American R&B singer Bruno Mars has announced that Silk Sonic, which consists of himself and Anderson .Paak, have withdrawn their album An Evening With Silk Sonic from consideration for the 2023 Grammy Awards.
For a record or an artist to be nominated for the Grammys, recordings must be submitted by a representative, who is usually the artist’s record label, as per NBC. If an artist does not want their music submitted, it amounts to a withdrawal.
In a statement to Rolling Stone, Bruno Mars said:
“We truly put our all on this record, but Silk Sonic would like to gracefully, humbly and most importantly, se*ually, bow out of submitting our album this year. We hope we can celebrate with everyone on a great year of music and partake in the party. Thank you for letting Silk Sonic thrive.”
Mars further added:
“We’d be crazy to ask for anything more. Andy and I, and everyone that worked on this project, won the moment the world responded to ‘Leave The Door Open.’ Everything else was just icing on the cake. We thank the Grammys for allowing us to perform on their platform — not once but twice — and awarding us at last year’s ceremony.”
Bruno Mars has not lost a single Grammy nomination till date, taking his count to 14 Grammys.
Some reports speculated that Silk Sonic might have done so to avoid a repeat of 2018. Grammys was criticized heavily after Bruno Mars' album 24K Magic won all six categories it was nominated for. That year, Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar were among the heavy hitters in the running. Jay-Z was nominated for eight awards that year and did not win any, which led to severe backlash aimed at the Grammys.
Silk Sonic’s single Leave The Door Open won four Grammys earlier this year
The album's single, Leave the Door Open, which was released in April 2021, won four Grammys in 2022. The single won the awards in the record and single of the year. The full album, however, was released last year in November and is eligible for 2023 awards. Grammy prognosticators believed that the album was going to be among the top contenders in the Album of the Year category.
In response to Mars’ decision, Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said,
“Silk Sonic has been such a fun highlight of our last couple of shows and they deservedly had an amazing night at the 64th Grammys earlier this year. We appreciate their decision not to submit this year but look forward to celebrating an amazing year in music together.”
Drake withdrew his 2021 album Certified Lover Boy from Grammys
Bruno Mars is not the first artist to withdraw his album for consideration of Grammy nominations. Last year, Canadian rapper Drake withdrew the album Certified Lover Boy from consideration for Best Rap Album and Way 2 Se*y for Best Rap Performance. Drake reportedly did so to stand in solidarity with The Weeknd, who had called the awards corrupt.
Both artists did not submit any recordings for the 2022 Grammy Awards.
Drake noted that the Grammys needed to get "something new that we can build up over time and pass on to the generations to come." In a statement, Drake noted:
"I think we should stop allowing ourselves to be shocked every year by the disconnect between impactful music and these awards and just accept that what once was the highest form of recognition may no longer matter to the artists that exist now and the ones who come after.”
He also noted that there was a lack of nominations for other artists of color, which he felt the 2021 ceremony should have recognized.
Nominations for 2023 Grammys will be announced on November 15. The 65th annual Grammy Awards will take place in Los Angeles on February 5, 2023.