Grammys 2017 Boycott: Why these artists may not attend Sunday's awards show

Culture

The 59th Annual Grammy Awards lineup has been mostly confirmed for Sunday night. Adele, John Legend and Demi Lovato are on the list. But there are several well-known artists who are not expected to show up at the festivities this weekend. Here's why.

Justin Bieber

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Rumors have been swirling that Justin Bieber will skip the Grammy Awards this year. Some are speculating that he sees the show as "irrelevant" — but a show producer says he may in fact show up on Sunday. 

"We're actually still talking to Justin," Ken Ehrlich told ET at an Icons of the Music Industry event Tuesday. 

The singer is up for four awards this year. His song "Love Yourself" is nominated for best pop solo performance and song of the year, and his fourth studio LP, Purpose, could possibly take home the best pop vocal album and album of the year. 

In 2011, Bieber fans felt he was snubbed when he lost out on the best new artist award to jazz musician Esperanza Spalding . 

Frank Ocean

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Singer Frank Ocean is not expected to attend the ceremony this year. He decided not to submit his latest album, Blonde, or his visual album, Endless, to the Grammy voting committee for consideration. He doesn't believe the institution is "representing very well" for black artists, he told the New York Times in November.

"I think the infrastructure of the awarding system and the nomination system and screening system is dated," he said. "I’d rather this be my Colin Kaepernick moment for the Grammys than sit there in the audience.”

Both albums were released in August and could have made the committee's submission deadline, which was Sept. 30.  

Drake

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Drake won't be attending the awards, but it's not an act of protest — more like a schedule conflict. The rapper is currently on his Boy Meets World tour and will be performing in Manchester, U.K. the same night as the Grammys. He could possibly take away eight Grammy awards, including album of the year for Views and record of the year for "Work," the hit Rihanna song he's featured on.  

Kanye West

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This year Kanye West also has eight nominations, including best rap album for The Life of Pablo and best rap song for his controversial track "Famous." During a stop on his Saint Pablo Tour last year he told a crowd that he would boycott the Grammys if Frank Ocean wasn't nominated for anything. 

However, as stated above, Ocean hasn't put up his albums for consideration; a show producer says West's presence Sunday night is still a possibility. 

"Kanye, it's probably going to be a question of — if it will happen, it will or won't happen closer to the show," Ehrlich told ET.

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