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Comedienne "Tiffany Haddish" star reveals she was approached to present the three-hour event - during which the bulk of the Recording Academy's 83 trophies are handed out before the televised main show - but she turned down the offer after learning she would not be paid and would have to foot the cost of her own hair, makeup, and wardrobe.
The "Girls Trip" star reveals she was approached to present the three-hour event - during which the bulk of the Recording Academy's 83 trophies are handed out before the televised main show - but she turned down the offer after learning she would not be paid, and would have to foot the cost of her own hair, makeup, and wardrobe.
"All of that would have to come out of my pocket," she told Variety. "I don't know if this might mean I might not get nominated ever again, but I think it's disrespectful. I was like, 'The exposure is amazing but I think I have enough. I appreciate you guys asking.' "
A representative for the Recording Academy told Variety that talent booked for the Grammys Premiere Ceremony are not compensated because it is a production of their not-for-profit organisation, whereas the primetime awards ceremony is funded by U.S. network officials at CBS.
A representative for the Recording Academy told Variety that talent booked for the Grammys Premiere Ceremony are not compensated because it is a production of their not-for-profit organization, whereas the primetime awards ceremony is funded by U.S. network officials at CBS.out how this went down and how it was handled. And I will say, Tiffany, we are sorry and thank you for allowing me to speak on it."
After the news hit headlines Harvey Mason, Jr., the interim chief of the Recording Academy, took to social media to express his apologies, insisting he was unaware such an offer had been made.
"It's just been brought to my attention that the Recording Academy invited Tiffany Haddish to host this year's Premiere ceremony," he said in the video posted to Instagram.
"Unfortunately and without my knowing, the talent booker working for the Academy told Ms. Haddish that we wouldn't even cover her costs while she hosted this event for us."
"To me that was wrong," he continued. "I'm frustrated by that decision. It was a lapse in judgment, it was in poor taste, and it was disrespectful to the creative community - I'm part of the creative community and I know what that feels like, and it's not right."
Explaining he had also personally reached out to Haddish, he added, "Thankfully, Ms. Haddish was gracious enough to allow me to have a conversation with her. I apologised to her personally, I apologised from the Academy, and I expressed to her my regret and my displeasure about how this went down and how it was handled. And I will say, Tiffany, we are sorry and thank you for allowing me to speak on it."
Singer Imogen Heap served as host for the 2020 pre-show.
Haddish is among the nominees for the 2021 ceremony - she is up for Best Comedy Album for "Black Mitzvah", two years after receiving a nod in 2019 for Best Spoken Word album for her audiobook "The Black Unicorn".
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