Denzel Curry criticises Grammy rap nominations: “I still got robbed”

16 November, 2022

Denzel Curry has criticised the 2023 Grammy nominations, taking particular aim at the Recording Academy’s list of Best Rap Album nominees.

The rapper shared his thoughts in a series of Tweets posted today (November 16), shortly after the Academy announced Best Rap Album nominations for DJ Khaled’s ‘God Did’, Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Mr. Morale And The Big Steppers’, Pusha T’s ‘It’s Almost Dry’, Future’s ‘I Never Liked You’ and Jack Harlow’s ‘Come Home The Kids Miss You’.

Curry insisted that he could “literally name you 10 other albums that were actually good”. He went on to congratulate Pusha T and Lamar, but wrote of the remaining nominees: “All that other shit, come on bruh.” Curry then suggested a slew of fellow hip-hop artists he considered worthy of a nomination, beginning with rapper GloRilla.

The list of other rappers Curry said “should be nominated” included Smino, JID, Joey Bada$$, Redveil, Freddie Gibbs, Kenny Mason, Saba, Kenny Beats, Earl Sweatshirt and Key Glock. Praising those artists – and in particular, the albums ‘2000’ and ‘Learn 2 Swim’ – Curry said: “All my homies that came out with top notch solid albums this year got robbed.”

Curry also included his own 2022 album on the list, writing that ‘Melt My Eyez See Your Future’ “literally tied with one of the albums that was nominated for a Grammy and I still got robbed.” The rapper later took aim at the Recording Academy more broadly, saying that “They don’t care about the culture” and “only care about building the majors.”

He continued: “This shit [is a]bout money at the end of the day so if that’s what it comes down to I’m going get my bread up.” Elsewhere in the thread, Curry commended others rappers who “worked they ass off [sic]” while lamenting the Academy for “giv[ing] an award to half ass shit [six]”, and questioned whether artists were excluded because they “ain’t mainstream enough”.

Curry joins a list of fellow musicians who have likewise criticised the Grammys in recent years. Drake withdrew his two nominations for the 2022 ceremony, and, alongside The Weeknd, removed his 2022 album ‘Honestly, Nevermind’ from consideration at next year’s event.

In 2020, Drake wrote that “we should stop allowing ourselves to be shocked” by the Academy, after The Weeknd’s ‘After Hours’ was snubed that same year. Zayn, Iggy Azaelia, Billie Eilish, Halsey and Tyler, The Creator are among the other musicians who have criticised the Grammys in the past.

The Recording Academy revealed its list of 2023 nominees earlier today. Alongside the Best Rap Album nominees, artists named in other rap categories included Future, Gunna, Latto and Doja Cat, among others. See the full list of 2023 Grammys nominations here.

Curry released his fifth studio album ‘Melt My Eyez See Your Future’ in March of this year. In a five-star review of the album – which featured the likes of Slowthai, Rico Nasty and 6LACK – NME wrote: “It’s hard to revamp your sound with every project, but Denzel Curry is fast becoming the Renaissance man of Southern hip-hop, always 10 steps ahead of the game.”

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