Diddy Slams Grammys: Black Music Has Never Been Respected
Diddy Slams Grammys: Black Music Has Never Been Respected
Sean “Diddy” Combs is calling out the Recording Academy. On Saturday (January 25th), the 50-year-old music mogul expressed his thoughts about the Grammy’s at Clive Davis Pre-Grammy Gala. While accepting his award for the 2020 Grammy Salute to Industry Icons, he said that the Grammys have never respected hip hop or black music. See the clip below.
During his speech he stated:
“There’s something that I need to say to the Grammys — and I say this with love,” he said. “Every year y’all be killing us. I’m speaking for all the artists and executives: in the great words of Erykah Badu, ‘We are artists and we are sensitive about our s—.’ For most of us, this is all we’ve got. This is our only hope. Truth be told, hip-hop has never been respected by the Grammys. Black music has never been respected by the Grammys.”
He also said,
“I’m officially starting the clock: you’ve got 365 days to get this s— together,” he continued. “We need the artists to take back control, we need transparency, we need diversity. This is the room that has the power to [force] the change that needs to be made. They have to make the changes for us: They’re a non-profit organization that is supposed to protect the welfare of the musical community. That’s what is says on the mission statement: they work for us. It’s going to take all of us to get this done. I’m here for the artists, so sign me up.”
In the audience A-listers including: Jay Z and Beyonce, Cardi B and Wiz Khalifa could be seen standing and clapping at Diddy’s remarks.
His remarks come amidst the controversy that the Grammys faced this month when the Academy placed president/CEO Deborah Dugan on administrative leave. Deborah Dugan has since done an interview, stating that the Grammys voting process is rigged.
What are your thoughts on Diddy’s remarks? Let us know in the comments.