The Weeknd Ends His Grammys Boycott With Surprise Performance

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Last night at the 67th Grammy Awards, it was quite unexpected to see The Weeknd performing – an event that wouldn’t have been predicted on our 2025 bingo cards. Following his vocal criticism of the Recording Academy in 2021 when his album “After Hours” received no nominations, The Weeknd decided to boycott the Grammys by withholding any submissions for awards. However, after the release of his new album “Hurry Up Tomorrow”, the artist broke his boycott and appeared on stage as a surprise guest during the ceremony.

He delivered an enchanting mix of crowd-pleasing hits from “Cry For Me” and “Timeless,” originally by Hurry Up Tomorrow, with a special appearance by his collaborator and tour partner, Playboi Carti, for the performance of the latter song.

I recall being awoken by news that The Weeknd criticized the Academy for a lack of transparency in their awards. I empathized with his sentiment, and now, Harvey Mason Jr., head of the Grammys, looks back on those remarks from 2021, acknowledging they sparked significant changes within the Grammys.

As a gamer speaking for the gaming community, what I’ve always hoped for is an organization that prioritizes the well-being of all game creators, one that truly represents our diverse and growing scene. Over the past few years, we’ve taken your feedback to heart, made changes, and evolved. We’ve introduced initiatives like the Game Developers Network (GDN), representing Women in Gaming, Queer in Games, and others. We’ve significantly increased the number of female voting members in our organization, reaching over 3,000. Our membership is now younger, more diverse with nearly 40% people of color, and a staggering 66% of our members are new since we embarked on this transformation journey.

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2025-02-03 18:26