This weekend, music’s biggest night came with its fair share of drama! Plagued by criticism thanks to the way they handled The Weeknd’s smash hit album After Hours (they ignored it completely), the Grammys earned their headlines Sunday night with even more surprise snubs and shut-outs.
Before the show even began, some of the biggest names in pop music were already using unrepeatable words to describe it. Take, for example, Zayn, whose Nobody Is Listening record failed to score any nominations:
.@recordingacad are moving in inches and we need to move in miles. I’m keeping the pressure on & fighting for transparency & inclusion. We need to make sure we are honoring and celebrating “creative excellence” of ALL. End the secret committees. Until then … #fuckthegrammys
— zayn (@zaynmalik) March 14, 2021
Meanwhile, as the show got underway and awards were being handed out, The Weeknd stayed quiet, but his supporters didn’t:
no shade but the weeknd should’ve swept at least 8 grammys this year 😶
— zel (@denzeldion) March 15, 2021
He wasn’t the only artist that some people felt the Grammys purposefully excluded. Some asked if there was a racial bias in the nomination process, as several top-tier black rappers and singers seemed to be left out in the cold:
Kehlani, Teyana Taylor, Summer Walker, 6lack, Giveon, The Weeknd, Roddy Rich, Lucky Daye, Young Thug, Jhene Aiko. We see y’all 🙏🏾
— Savannah Ré (@SavannahReMusic) March 15, 2021
the grammys are deathly allergic to giving Black artists album of the year — u can run up the score in urban or rap categories but the main ones are for the home team
— Astead (@AsteadWesley) March 15, 2021
Speaking of – Roddy Ricch got shut out, scoring a few nominations, but no wins, much to the chagrin of his supporters.
Roddy Ricch not winning a single Grammy this year is the biggest snub besides The Weeknd
— Joey (@2014joeyhillsdr) March 15, 2021
That’s not where the controversy stopped, though. Early in the day, fans of the Korean boyband BTS were visibly upset and angry after their boys failed to win Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Almost immediately, several hashtags consoling the members went viral, and sales of the nominated song, “Dynamite,” shot through the roof.
.@BTS_twt’s “Dynamite” remains at #1 on this week’s Digital Song Sales chart with nearly 28K copies sold, up 16%.
— chart data (@chartdata) March 15, 2021
. 💜 💜
💜 @BTS_twt 💜
✨winners✨
in our hearts
💜 💜
💜 💜#GalaxyxBTS— Samsung Mobile (@SamsungMobile) March 15, 2021