Winner for Album Of The Year Beck reacts as Kanye West leaves the stage at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Photo / Getty Images
Winner for Album Of The Year Beck reacts as Kanye West leaves the stage at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Photo / Getty Images
Opinion
Chris Schulz takes on Kanye West over Beck's win and Beyonce's snub at the Grammys.
Kanye West says:
"If they want real artists to keep coming back, they need to stop playing with us. Flawless Beyoncé video. Beck needs to respect artistry, and he should have given his award to Beyoncé ... At this point, we tired of it! Because what happens is, when you keep on diminishing art and not respecting the craft and smacking people in the face after they deliver monumental feats of music, you're disrespectful to inspiration. And we as musicians have to inspire people who go to work every day and listen to that Beyoncé album, and they feel like it takes them to another place.
Winner for Album Of The Year Beck reacts as Kanye West leaves the stage at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards. Photo / Getty Images
"Then they do this whole promotional event, and they'll run the music over somebody's speech, an artist, because they want commercial advertising. We aren't playing with them anymore.
"And by the way, I got my wife, my daughter, and I got my clothing line, so I'm not going to do nothing that would put my daughter at risk, but I am here to fight for creativity. That's the reason why I didn't say anything tonight, but you all knew what it meant when 'Ye stepped on that stage.... Beck knows that Beyoncé should have won; you know that ... Come on, man. I love Beck! But he didn't have the Album of the Year."*
Chris Schulz says:
Prince, left, presents Beck with the award for album of the year for Morning Phase at the 57th annual Grammy Awards. Photo / AP
No, Kanye, Ima not gonna let you finish. Sit down, shut up, and calm your damned ego for four-five seconds. Beck deserved every single second of his time in the spotlight at the Grammys, and you tried to steal it from him. So, Mr West, get ready for a lecture about why Beck deserved his Album of the Year Grammy. Because if anyone needs it, you do.
Firstly, Beck's been making hip-hop longer than you. His slacker rap anthem Loser came out in 1993, followed by the alt-rap masterpiece Odelay in 1996; your first official production credit isn't until 2000, and your debut album came out in 2004. Maybe you need to thumb through the hip-hop rule book and re-read entry number one: respect your elders. Secondly, Morning Phase is a fantastic album. Sure, it's not an instantly accessible pop masterpiece like Beyonce or Pharrell's, nor is it full of emotionally-charged ballads a la Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran. But Morning Phase is teeming with meaningful, mournful songwriting from a master craftsman. The beautifully arranged acoustic harmonies in Morning and Waking Light are among some of the best songs of Beck's career. The Grammys was his time to shine.
Thirdly, and finally, LOOK AT THE SCOREBOARD. The Grammys have a long, lengthy history of steering the Album of the Year award away from more popular artists. In 1988, U2 beat Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Prince and Dolly Parton. In 2011, Arcade Fire beat Eminem, Lady Antebellum, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. As good as Beyonce's album is - and it is damned good - she never had a show.
*Kanye West is not on the TimeOut payroll. These quotes were compiled from interviews with Rolling Stone magazine, E! News and TMZ.
