John Legend backtracks after Kanye West's Grammys outburst
R&B singer John Legend has thrown his support behind Beck after Kanye West ordered the rocker to hand his Grammy Award to snubbed pop star Beyonce.
The Stronger hitmaker hit headlines on Sunday (08Feb15) when he stormed the stage at the awards show after Beck won Album of the Year over his pal Beyonce, mirroring his infamous takeover at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2009, when Taylor Swift pipped the Irreplaceable singer to a prize.
After West's stage invasion incident, Legend came to his longtime
friend's defense, telling Us Weekly, "I thought it was funny, I
looked at it as just a funny thing that people were going to talk
about. It didn't hurt anybody. Anybody who's upset just needs to
relax. It was funny."
However, Legend has changed his mind after hearing West's interview
outburst, in which the rapper accused Beck of being "disrespectful
to inspiration" and insisted he "needs to respect artistry" by
giving the trophy to Beyonce.
Legend tells Us Weekly, "I want to clarify my thoughts on Kanye's
actions at the Grammys on Sunday... In my original comments to Us,
I said that when Kanye walked up on stage... most of the room,
including me, saw this as funny, as a way of taking the p**s out of
himself for his infamous behavior several years ago.
"When I said that was funny and people should lighten up about it,
that's what I meant. I wasn't referring to Kanye's comments after
the show, which I have now seen and heard. I disagree with those
comments... Beck is indeed a true artist's artist. He's a
multi-instrumentalist, a creative and unique singer-songwriter
whose music I have bought and enjoyed over the years... (He is) a
great artist deserving of recognition... We can all debate who we
thought should have won. But even if you didn't vote for him,
plenty of our colleagues in the music business did... I respect
their decision and congratulate Beck on this outstanding
accomplishment."