The Interim President of The Recording Academy has apologized after asking actress-comedian Tiffany Haddish to host the ceremony without offering to pay her hair, makeup, wardrobe costs.
“All of that would have to come out of my pocket,” said Haddish, criticizing the Recording Academy and telling Variety in an interview that she had turned down the invitation. Haddish has been nominated for the Best Comedy Album category for her Netflix special Black Mitzvah. “I don’t know if this might mean I might not get nominated ever again, but I think it’s disrespectful,” the Like a Boss star said.
“I was like, ‘The exposure is amazing, but I think I have enough. I appreciate you guys asking,’” the Last O.G. star continued. “And as much as I appreciate the honor of being nominated, that’s not OK. This is something that needs to be addressed — how many other people have they done that to? It’s like a guy asking you on a date but telling you that you have to pay for it.”
In an Instagram video on Thursday, Recording Academy interim President Harvey Mason Jr. admitted the move was in “poor taste.”
“Unfortunately and without me knowing, the talent booker working for the Academy told Ms. Haddish that we wouldn’t even cover her costs while she hosted this event,” Mason said. “To me that was wrong. I’m frustrated by that decision. It was a lapse in judgment. It was in poor taste. And it’s disrespectful.”
Watch below:
Mason added that he talked to Haddish to personally apologize and on behalf of the Recording Academy. “I expressed my regret and displeasure about how this went down and how this was handled,” he said.
Meanwhile, a representative for the Recording Academy rep told Variety earlier in the week that the Academy is a nonprofit organization that historically hasn’t paid anyone participating in its award ceremony, be they hosts, performers, or recipients.
Viewership for this year’s Grammy Awards fell to a 12-year low of 18.7 million, according to the Nielsen ratings. Meanwhile, viewership within the all-important 18-49 age demo fell to an all-time low.
The next Grammy Awards are scheduled to take place on January 31st, 2021.
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