If you've been paying attention to the Grammys, you might be feeling a little... outraged. Peeved, perturbed, if you will. The Recording Academy has done what it does best, in that it has chosen to not award the new-school darlings of the hip-hop and R&B world, Cardi B and SZA, with a smidgen of recognition beyond nomination.
SZA was nominated for Best New Artist—lost to Alessia Cara; Best R&B Performance and Best R&B Song—lost both to Bruno Mars; Best Urban Contemporary Album—lost that to the Weeknd; and Best Rap/Sung Performance—lost that to Kendrick and Rihanna. She didn't collect a single Grammy. Cardi, meanwhile, was up for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song—she lost them both to K-Dot.
Fans of both SZA and Cardi were understandably livid: how could their fave not win a single damn award that they were up for, when they were so clearly front-runners?
The fact that SZA was nominated for 5 Grammy’s and is leaving home with zero <<< she was robbed, snubbed, all of that! pic.twitter.com/VUcCb6t1Qw
SZA AINT WIN dis shit BLASPHEMOUS
When SZA & Kesha are robbed. #Grammys pic.twitter.com/DbieDsx1oI
I’d listen to Despacito another 100 times if it meant Kesha and SZA would get their rightly deserved #Grammys
I can’t even take the Grammys seriously anymore. @sza album is one of the most beautiful albums that I own. So relatable and raw.
Nothing against Alessia Cara, whose songs I like just fine, but SZA SZA SZA SZA SZA SZA [SZA in 200-point Comic Sans] SZA SZA ["SZA" shouted through bullhorn] SZA SZA SZA ["SZA" whispered into your ear while you sleep] SZA SZA SZA SZA SZA SZ
Updated List of people Robbed:
SZA
Cardi
Kesha
Gaga
We really robbed SZA and Cardi B this evening, didn't we?
Cardi B was robbed of the 2018 Music Educator Award tbh
Oh man. Cardi B. Robbed. I don't care about anything else now.
I'm highkey mad that Bodak Yellow didn't even win one Grammy smh Cardi deserved it so much it wasn't just the song of the year IT WAS THE SONG OF MY FUCKING LIFE BITCH FUCK THE GRAMMYS YALL BEEN CANCELLED SINCE YALL ROBBED JUSTIN LAST YEAR #GRAMMYs pic.twitter.com/dhsDwXF83V
Even TDE's co-president Punch reacted to SZA getting shut out, referencing the 2014 Grammys when Kendrick Lamar lost out to Macklemore.
It seems as though the Academy is operating at its usual pace: it collectively moved to only award the names that it knows best, rather than the ones that actually connected with the culture. Out of touch, much?
