The Weeknd is calling out the Grammys after receiving zero nominations.
On Tuesday, the artist, whose real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, tweeted: “The Grammys remain corrupt.”
He added that the Recording Academy “owes” him, his fans as well as the music industry “transparency.”
According to Vulture, The Weeknd’s album, “After Hours,” which was released in March, spent four weeks on the Billboard 200 and has been certified platinum four times. In addition, his “Blinding Lights” single off of the 2019 record of the same name sat at No. 1 in March and broke the record for most weeks in Billboard Hot 100’s top five, the outlet reported.
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On Sunday, The Weeknd also took home three American Music Award trophies.
In addition to The Weeknd, other artists including Nicki Minaj and Justin Bieber also aired their frustrations with the Recording Academy.
Minaj, 37, said of losing the best new artist award in 2012, “Never forget the Grammys didn’t give me my best new artist award when I had 7 songs simultaneously charting on billboard & bigger first week than any female rapper in the last decade- went on to inspire a generation. They gave it to the white man Bon Iver. #PinkFriday,” she tweeted.
Meanwhile, Bieber, who was nominated for several awards including the best pop vocal album for his record, “Changes,” noted that he’s not “ungrateful” for the nod, rather he’s just sharing his thoughts. The 26-year-old artist explained that his album was intended and is an R&B record.
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“Please don’t mistake this as me being ungrateful, these are just my thoughts take em or leave em,” he captioned his note on Instagram before thanking those “who fought” for him to “even have any noms.”
The Weeknd called out the Grammys on Tuesday over his lack of nominations. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
In his note, Bieber said: “To the Grammys I am flattered to be acknowledged and appreciated for my artistry. I am very meticulous and intentional about my music. With that being said I set out to make an R&B album. Changes was and is an R&B album.
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“It is not being acknowledged as an R&B album which is very strange to me,” Bieber admitted. “I grew up admiring R&B music and wished to make a project that would embody that sound. For this not to be put into that category feels weird considering from the chords to the melodies to the vocal style all the way down to the hip hop drums that were chosen it is undeniably, unmistakably an R&B album!”
Nicki Minaj called out the Grammys for her 2012 best new artist loss. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Marc Jacobs)
Bieber ended his note by sharing that he does “absolutely” love pop music, however, “it just wasn’t what I set out to make this time around. My gratitude for feeling respected for my work remains and I am honored to be nominated either way.”
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As for The Weeknd’s lack of nominations, Recording Academy Chair and Interim President/CEO, Harvey Mason Jr., told Fox News in a statement on Tuesday: “Congratulations to today’s GRAMMY’s nominees who have earned their peers’ recognition for their incredible work. There were a record number of submissions in this unusual and competitive year.
Mason Jr. continued: “We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated. 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.
“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,” added Mason Jr. “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.”
Justin Bieber’s ‘Changes’ album was nominated for best pop vocal album. However, the star said it is an R&B record. (Photo by Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic)
Mason Jr. then addressed reports alleging that performing at the Super Bowl potentially cost The Weeknd Grammy nominations.
“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,” he said. “All GRAMMY nominees are recognized by the voting body for their excellence, and we congratulate them all.”
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Variety reports that other “widely predicted” artists who didn’t receive nominations include a handful of people such as, Alicia Keys, who has previously hosted the Grammys, The Chicks, Selena Gomez among others.