Awards / Awards Shows

Drake almost finds humor in the Grammys which inexplicably snubbed The Weeknd, essentially saying those little trophies really don't mean crap.

Drake said Wednesday night, "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 that come after."

And, then the zinger ... "It's like a relative you keep expecting to fix up but they just can't change their ways."

The Weeknd's Grammys snub had nothing to do with him playing the Super Bowl ... at least according to the Recording Academy Chief.

Harvey Mason Jr. -- interim President and CEO of the Academy -- says, "We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated. I was surprised and can empathize with what he’s feeling. His music this year was excellent."

He adds, the Grammys had no issue with him performing at the Super Bowl and would have loved to have him also perform for the awards show. TMZ broke the story ... negotiations for The Weeknd's Grammy performance got nasty, and our sources say he was issued an ultimatum -- play for us or the Super Bowl.

As for Weeknd receiving zero nominations -- Mason claims there was nothing nefarious to it. He says, "To be clear, voting in all categories ended well before The Weeknd’s performance at the Super Bowl was announced, so in no way could it have affected the nomination process."

As we reported ... it was revealed The Weeknd would be doing the SB Halftime Show on Nov. 12. The Grammys point out its voting deadline for noms was in October. Mason is adamant nobody was upset about the prospect of the singer performing at both events ... because the Grammys happens first.

Mason also says he's "saddened" over The Weeknd and his team saying "The Grammys remain corrupt." He says ... "I try to empathize with where that came from, but it was difficult to hear."

Despite the apparent damage control, it appears this controversy's not going away anytime soon. The Weeknd's manager, Sal Slaiby, also slammed "corrupt leaders" at the Grammys and demanded transparency.

The Grammys are going to look very different next year, and not just because of the pandemic ... Kanye's making a big move and Alex Trebek's in the fold.

Nominations for the 2021 Grammys are out, and there's lots of interesting changes to digest. Trevor Noah's hosting and he might have some fun with this -- Kanye is now officially considered a Christian artist.

Yeezy's "Jesus Is King" is up for best contemporary Christian music album ... it's the next stage in Kanye's transformation, which traces roots back to his Sunday Service.

Trebek's also got a shot at posthumous glory ... the late "Jeopardy!" host and TV icon's audiobook is nominated for best spoken word album. Ken Jennings helped Alex narrate the memoir, and would accept the award if the 'Jeopardy' duo wins.

One celeb who won't be taking home any hardware -- The Weeknd. He's shockingly snubbed even though his single, "Blinding Lights," topped the charts and his album, "After Hours," rose to #1.

Guess The Weeknd will have to settle for performing the Super Bowl halftime show a week after the Grammys.

Taylor Swift's ongoing beef with Scooter Braun over the sale of her masters was front-and-center at the AMAs -- and so were a whole lot of other memorable moments.

The pop star won the award for Artist of the Year Sunday night at the half-virtual/half-live event at the Microsoft Theater in L.A. ... and T-Swift accepted from a recording studio and dropped big news.

In addition to thanking fans for their support over the years, especially in 2020, Taylor noted she wasn't in L.A. for the AMAs -- like some artists were -- because she's busy re-recording her old hits.

Of course, it's just another reminder that she's sticking to her word amid the bitter feud with Scooter -- whom she claims wouldn't even entertain selling her back her masters without her signing an NDA first promising not to bash him in public.

She didn't mention Scooter's name Sunday night, but the shot was clear.

Anyway, there were other cool moments that struck a chord too -- such as The Weeknd's bruising performance above the L.A. River. He never referenced his full-face bandages, but seems like a spinoff from that nose bandage look from last year.

J Lo also had a bootylicious showstopper with Maluma ... Harry Styles and BTS took home some honors, and Megan Fox presenting her BF, MGK, live on camera. It was a lot to take in, to say the least.

Bad Bunny fans now know why he didn't perform at the American Music Awards ... he's got the 'Rona.

The reggaeton superstar was originally scheduled to perform Sunday night at the AMAs, but he was MIA ... and fans started speculating COVID-19 may have been the reason why. Their suspicions were confirmed Monday by Bad Bunny's people.

There's never a good time to catch the coronavirus, but this was particularly bad for Bad Bunny -- he was supposed to perform "Dakiti" -- his #1 hit with Jhay Cortez -- for the first time.

It wasn't all bad news for Bad Bunny. He still did part of the show virtually from his L.A. crib -- as he announced the winner for Favorite Female Artist in the Latin category, which went to Becky G.

Paul Hornung -- a man Vince Lombardi once deemed maybe "the best all-around back ever to play football" -- has died, the Pro Football Hall of Fame just announced.

He was 84 years old.

Hornung had battled dementia for years, according to the Louisville Sports Commission, and passed away in Kentucky on Friday.

Paul is one of the most legendary football players EVER -- the guy is the only person on earth to win a Heisman Trophy, an NFL MVP award, be selected first overall in the NFL draft, AND be inducted into both the College Football Hall of Fame and the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Hornung first made a name for himself at Notre Dame in the '50s ... where he was nicknamed "The Golden Boy" for his blonde hair and incredible game.

