It’s an honor simply to be nominated. Or is it?
Awards have been as soon as essentially the most logical solution to honor nice artists throughout popular culture. Grammys. Emmys. Oscars. Tonys. Golden Globes.
And, in some ways, that’s nonetheless the case.
But we’ve seen awards our bodies develop more and more political lately, suggesting it’s not sufficient to be the most effective at your specific discipline. It’s important to assume the “proper” method, too. Or, within the case of the Academy Awards, test the “proper” Identification Politics bins.
Only in the near past, main information websites instructed Stephen Colbert’s “Late Present” will lastly snag an Emmy for Excellent Discuss Sequence.
Why? CBS pulled the plug on the late-night showcase, citing gargantuan losses. Assume $40 million yearly.
Did his present dramatically enhance this yr? Possible not.
He’d get a wave of sympathy from Emmy voters, placing him excessive in the end. In different phrases, he gained’t truly earn it.
Rival late-night liberal Jimmy Kimmel all however mentioned as a lot.
Properly, it looks like voting for Stephen is the least we might do at this level, and I feel it is going to be a pleasant assertion if he does win. Clearly, awards don’t imply a lot, however each infrequently they do, and on this case, I feel it would. So I absolutely anticipate Stephen to win the Emmy as I feel individuals are very, very upset about what occurred to him and his present.
Enter Morgan Wallen.
The nation music celebrity ran afoul of the awards ecosystem in 2021 after he bought canceled for uttering the “n-word” in a personal dialog caught on video.
The 2021 Billboard Music Awards, the Nation Music Awards and the American Music Awards all shut him out following the controversy. His stardom crumbled in a New York minute.
He apologized and rebuilt his profession on his phrases. Cancel Tradition couldn’t include him, and his fan base accepted his swift apologies.
Now, his star shines brighter than ever earlier than, in line with Fox Information.
The “Wasted on You” singer launched his fourth studio album, “I’m The Downside,” earlier this yr, which debuted at No. 1 on the charts and prolonged his run because the nation artist with essentially the most debuts to high the Billboard 200.
The 37-track catalog dominated the Billboard Scorching 100 charts, too, with 36 of the tracks making an look on the chief board.
It’s so brilliant, one might argue, {that a} Grammy win wouldn’t do a lot to his profession. Does that designate his current actions?
Morgan Wallen is not going to submit his newest album for consideration on the Grammy Awards, his representatives confirmed on Wednesday, rebuffing an establishment that has paid him little consideration throughout his rise as some of the fashionable artists in music. https://t.co/qw6wn6LTqE
— New York Occasions Music (@nytimesmusic) August 20, 2025
Wallen determined in opposition to submitting “I’m the Downside” for Grammy consideration. The singer has however one Grammy nomination to his credit score up to now, a suspicious quantity given his fame. And he gained’t add to that determine in the course of the subsequent spherical of voting.
The singer didn’t share a cause for the Grammy snub. He usually makes strikes that defy standard considering, preferring to remain silent on the matter.
Once you stroll off SNL,
do it like Morgan Wallen.
– the mgmt. pic.twitter.com/6SeIDhoRJJ— The Loftus Celebration (@theloftusparty) April 12, 2025
He could also be making a quiet assertion in regards to the present awards season local weather. It’s not all the time in regards to the music … nevertheless it must be.
Or, he’s content material with every part his followers have given him through the years. And that’s sufficient.
The Grammys stay crucial and highly effective achievement in pop music. They’ll nonetheless make or break a profession for some winners. The statuettes imply much less for present superstars.
That’s definitely the case for Wallen, who simply instructed The Recording Academy, “Thanks, however no thanks.”