Kanye West has been banned from appearing at the Grammy Awards next month, his team have confirmed.
The decision by the organisation, made apparently due to West’s “concerning online behaviour”, is the latest in a string of bad news for the rapper.
West, who is now legally known as Ye, was suspended from Instagram for 24 hours last week due to violating the platform’s policies on “hate speech and bullying and harassment”. In a flurry of posts made last week, West shared screenshots from a conversation with SNL star Pete Davidson, who is currently dating West’s now-ex wife Kim Kardashian.
He also lashed out at comedian Trevor Noah, who criticised West for his attacks on Davidson – to which West responded with a racial slur.
The post has since been deleted.
Though Noah will be hosting the Grammys this year, a source close to him has denied that he had a hand in West being barred.
“Trevor never asked the Grammys to ban Kanye from performing. He was not offended by Kanye’s Instagram post and Trevor responded on Instagram. The notion that Trevor or his team asked the Grammys to ban Kanye is ridiculous,” a source told CNN.
In a reported reply to Kanye’s comments Noah told West that “it breaks my heart to see you like this... There are few artists who have had more of an impact on me that you Ye.”
“You have every right to fight for your family. But you have to know the difference between that and fighting your family. I’ve woken up too many times and read headlines about men who’ve killed their exes, their kids and then themselves. I never want to read that headline about you.
He added, “If you’re just joking about it all and I’m an idiot for caring, then so be it. But I’d rather be the idiot who spoke up and said something to you in life, than the cool guy who said nothing and then mourns for you in prison or the grave.”
West is up for five Grammy Awards this year, and is doubtless hoping to add to his current tally of 22 from 75 nominations.
However, he was not on the list of performers announced by the organisation this week, and a representative for West told the Blast that “Kanye’s team isn’t surprised by the decision”.
Kim Kardashian filed for divorce against West in January 2021, after seven years of marriage. This month, she was declared legally single.
West has since been taunting the couple on social media, posting messages taunting her new partner Davidson and dropping his new music video for Eazy on the 2nd March.
In the video, he can be seen kidnapping and burying a cartoon version of Davidson alive and includes the lines: ““God saved me from that crash/ Just so I can beat Pete Davidson’s ass.”
Recently, West posted screenshots of messages from Kardashian, in which she accuses him of creating “a dangerous and scary environment”.
“Someone will hurt Pete and this will all be your fault,” she adds.
Though a representative from West’s team said that the decision to drop him was not unexpected, fellow rapper the Game – with whom West collaborated on his controversial single Eazy – has hit out at the Grammys about the controversy.
“Time and time again they show us that they only want to STEAL the culture, not allow you to ever be their equals,” he said.
“In a more than obvious move for reasons of minuscule actions … the Grammys have at the last minute decided to pull [West] from performing on the show as if we didn’t know it was coming.”
The 64th annual Grammys show will be held in Las Vegas on 3rd April.