He was the team's star quarterback --- and ultimately won the Heisman Trophy in 1956.

Hornung went on to play for the Green Bay Packers and Lombardi ... and he was a superstar there as well -- winning the NFL's first-ever Super Bowl in 1967 and four other league championships prior to that.

Hornung was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1986 ... and later, college football named its award for the most versatile player in the game after him.

"The entire Pro Football Hall of Fame family mourns the passing of Paul Hornung," Pro Football Hall of Fame President and CEO David Baker said in a statement "He was an outstanding player and an incredible man."

Colin Kaepernick has been selected for the University of Nevada Athletics Hall of Fame, the school announced.

Kaepernick played for the Wolf Pack from 2006 to 2010 -- racking up more than 10,000 passing yards and 4,000 rushing yards during his college career.

He was also named was Offensive Player of the Year TWICE -- once in 2008 and again in 2010.

Kaepernick famously led the Wolf Pack to a 13-1 season in 2010 -- winning a WAC conference championship. The team also won the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl and finished as the #11 ranked team in the country on the AP poll.

Kaepernick will be inducted with 2 of his teammates -- running back Vai Taua and defensive end Dontay Moch.

"The 2020 Hall of Fame class represents some of the best of the best in Wolf Pack history," Nevada AD Doug Knuth said.

"This is an incredible collection of accomplished student-athletes and we can't wait for the opportunity to welcome them back to campus and celebrate their careers."

There's just one snag ... the school says there will be no official induction dinner held in the fall due to COVID-19.

School officials are hopeful to hold a celebration to honor Kap and company in the future.

Turns out Jennifer Aniston is a boss with a fire extinguisher, lucky for Jimmy Kimmel ... as their dumpster fire bit at the Emmys, inadvertently, turned into a recreation of 2020.

The fire gag went down early in Sunday's live broadcast of the Emmys from Staples Center ... Jennifer was the night's first awards presenter. The fiery joke showed them first cleaning any potential coronavirus off the envelope ... by spraying it with Lysol and lighting it on fire, naturally.

Thing is ... the envelope wouldn't stop burning!!! Jimmy and Jen looked shocked, and she had to blast the extinguisher 5 times before the fire finally went out.

It all played like a metaphor for the massive wildfires currently burning in California and Oregon. Hell, you could even extend that metaphor to all of 2020 -- COVID-19, racism, social injustice, politics, hurricanes, etc ...

Ya get the point ... someone please extinguish this year.

Even though it was the Emmys, television wasn't the most important thing on the minds of some of the winners Sunday night ... and they made that very clear.

Regina King -- who won for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Television Movie for her starring role as Angela Abar in HBO’s "Watchmen" -- used her victory speech time to remind everyone to say the name, Breonna Taylor.

Regina reminded everyone after her win ... the police officers who killed Breonna have still not been held accountable, and she felt the call to honor her. She says Taylor represents centuries of violence against Black people.

Uzo Aduba -- who won for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series for playing Shirley Chisholm on "Mrs. America" -- also honored Breonna by wearing a shirt bearing her name.

Finally, there was "Succession," which beat out some serious competition to win Best Drama Series.

The HBO show's British creator, Jesse Armstrong, decided to deliver a series of un-thank-yous since he couldn't be with the rest of the cast and crew to celebrate ... and sounded off on President Trump and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Armstong said ... "Un-thank you to the virus for keeping us all apart this year. Un-thank you to Trump for his crummy and uncoordinated response, un-thank you to Boris Johnson and his government for doing the same in my country."

Eddie Murphy made it clear Saturday night ... some things are just worth waiting for.

Eddie scored his first Emmy ever -- yep, hard to believe, but true. This time around he was nominated for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his appearance on "Saturday Night Live."

t's pretty remarkable ... his 'SNL' appearance was the first time in 35 years since he hosted. You'll recall, he reprieved some of his classic characters, including Buckwheat, Mister Robinson and Gumby.

Eddie was super grateful, thanking the Academy for the honor and giving a special shout-out to Lorne Michaels. He was gracious, thanking the cast, writers and crew.

Here's the good news ... Eddie said he's going to get back on stage to do more comedy. He says he planned to do it before the pandemic, and once he gets the all-clear he's going before live audiences.

Turns out it was a special occasion ... Saturday marked 36 years to the day Eddie appeared on 'SNL.'

AJ McLean would never bust a Kanye West and pee on a Grammy ... not because he doesn't have one to pee on, but because it's just downright wrong.

We got the Backstreet Boys member leaving 'DWTS' practice this week and wanted to get his take on Ye taking a leak all over one of his Grammys stuffed inside a toilet. No matter the message Kanye was trying to send ... pretty clear AJ wasn't a fan of the move.

Check out the video ... AJ says even though the Boys don't have a Grammy -- YET!!! -- he thinks what Kanye did was way outta line.

