The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) had announced plans to boycott the Grammy Awards moving forward after his 2021 snub, but he still secured three Grammy nominations for the 2022 ceremony.
The artist is featured on Kanye West’s song “Hurricane,” which received a nom for best melodic rap performance when the nominees for the 64th Grammy Awards were announced on Tuesday. The singer is also a featured artist on two album of the year nominees, West’s Donda and Doja Cat’s Planet Her (Deluxe).
For last year’s ceremony, the singer failed to receive a Grammy nomination despite being expected to be a big nominee. The singer’s hit After Hours album was snubbed from the album of the year category — After Hours held the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 chart for more than three weeks — as was his hit single “Blinding Lights” for record of the year.
After being snubbed, the singer took to social media to criticize the Recording Academy for the omission. “The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency…” he tweeted at the time.
In a statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter, Recording Academy chief Harvey Mason Jr. had responded to The Weeknd’s claims by calling his music “excellent” and inviting him to perform at the show. “Unfortunately, every year, there are fewer nominations than the number of deserving artists,” he said, in part.
Tensions continued to escalate, however, when The Weeknd revealed on social media that he was planning his Grammy performance “for weeks” before learning he received zero nominations. “Collaboratively planning a performance for weeks to not being invited? In my opinion zero nominations = you’re not invited!” The Weeknd tweeted.
The Recording Academy eventually announced that categories previously decided by the nominations review committees would now be determined on votes made by the academy’s 11,000-plus members. Nominees in the general field categories would also expand to 10 noms rather than the original eight. Despite the rule change, The Weeknd reiterated that he would still stand by his decision to boycott the Grammys.
The singer’s 2022 Grammy nom arrives amid The Weeknd’s song “Blinding Lights” being crowned the No. 1 biggest Hot 100 hit in Billboard chart history.
THR has reached out to The Weeknd’s rep for comment.
The 64th Grammy Awards will be broadcast live on CBS and Paramount+ on Monday., Jan. 31 at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT.
About Post Author
