Kanye West, Asshole of hte Day for February 10, 2015
On Sunday night, Kanye West performed at the Grammys twice – once alone, and once alongside Rihanna and Paul McCartney. Oh, and then, of course, there was the impromptu third performance. That’s the one everyone’s still talking about.
In the off-chance you missed it (and the media storm that followed), Beck’s ‘Morning Phase’ won Album of the Year, besting Beyoncé’s self-titled juggernaut in the process. When the quiet and soft-spoken Beck took the stage, Kanye bounded up after him in a dick move reminiscent of his infamous VMAs/Taylor Swift stunt in 2009. But in a rare bit of self-restraint, he quickly returned to his seat as Beck good-naturedly called after him to stay.
Everyone laughed (even if Jay Z seemed horrified at first) and for a brief, shining moment, it looked like Kanye West had finally developed a sense of humor about himself. But then he reminded us how utterly adorable it was to even consider it.
Speaking to E! at a Grammys after-party, West opened his mouth and out spewed this:
I don’t even know what [Beck] said. I just know that, the Grammys, if they want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us. We aren’t going to play with them no more. ‘Flawless.’ Beyoncé’s video. And Beck needs to respect artistry, he should have given his award to Beyoncé.
At this point, we tired of it. What happens is, when you keep on diminishing art, and not respecting the craft, and smacking people in the face after they deliver monumental feats of music, you’re disrespectful to inspiration. We, as musicians, have to inspire people who go to work every day, and they listen to that Beyoncé album, and they feel like it takes them to a different place. And then they do this promotional event, and they’ll run the music over somebody’s speech, the artist, because they want commercial advertising. We aren’t playing with them anymore.
And by the way, I got my wife, my daughter, and I got my clothing line, so I’m not going to do nothing that would put my daughter at risk, but I am here to fight for creativity. That’s why I didn’t say anything tonight, but you all knew what it meant when ‘Ye stepped on that stage.
Asked the next day if he was even familiar with Beck’s work, West replied:
“Come on, man, I love Beck, but he ain’t have the album of the year ... Beck knows that Beyoncé should’ve won ... You know that.”
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first: By pretty much any standard, ‘Beyoncé’ was a ground-breaking album. It would have been an extremely worthy Album of the Year recipient. But even Beyoncé can’t win them all. (In fact, I like to think she purposely loses awards on occasion just to fuel the myth that she’s actually human.)
Awards are often subjective, so Grammy voters decided to bestow Beck with the Album of the Year trophy. It’s not like he was undeserving. Sucks if your friends lose when you think they should win, but Kanye’s devotion to Beyonce is starting to get a little creepy.
For starters, his beef about the Grammys’ “disrespect” of her is ludicrous. With 52 nominations (both as a member of Destiny’s Child and as a solo artist), she is the most nominated woman in Grammy history. She’s taken home the hardware in 20 of those instances, three of them on Sunday night alone.
Last year, Forbes dubbed her the world’s most powerful celebrity. She is not a scrappy up-and-comer. She doesn’t need anyone – let alone someone as divisive as Kanye West – fighting her battles in the public forum. You have to think at this point she’s got to be at least somewhat embarrassed by it all.
In attempting to reduce the importance of one great talent over another, you make a mockery of all musicians and music from every genre, including your own. Grow up and stop throwing your toys around. You are making yourself look like a complete twat.
As for Beck, he handled the brouhaha exactly as you’d expect – with grace and dignity. It’s something Kanye should try sometime.
In the meantime, here’s an award that’s all his: Asshole of the Day.