As we reported ... Kanye whizzed all over his own Grammy statuette to underscore his message about Black people needing a seat at the table. Remember, Kanye had been ranting about African-Americans not getting their fair share of the pie and instead are being exploited by companies run by Whites. He pointed the finger at the NBA and the music biz as prime examples. He also talked about ownership of his master recordings, blasting Universal Music Group and alleging they won't even give him a chance to buy them outright.

Our photog asks AJ if artists should own their own master recordings ... and the Backstreet Boy seems to somewhat agree with Kanye.

Great news for Isiah Thomas -- the NBA legend was reunited with his stolen NBA All-Star MVP trophy ... and he's thanking an auction house for making it happen.

Remember, Thomas was initially FURIOUS when he saw the trophy from the 1984 All-Star Game was up for sale on the Heritage Auctions website ... claiming it was stolen property.

Here's the backstory ... Thomas claims he loaned the MVP trophy to his old high school to display -- but some jerk snatched the item back from the campus in June 2020.

"This trophy was stolen from St. Joseph High School the night Mr. Pingatore my coach died," Thomas posted on Twitter ... "It belongs to me."

Heritage Auctions immediately pulled the item from auction and launched an investigation -- working with the Westchester Police Dept. to gather information.

The cops ultimately allowed H.A. to give the trophy back to Thomas -- and he's obviously thrilled.

"I am very happy that my 1984 NBA All-Star Game MVP Trophy has been returned to me, and I want to thank Heritage Auctions, the Westchester Police Department and St. Joseph High School for all of their hard work and professionalism throughout this process," Thomas said.

"This trophy is a special piece of memorabilia for me and my family, and it remains something that I am very proud of being awarded during my playing career."

As for Heritage Auctions, an official says "It came as a shock to discover the MVP trophy had been stolen from St. Joseph but we are pleased and proud to have been able to return the trophy to the man whose name is inscribed on the award."

J Balvin's urging his fans to take coronavirus seriously ... and he should know, 'cause he says he got it and the virus hit him HARD.

The reggaeton superstar revealed his diagnosis Thursday while accepting an award for his "Rojo" music video during Premios Juventud 2020 (think Teen Choice Awards). The Colombian singer -- in a pre-recorded message -- said he's just getting done with battling COVID-19 ... adding "sometimes we don't think we'll get it, but I got it and it hit me hard."

J Balvin -- who has collabed with hitmakers like Cardi B and Justin Bieber -- took advantage of the millions watching the broadcast to urge his fans to understand the virus is real and dangerous ... and treating the pandemic and precautionary measures as a joke can be a disastrous mistake.

Colin Kaepernick and Dr. Anthony Fauci have both been tapped by the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights org. to receive its most prestigious award ... after being hailed as "modern-day human rights defenders."

Kap and Fauci are 2 of the 5 people selected for the 2020 RFK Ripple of Hope Award -- which honors people who "demonstrated a commitment to social change" and have "utilized their platform for the public good."

"At a time when the courageous pursuit of equality and justice has become political and riddled with adversity, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights stands with these modern-day human rights defenders in their inspirational fight for progress," the Org. said in a statement.

The other recipients include United Farm Workers of America co-founder Dolores Huerta, Pal Pal president Dan Schulman and DocuSign CEO Dan Springer.

Kaepernick issued a statement ... saying, "In 2017, I was in the audience honoring Mr. Harry Belafonte as he accepted the Robert F. Kennedy Ripple of Hope Award."

"I am humbled to follow the footsteps of individuals like Mr. B and to be in the company of all the other laureates. Thank you for this prestigious award."

Previous Ripple of Hope award winners include, Barack Obama, Tim Cook, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Robert F. Smith, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Belafonte, John Lewis, Hillary Clinton, Bono and Joe Biden.

The event is usually held in person -- but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it will go down virtually on Dec. 10 instead.

An MVP of the soccer world will NOT be crowned this season ... Ballon d'Or trophy presenters say they've scrapped the 2020 iteration of the prize -- and it's all 'cause of COVID.

The award -- similar to college football's Heisman Trophy -- has been given out to the men's game's best EVERY YEAR since 1956 ... and is considered soccer's highest honor.

Legends like Luis Suarez, Ronaldo and Ronaldinho have all won the hardware in the past ... and dudes like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were gunning to win it for the 7th and 6th times, respectively, this season.

But, the people responsible for doling out the trophy say the 2020 version will be forever vacant ... saying the coronavirus pandemic forced them to cancel the award this year.

The trophy presenters say the virus has simply impacted soccer too greatly all across the globe for them to properly and fairly announce a winner.

"How do you compare the incomparable?" officials said in a statement Monday.

They added, "We will always prefer a small sprain (to our history) to a large scar. It was the first time since 1956 that the Ballon d'Or had taken a break."

"The parenthesis does not enchant us but seems to us the most responsible and logical. Protecting the credibility and legitimacy of such an award also means ensuring its flawlessness over time."