Rap mogul Jay-Z delivered a scathing critique of the Grammys as he received the Dr. Dre Global Impact award on Sunday night.
The hip hop star, who was joined by his 12-year-old daughter Blue Ivy, slammed the Recording Academy for consistently snubbing Beyoncé by never awarding her Album of the Year despite her 32 wins in other categories.
“How far we have come with Will Smith, The Fresh Prince winning their first Grammy in ’89 and boycotting, because it was not televised,” he said.
Jay-Z calls out the #Grammys for never giving Beyoncé the Album of the Year trophy, despite her record-setting 32 wins. pic.twitter.com/htakmJGEKH
— Variety (@Variety) February 5, 2024
“And then they went to a hotel to watch the Grammys. I don’t even understand, it was not a great boycott. But then in ’98, I took a page out of their book and was nominated for best rap album.
“And DMX put out two, they were both number one, and he was not nominated at all. So I boycotted, and I watched. I’m just saying, we want you all to get it right. We love y’all, we love y’all. We want you to get it right, or at least get it close to right. And obviously, it’s subjective, because it’s music and its opinion-based, but some things…”
Looking directly at Beyoncé, Jay-Z continued, “I don’t want to embarrass this young lady, but she has more Grammys than anyone, number one album of the year. So even by that metric, it does not work. Think about that, most Grammys, never won album of the year, that does not work… When I get nervous, I tell the truth.”
Both Beyonce and Jay-Z have been nominated for 88 competitive Grammy Awards. He has won 24 while she has won a total of 33.
They have both been nominated for Album of the Year six times but have never won.
