a black background. ‘In my opinion zero nominations = you’re not invited.’
The Weeknd earned the support of Elton John, 73, who took to Instagram on Wednesday to denounce the slight.
Not standing by: The Weeknd doubled down on his accusations against The Grammys on Wednesday after he was snubbed by the show. He called out the Recording Academy amid reports the slight was in retaliation for him performing at the Super Bowl instead of the awards. He’s seen in 2019 above
‘In my humble opinion….’ The Canadian talent earned the support of Elton John, 73, who took to Instagram on Wednesday to denounce the slight, saying he thinks Blinding Lights should have earned both Song Of The Year and Record Of The Year noms
The Benny And The Jets legend shared the cover of Blinding Lights and wrote: ‘In my humble opinion…………. Blind Lights. Song of the Year. Record of the Year.’ Making his point clear, he added the tag ‘#GrammySnub.’
Elton and The Weeknd became friends after the younger artist riffed on the classic Your Song on his track Scared To Live.
‘I’m so blown away I mean just to be part of his record,’ Elton told Billboard earlier this year. ‘For someone my age and as someone who loves what he does, I’m so thrilled and I just love him.’
The Starboy singer’s Wednesday post appeared to confirm reports he had been in talks with the Recording Academy about a potential performance.
He didn’t hold back in his criticism after Tuesday’s nominations were announced, calling the show ‘corrupt.’
‘You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency…’ he went on.
The Toronto-based star was involved in talks over whether he could play at the upcoming Super Bowl, sources told TMZ Tuesday.
Grammy organizers had demanded he pass on taking the stage at Super Bowl LV, before relenting and deciding he could do both.
Mutual respect: Elton and The Weeknd became friends after the younger artist riffed on the classic Your Song on his track Scared To Live. John is seen in 2017 above
Make it make sense: ‘Collaboratively planning a performance for weeks to not being invited?’ he wrote in white text on a black background. ‘In my opinion zero nominations = you’re not invited’
Insiders said that the Can’t Feel My Face artist’s camp suspected the lack of nominations were in response to the unpleasant back and forth over whether he would perform in the Super Bowl.
The artist, whose full name is Abel Tesfaye, released the record After Hours in March to strong sales and reviews, and it won Favorite Album – Soul/R&B honors at the American Music Awards this past Sunday.
Recording Academy interim chief Harvey Mason, jr. responded to the singer’s public complaints in a statement to Rolling Stone.
‘We understand that the Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated,’ he said. ‘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.’
Speaking out: The Weeknd, 30, didn’t hold back when he penned a note to Grammys organisers on social media on Tuesday
Mason continued: ‘We would have loved to have him also perform on the Grammy stage the weekend before’ the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, every year, there are fewer nominations than the number of deserving artists.
‘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.’
Asked by Variety about The Weeknd getting shut out, Mason said Tuesday, ‘It really just comes down to the voting body that decides.
Details: Grammy organizers demanded he pass on taking the stage at Super Bowl LV, before relenting and deciding he could do both
‘We have eight nomination slots to fill in [the Big Four categories: Best Album, Song, Record and New Artist], five in others, and the voters vote for their favorites. It’s really interesting, though.’
Mason opened up about the process Grammy officials take to suss out which performers are nominated, and in what categories.
‘We look at it every year and make tweaks and revisions to the process; we did it this year, last year, we’ll do it next year. And I don’t think this calls it into question, honestly,’ Mason said. ‘The process is there so we can continue to monitor excellence.’
Mason said he’s overseen the process and ‘the people that were in it are music professionals – they are excellent, at the top of their craft in songwriting and producing, and there are a lot of artists.’
He continued: ‘They were critically listening to every song that came across their desks – or virtual desks – so I don’t think it shows a flaw in the process.
‘I think it’s actually… as you get a nomination, you start to really appreciate the process, where you’re saying, ‘I really made it through a strenuous and thoughtful process,’ to get to who are really the deserving nominees for that given year.’
The Weeknd previously took home the Best Urban Contemporary Album for Starboy in 2018.
Popular: The artist, whose full name is Abel Tesfaye, won Favorite Album – Soul/R&B honors at the American Music Awards this past Sunday