John Legend has reflected on racial injustice in the music industry, claiming that it’s “almost impossible” for Black artists to triumph in the top awards category at the Grammys.
Speaking in the July issue of Entertainment Weekly, Legend responded to being asked about Diddy‘s previous claim that Black music doesn’t get full representation at the annual Grammy Awards.
Legend replied: “It’s almost impossible for a Black artist to win Album of the Year. How many years do we have to see Beyoncé snubbed? Kanye [West] has never won. It’s kind of insane… We’ve got to do something, because that’s a terrible record, and Diddy is right to complain about it.”
Of the 62 albums that have won album of the year, 12 – almost 20% – are by Black artists. The most recent winner was Herbie Hancock, who triumphed with 2008’s ‘River: The Joni Letters’.
Although the likes of The Weeknd and DaBaby could win next year, it would mark a gap of 13 years between Black winners – the longest gap since Black artists started winning the award in the mid-‘70s.
Last month, Legend shared the artwork and tracklist for his upcoming new album ‘Bigger Love’.
The follow-up to 2016’s ‘Darkness And Light’ is executive produced by Raphael Saadiq, who oversaw Solange‘s critically acclaimed ‘A Seat At The Table’ and released his latest album, ‘Jimmy Lee’, last year.
The official tracklist contains 16 tracks in total and features guest appearances from Gary Clark Jr., Jhené Aiko, Koffee, Rapsody and Camper.
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