The Weeknd has responded to being shut out of this year's Grammy nominations - and he is not happy.
The 'Blinding Lights' and 'Starboy' singer accused the music awards of being "corrupt" and said they "lack transparency."
Beyoncé led the nominations at this year's music awards, with nine in total. Dua Lipa, Taylor Swift and Roddy Ricch followed with six each.
The Weeknd received no nominations whatsoever in spite of his album 'After Hours' getting a highly positive reception.
After the nominations were announced, he wrote on Twitter: "The Grammys remain corrupt. You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency..."
Recording Academy chief Harvey Mason Jr. said in a statement: "We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated.
"I was surprised and can empathise with what he’s feeling. His music this year was excellent, and his contributions to the music community and broader world are worthy of everyone’s admiration."
There had been reports that the musician received an ultimatum from the Grammys, that he had to choose between performing at the ceremony or at the Super Bowl.
Mason, however, says they would have been happy for him to perform at both.
He added: "To be clear, voting in all categories ended well before The Weeknd’s performance at the Super Bowl was announced, so in no way could it have affected the nomination process. All Grammy nominees are recognized by the voting body for their excellence, and we congratulate them all."
He also noted: "As the only peer-voted music award, we will continue to recognize and celebrate excellence in music while shining a light on the many amazing artists that make up our global community."
In the past, the Grammys have been accused of bias against Black artists in the Big Four categories. Last year was the first time the Song and Record of the Year awards went to a rap song - Childish Gambino's "This is America."
