Iggy Pop on turning down the Grammys: “I hate those people”

Iggy Pop has opened up on his troubled relationship with the Grammy awards, because “I hate those people”.

• READ MORE: Iggy Pop – ‘Every Loser’ review: The Godfather of Punk stages a raucous return to his roots

In 2020, the legendary rocker was among the recipients of the Lifetime Achievement award from the prestigious organisation, but admitted that he struggled to work out whether to accept the honour.

He told Classic Rock: “The Grammys kept wanting to talk to me on the phone and I kept telling my manager: ‘I don’t want to talk to them. I hate those people. They want me to be an exhibit in their museum or something.’

“Then when I finally spoke to the lady from the Grammys a couple of months later she said: ‘We’re giving you the Lifetime Achievement. Without you, there’s no Lil Nas X and there’s no Billie Eilish.'”

He went on: “According to her, ‘You’re a direct link to the artists that are at the top of our awards list this year.’ So that’s what one person had to say, and I’ll take that for what it’s worth.”

In more recent news, the singer released his 19th solo album, ‘Every Loser’ last week (January 6) via Atlantic and Gold Tooth Records, the label of producer Andrew Watt. It was previewed by the singles ‘Frenzy’ and ‘Strung Out Johnny’.

The album features contributions from a variety of big names, including Guns N’ Roses‘ Duff McKagan and Red Hot Chilli Peppers drummer Chad Smith. The late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, who passed away in March, also contributed to the record.

Reviewing ‘Every Loser’, NME wrote: “‘Every Loser’ is a present-day primal punk resurrection from the only musician qualified to make one.”

In another recent interview, Pop revealed that he was once asked to join AC/DC, but thought he didn’t “fit the bill”.

“I listened to their record. I thought, I can’t fit that bill,” he told The New York Times. “I wasn’t, like, ‘Ugh, I don’t like them’. It was quite well made. They do careful work, but I’m not what they needed.”

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