The former One Direction star Zayn Malik has criticised the Annual Grammy Awards in a series of Tweets, accusing The Recording Academy of having “secret committees” and that there is a “lack of transparency” in the nomination process. This suggests that Zayn will boycott the Grammys until major changes are made.
Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid, his girlfriend, were not present at the awards ceremony in Los Angeles. He did not receive any nominations – his new third solo album ‘Nobody Is Listening’ was released on 15th January this year, but the window to be eligible for nominations were 1st September 2019 to 31st August 2020 for this year’s Grammys.
In the first of three Tweets, Malik claimed that no one will be considered for a nomination at the Grammys unless “you shake hands and send gifts”.
Fuck the grammys and everyone associated. Unless you shake hands and send gifts, there’s no nomination considerations. Next year I’ll send you a basket of confectionary.
— zayn (@zaynmalik) March 9, 2021
In the second Tweet, the singer clarified that his Tweet was not personal but that he is criticising the system itself which “allows favoritism, racism and networking politics to influence the voting process”.
My tweet was not personal or about eligibility but was about the need for inclusion and the lack of transparency of the nomination process and the space that creates and allows favoritism, racism, and netwokring politics to influence the voting process — zayn (@zaynmalik) March 10, 2021
In the last Tweet, Malik said that he is and will continue to fight for “transparency & inclusion” in order to ensure everyone is “honoring and celebrating ‘creative excellence’ of ALL.”
.@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
Malik has not been the only artist being vocal in criticising The Recording Academy. The Weeknd told New York Times that he is officially boycotting the Grammys after his album ‘After Hours’ was not nominated: “Because of the secret committees, I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys.” Drake also talked about how disappointed he is by the Grammys every year: “I think we should stop allowing ourselves to be shocked every year by the disconnect between impactful music and these awards and just accept that what once was the highest form of recognition may no longer matter to the artists that exist now and the ones who come after.”
Whilst Malik did not receive any nominations or awards, another former One Direction member Harry Styles found himself in a couple of nominations. Styles won ‘Best Pop Solo Performance’ for his ever-popular single ‘Watermelon Sugar’. His album ‘Fine Line’ was nominated in the ‘Best Pop Vocal Album’ category, which was snatched by Dua Lipa. Styles’ received another nomination for ‘Adore You’, for ‘Best Music Video’. The full list of winners and nominations can be found here.
