Canadian artist Abel Tesfaye, better known as The Weeknd, has seen impressive progress in his career this past year, and many thought it would culminate in a multitude of Grammy nods. His fourth studio album, After Hours, is his most powerful release to date, and the single "Blinding Lights" has developed a reputation of its own. Nevertheless, when the 2021 Grammy nominations were officially announced yesterday, The Weeknd was nowhere to be found. The revelation sparked immediate controversy, with many claiming that his upcoming Superbowl performance led to the omission, and some believing that there was a mishandling of his material during the nomination process.
Recording Academy interim president/CEO Harvey Mason, Jr. defended the process to Variety saying, “The process is there so we can continue to monitor excellence. I was in the ‘core room’ this year [which decides the main categories] and I observed, and the people in it are music professionals, at the top of their craft in songwriting and producing and there are a lot of artists. And 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. It’s a long, arduous process and people take pride in it. The people in that room care: there are no agendas in there, there’s no ‘let’s snub this person’ or that person. It’s about, ‘Let’s try and find excellence.’”
The Weeknd responded last night in a tweet that reads, “The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency…”
The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency...
— Abel Tesfaye (@theweeknd) November 25, 2020
