Beyoncé Was Robbed. Again. Let’s Talk About It.
The Recording Academy loves white mediocrity but punishes Black excellence—this year was no different.
Everybody knows Taylor Swift did not deserve Album of the Year for Midnights. Swifties know it’s true too, because the mental gymnastics on TikTok are hilarious.
I’ve seen some great TikToks breaking down why the brand Taylor Swift works so well. She’s the horse girl or theater kid with braces at 18 who loves her mom and has no friends. She’s the white girl in class with frizzy hair who reminds the teacher she forgot to collect the homework. She’s the one hanging out in the guidance counselor’s office because she has no one to sit with at lunch. In short, the loser in us finds her relatable.
She parades the idea of not being cool or sexy, and despite it all, she’s reached these great heights of fame and pulls super-hot celebrity men. Her life is designed for the daydreamer. Capitalism works the same way. People defend billionaires because they think, if I work hard enough, that could be me someday. Taylor Swift was just lucky and kind of rich—you’re just you.
Out of however many albums she’s released, Midnights is her weakest. Maybe I’m not educated in the art of lyricism, but to this day, I don’t understand what she meant by:
“Karma is a cat purring in my lap ‘cause it loves me.”
This essay isn’t even about Ms. Swift. It’s about the Recording Academy continuously snubbing Black women and rewarding white mediocrity.
If this were 20 years ago, Taylor Swift or Billie Eilish wouldn’t even be allowed in that auditorium. They’re good, but they’re not artists. Artists used to train their voices, learn to dance, and put in the work to give people a show. I watched Taylor’s concert movie and found her boring. She’s been in this game for how long and still doesn’t know how to dance? It doesn’t read as anything but lazy to me. Then again, I compare everyone to Beyoncé.
According to the Mirror, LaTavia Roberson—founding member of Destiny’s Child—explained how Matthew Knowles had them jogging in the park while singing and rehearsing for hours every day. Some call it abuse; I call it teaching kids the value of hard work.
Black women have to be twice as good to get half as far. We exceed the goalpost, rip it out of the ground, and they move it 100 feet away.
This lack of dedication is obvious in Taylor and Billie. Why would I spend thousands of dollars to watch a 3-hour show where you’re distracting me from the fact that you can’t dance? Or that you can barely sing?
Hater shit aside, SZA should have won Album of the Year. Beyoncé should have won last year and in 2017, 2015, and 2010. I’m glad Jay-Z finally said what we’re all thinking: 32 Grammy wins and none for the highest honor. The message is loud, clear, and familiar: you can be good, but not too good. You can be smart, but not too smart. You can be pretty, but not too pretty. White supremacy has a permanent side mission to humble Black women.
An artist who spent five years perfecting her body of work got snubbed by a generic pop album written by a generic white woman who was also writing her next album at the same time.
And if you’re thinking, “But Beyoncé has 32 Grammys, that’s enough!”—let me remind you in what categories:
2004 – Crazy in Love: Record of the Year? Nope. Won 5 R&B/Rap categories instead.
2008 – Irreplaceable: Record of the Year? Nope.
2010 – Halo: Record of the Year? Nope.
2015 – Beyoncé: Album of the Year? Nope.
2017 – Formation: Album of the Year? Nope.
2023 – Renaissance: Album of the Year? Nope.
The Recording Academy will make sure she wins every R&B, Urban, and Rap subcategory because she should be grateful—grateful we’re even “allowed in the room.”
Beyoncé (2014) completely shifted the cultural landscape of how music is released. That “visual album” by your favorite artist? Thank Beyoncé. She made “eras” and “visuals” a thing. She’s why music now drops on Fridays instead of Tuesdays.
To continuously deny Beyoncé Album of the Year is to deny her cultural impact. It says her work is good but never good enough. It says that while SOS was great, it couldn’t possibly be better than:
“Draw a cat eye sharp enough to kill a man.”
Anyway, ask me on March 1st how I feel about Taylor’s new album or if I think 1989 deserved to win in 2015. It’s Black History Month. I gotta support my people. ✊🏽😤
(Also, if the Chiefs win the Super Bowl, this shit is rigged and I will be pissed.)