Even though Kanye West was absent from the Grammys and disparaged the gala many times over the past few months, reports state that the rap star may have been negotiating to perform at this year's event.
The president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences claimed that, if it hadn't been for health reasons, West would have likely taken the stage Sunday night.
"Kanye, as you know, had some medical concerns and situations. We had dialog with him about actually performing," Neil Portnow told Pitchfork. "At the end of the day, what we had heard was he just wasn't in a place where he felt comfortable doing that. That’s completely understandable."
Kanye was upset at the outcome of last year's ceremony and expressed his frustrations on Twitter. He tweeted that the Grammys were out of touch and that he wanted to reach out to Portnow to fix the awarding system.
https://twitter.com/_/status/702561097807732738
https://twitter.com/_/status/702561708674576384
https://twitter.com/_/status/702562684689096705
When asked about Frank Ocean's similar attitude toward the Grammys, Portnow stated that he understood and respected the singer's decision not to attend but hoped he has a change of heart in the future.
"Not everybody likes or wants to be part of every organization or awards process. I respect that," he said. "We were delighted that he was a Grammy winner, we were delighted to have him on our stage, which gave him a platform very early in his career. That’s something we're proud of, and down the line he may feel differently. Artists change their opinion. I don’t begrudge his choice at all and we’ll see what the future brings."