+the news

Kanye West calls for summit with Grammy Awards boss

Written by . Published: February 25 2016

Kanye West has demanded a meeting with Grammys boss Neil Portnoy in an effort to "fix" the awards show.


The outspoken rapper unleashed a new series of tweets on Wednesday (24Feb16) and took aim at the Grammys, naming a number of artists he felt should have been nominated.


"I would like to sit down with Neil Portnow right now...," he wrote. "I think the Grammys are super important!!! I know so many cool artists whose hearts have been broken by the politics including mine. We need to fix this."


Calling himself "the most important living artist", boastful Kanye added, "I feel the Grammy awarding system is way off and completely out of touch."


He then named Dexter Navy, the director of A$AP Rocky's LSD video, and rap peer Future among the artists he felt had been seriously overlooked by Grammy voters this year (16), before again urging Portnow, the president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), to make time for a chat with him.


"If I'm not at the show next year then there is no show," he added.


He ended his rant by stating, "First order of business. We the people need to see Future at the Grammys... We need to see Young Thug at the Grammys. Not just me and Jay (Z) in a suit."


Portnow appears to be keen to sit down with Kanye, responding to the rapper via a statement on Wednesday afternoon.


"Kanye West is a creative pioneer who has been recognized and honored by The Recording Academy time and again," it read. "We value his input as a member of the creative community, and our doors are always open to him.


"I continue to welcome Kanye, personally, to engage in a direct and productive dialogue about the future of music and the important role that music creators play in shaping that future."


He also posted a tweet on the Grammys' Twitter account, writing, "@kanyewest, I'm not on Twitter but just hit me up and let's have that sit down."

Error! Unable to retrieve any Images!