The Weeknd is something of a ghost in the music industry. His ability to create hit after hit on a timetable that is very much his own has given him artistic quality that exceeds expectation.
That is to say, unlike other artists in the music industry, there doesn’t really seem to be a pattern in terms of how frequent he releases music, and his music always sounds amazing!
If anything, one could describe his music career as semi-erratic, releasing monstrously successful videos and songs for a period, but then leaving fans in quiet anticipation with no real timeline.
Starboy Cut?
His album Starboy was released in 2016 and it wasn’t until 2020 that he released his critically acclaimed album After Hours. Indeed, it was 4 years until The Weeknd released another album, so it came as little surprise that he was heavily awarded for yet another successful album release.
Few can ever forget his incredible song “Can’t Feel My Face”, and his song “Blinding Lights” is a credit to his artistic talent. He has now won 3 Grammy Awards and is ranked among the world’s most successful Canadian music artists ever.
Yet the Grammy’s decided he wouldn’t be featured!?
No Nominations!
It is speculated that the “Heartless” singer was uninvited to perform at the Grammy Award Show after it was confirmed he would be performing at the Pepsi Super Bowl LV Halftime Show, but what is even more startling is that The Weeknd received no Grammy nominations at all. Indeed, despite having an album that dominated the charts with at least 4 lead singles to rank at the top of the charts, The Grammy’s didn’t nominate him for anything.
Upon finding this out, The Weeknd had the following accusations to make:
“The Grammys remain corrupt, You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency…”
Not The First Time
Nicki Minaj shared similar sentiments about previous controversial decisions made by the Grammy’s in 2012, though she believes the reason another artist received an award instead of her was directly related to her being black.
“Never forget the Grammy’s 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,” she tweeted. “They gave it to the white man Bon Iver.”
You Were Great, But No Cigar
Harvey Mason Jr., Recording Academy’s CEO and interim president, shared that he sympathizes with The Weeknd, but he ultimately defended the decisions made.
“We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated,” Mason shared. “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.”
What makes his remarks even more bizarre is that it has been reported that The Weeknd had already been planning a performance for weeks’ with organizers, indicating that he was essentially cut from the event.
