The Weeknd is so good that he can earn Grammy nominations without even trying … literally. He vowed never to submit his music for Grammy consideration again after his shocking shutout from the nominations last year. But he nevertheless picked up three bids when the 2022 nominations were announced on November 23. How did that happen?
The answer is pretty simple. While The Weeknd declined to submit his own music for consideration, that didn’t stop other artists from submitting their collaborations with him. And that’s where all three of his nominations came from. He’s up for Best Melodic Rap Performance for Kanye West‘s “Hurricane.” That song’s parent album, “Donda,” received an Album of the Year bid, so The Weeknd is nominated there as well as a featured artist. And he has one more Album of the Year nomination as a featured artist on Doja Cat‘s “Planet Her.”
The music industry is highly collaborative these days, so it’s not uncommon for artists to be featured on each other’s work. The names nominated for Album of the Year this year just as featured artists is a who’s who of the music industry: Chance the Rapper, Khalid, Tori Kelly, The Kid LAROI, and Lil Uzi Vert are among the artists nominated for Justin Bieber‘s “Justice.” Ariana Grande, Eve, and Young Thug are among featured nominees for Doja Cat‘s “Planet Her.” DJ Khaled, Lil Baby, and Ty Dolla $ign are nominated for H.E.R.‘s “Back of My Mind.” Miley Cyrus, Elton John, and Megan Thee Stallion are nominated for Lil Nas X‘s “Montero.” Bon Iver, Haim, and The National are nominees for Taylor Swift‘s “Evermore.” And Jay-Z, Pop Smoke, Roddy Ricch, Kid Cudi, and Travis Scott join The Weeknd in being nominated for “Donda.”
And that’s not even a comprehensive list. There are 29 featured artists nominated for “Donda” alone, including a couple the recording academy would probably rather not talk about: DaBaby, who came under fire for making homophobic comments onstage, and Marilyn Manson, who has been accused of sexual abuse by several women. What do you think of The Weeknd and this year’s other featured Grammy nominees?
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