Sun 23 Oct 2016
Kanye West Says He’ll Boycott the Grammys If Frank Ocean Isn’t Nominated
Posted by Andy B. under Music News , Quotes , VideosNo Comments

There’s never a dull moment at a Kanye West show, but his recent Saint Pablo concerts have been even more eventful than usual. Last week in Seattle, Ye called out the Apple Music vs. Tidal streaming war, leading to all kinds of wild reports claiming that Jay Z hasn’t liked Kanye for years. Then, during his stop at Oakland’s Oracle Arena last night, Yeezy turned his attention to the Grammys after hearing about Frank Ocean missing out on nominations next year.
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Kanye told the crowd:
The album I listened to the most this year is Frank Ocean’s album. And I’ll tell you this right now: if his album’s not nominated in no categories, I’m not showing up to the Grammys. As artists, we gotta come together to fight the bullshit they been throwing us with.
Kanye’s heart was probably in the right place. Unfortunately, nobody told him that Frank Ocean chose not to submit his albums for Grammy consideration so it isn’t the recording academy’s fault if he doesn’t get any nominations (whether these rules need updating is for another debate).
“Whether the album was intentionally not submitted for the Grammys or an oversight took place was unclear at press time, although a source close to the situation tells Billboard that Ocean’s team was aware of the deadlines and made the decision,” Billboard wrote.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Kanye has threatened to boycott the Grammys. “I’m not going to the Grammys unless they promise me the Album of the Year!!!” he tweeted earlier this year, unaware that he didn’t actually have an album eligible for a Grammy at the time (he still didn’t go).
Read Kanye’s full comments below (via The FADER):
I don’t know if any of y’all remember, I was supposed to go on tour with [Lady] Gaga. Like about, 6, 7 — a while back. I remember, it was something where she was nominated… She wasn’t nominated for best new artist, right? But they wanted her to perform at the show, they wanted her to open. So the Grammys secretly changed something about the nominations to nominate her in order for her to perform in the show.
Now, Frank Ocean on the other hand is very vocal wasn’t nominated for the Grammys. Since he’s vocal, no one wants to say nothing about it. No one wants to do nothing about it. I’m saying this to y’all, because a lot of people try to make a scene like, ‘I’m so self-centered.’ But the album I listened to the most this year is Frank Ocean’s album. And I’ll tell you this right now: if his album’s not nominated in no categories, I’m not showing up to the Grammys. As artists, we gotta come together to fight the bullshit they been throwing us with. All we need is a fair shot. Let the album lose, let whoever win or lose. My whole point, my purpose, my existence, everything that people try to diss me for is based on just an instant replay plot. Imagine in sports they didn’t have no instant replay plot, and someone could step completely out of bounds.
Related: Frank Ocean’s ‘Blonde’ & ‘Endless’ Albums Not Considered For Grammy Nominations