Following complaints from artists like The Weeknd and Zayn Malik, the 2022 Grammys are making major changes.
According to a press release from the Recording Academy, there will no longer be any anonymous nomination committees at the Grammys which, previously, had a final say on who ended up on the ballot in a number of categories.
"It's been a year of unprecedented, transformational change for the Recording Academy, and I'm immensely proud to be able to continue our journey of growth with these latest updates to our Awards process," said Harvey Mason Jr., Chair & Interim President/CEO of the Recording Academy in a statement. "This is a new Academy, one that is driven to action and that has doubled down on the commitment to meeting the needs of the music community. While change and progress are key drivers of our actions, one thing will always remain—the GRAMMY Award is the only peer-driven and peer-voted recognition in music. We are honored to work alongside the music community year-round to further refine and protect the integrity of the Awards process."
The press release confirmed that while there were previously "15-30 highly skilled music peers who represented and voted within their genre communities for the final selection of nominees," now, "the results of Grammy nominations and winners are placed back in the hands of the entire voting membership body, giving further validation to the peer-recognized process."
Last November, The Weeknd called out the Grammys after his album After Hours was not recognized, despite it being a chart-topping critical and commercial success.
"The Grammys remain corrupt," the artist tweeted at the time. "You owe me, my fans and the industry transparency..."
In March, he declared he would not submit his music to future Grammys, telling The New York Times, "Because of the secret committees, I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys."
Malik echoed the "Heartless" singer's statement, tweeting, "@recordingacad are moving in inches and we need to move in miles. i'm keeping the pressure on & fighting for transparency & inclusion. We need to make sure we are honoring and celebrating 'creative excellence' of ALL. End the secret committees. Until then ... #f---thegrammys."
At the time, Mason said in response to The Weeknd's statement, "We're all disappointed when anyone is upset. But I will say that we are constantly evolving. And this year, as in past years, we are going to take a hard look at how to improve our awards process, including the nomination review committees."
Now, it seems that's exactly what they've done. Whether The Weeknd will return to the awards show, however, remains to be seen.