The last time Sean Combs’ music competed at the Grammys, a then-unknown Mark Zuckerberg had just created Facebook, Nipplegate occurred at the Super Bowl and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King garnered a record-tying 11 Oscars. It was 2004, and Combs, aka Diddy, won best rap performance by a group or duo — his third Grammy — for the thumping hit “Shake Ya Tailfeather,” featuring Nelly and Murphy Lee. The track appeared on the Bad Boys II soundtrack, which Diddy executive produced and released on his Bad Boy label.
So his return to the Grammys, two decades later with a nomination for best progressive R&B album for his The Love Album: Off the Grid, is a major feat — and a proud moment for the artist. Some would even call the nomination a win (though we should note that there is zero chance his album can compete with SZA’s game-changing SOS).
Though Diddy isn’t nominated in the major Grammy categories, his bid for best progressive R&B album is noteworthy since the award honors R&B-based projects created by contemporary acts who blaze trails, including critical darlings like Steve Lacy and Thundercat. Seventy albums were submitted for the award this year, and the 54-year-old Diddy beat out revered acts like Daniel Caesar, Kelela, Jungle and Kali Uchis, whose Red Moon in Venus ranked second on THR’s best albums of 2023 list.
Diddy’s big comeback to music’s biggest awards show didn’t last long: Less than a week after the Recording Academy unveiled its nominees, singer Cassie sued her former record label boss and boyfriend, alleging he used his power to subject her to years of sexual and physical violence. Cassie and Diddy settled two days later, but more lawsuits from women followed with claims of rape and sexual assault. Combs has denied all of the allegations.
The severity of the allegations cast a shadow over the artist — and over the awards show that recognized him. Diddy’s representative tells THR that he won’t attend the Feb. 4 Grammys. Everyone nominated for a Grammy is invited to the show, and the Academy revealed in a Dec. 11 statement to RadarOnline that it is “taking this matter very seriously and we are in the process of evaluating it with the time and care that it deserves.”
In the past, the Academy has been lucky, in that such controversial nominees as Dave Chappelle, Dr. Luke and Louis C.K. have opted out of attending (although three years after his domestic violence incident with Rihanna on the eve of the Grammys nearly ended his career, Chris Brown returned to the show in 2012, earning his first Grammy and performing during the live event). And while it’s unclear what the Academy’s present-day stance is on celebrating the notoriously nominated, when THR asked about Chappelle’s and C.K.’s noms last year, Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said: “We don’t control who the voters vote for. If voters feel like a creator deserves a nomination, they’re going to vote for them. If there’s someone that’s been nominated that we don’t necessarily agree with, we’re not going to remove a nomination.
“We’re never going to be in the business of evaluat[ing] them on the scale of morality,” he continued. “Our job is to evaluate the art and the quality of the art. The thing that we can control is making sure that people that attend our events feel safe … and don’t feel threatened by anyone.”
With its 91 categories, disinviting Diddy could have meant having to apply a vetting process to all of its 450 nominees.
As a backdrop, while the allegations are high profile, Diddy’s nomination was not. Some people don’t even know that he released a new record in September. The Love Album only debuted at No. 19 on Billboard’s 200 albums chart, and its single, “Another One of Me,” spent a single week on the Hot 100 chart, landing at No. 87. In a way, that’s what makes the nomination that much more special — the album didn’t dominate streaming services or earn extreme critical acclaim, but it still was recognized by music professionals and showed up at the awards show.
And though Diddy’s name is at the center of The Love Album, it’s a group project. The collaborative effort was built on the backs of others, and it features top artists like Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, John Legend, Mary J. Blige, Herb Alpert, H.E.R., 21 Savage, Jazmine Sullivan, Burna Boy, Summer Walker, Teyana Taylor, Babyface, Busta Rhymes, Coco Jones and others. Producers include Stevie J, Timbaland, London on da Track, Metro Boomin, D’Mile, the Stereotypes, Nova Wav and more. That’s probably why it landed a nomination — because everyone involved in the album voted for it.
Diddy likely would have been in a super-celebratory mood the week of the awards show, launching an all-star pre-Grammy party to honor the nod and salute his collaborators on the project. He would have attended the show and made a TV moment out of it, despite not winning.
But that won’t happen now. For all parties involved, the love for The Love Album feels more like heartache.
This story first appeared in the Jan. 10 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
