Jan 26, 2020

Diddy blasts the Grammys: "Hip-hop has never been respected"

Diddy accepts he 2020 Industry Icon award last night: Photo: Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP

Ahead of Sunday's Grammy Awards, Sean "Diddy" Combs called out the show for dissing rap and R&B stars, in a blazing speech that got a standing ovation from Beyoncé, Jay-Z and others, AP reports.

What they're saying: At the end of his 50-minute speech last night at Clive Davis' white-hot pre-Grammys gala, Combs said: "So I say this with love to the Grammys, because you really need to know this: Every year, y'all be killing us, man."

  • "Truth be told, hip-hop has never been respected by the Grammys. Black music has never been respected by the Grammys to the point that it should be."

The context: Over the years, the awards show has been criticized when Beyoncé, Kanye West, Eminem, Mariah Carey and others lose in major categories.

  • The rap and R&B stars often fall short of their pop, rock and country counterparts.
  • And the voting process was called into question last week after the academy's just-ousted CEO, Deborah Dugan, claimed that the awards are rigged and filled with conflicts of interest.

Go deeper: On-demand video rental services get awards season boost

Go deeper

Ursula Perano
3 hours ago - Politics & Policy

In photos: Protests over George Floyd's death grip Minneapolis

Protesters gather at Hennepin County Government Plaza on Thursday in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Protests in response to the death of George Floyd, a black man who died shortly after a police encounter in Minneapolis, are ongoing as the nation waits to see if the officers involved will be charged with murder.

The state of play: Minnesota's governor on Thursday activated the state's national guard following violent outbreaks throughout the week.

Go deeper (<1 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated 4 hours ago - Health

World coronavirus updates

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Axios Visuals

New Zealand has a single novel coronavirus case after reporting a week of no new infections, the Ministry of Health confirmed on Friday local time.

By the numbers: Nearly 6 million people have tested positive for COVID-19 and over 2.3 million have recovered from the virus. Over 357,000 people have died globally. The U.S. has reported the most cases in the world with over 1.6 million.

Go deeper (2 min. read)Arrow
Axios
Updated 5 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

  1. Global: Total confirmed cases as of 8:30 p.m. ET: 5,803,416 — Total deaths: 359,791 — Total recoveries — 2,413,576 — Map.
  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 8:30 p.m. ET: 1,720,613 — Total deaths: 101,573 — Total recoveries: 399,991 — Total tested: 15,646,041 — Map.
  3. Public health: The mystery of coronavirus superspreaders.
  4. Congress: Pelosi slams McConnell on stimulus delay — Sen. Tim Kaine and wife test positive for coronavirus antibodies.
  5. World: Twitter slapped a fact-check label on a pair of months-old tweets from a Chinese government spokesperson that falsely suggested that the coronavirus originated in the U.S.
  6. 2020: The RNC has issued their proposed safety guidelines for its planned convention in Charlotte, North Carolina.
  7. Axios on HBO: Science fiction writers tell us how they see the coronavirus pandemic.
  8. 🏃‍♀️Sports: Boston Marathon canceled after initial postponement, asks runners to go virtual.
  9. What should I do? When you can be around others after contracting the coronavirus — Traveling, asthma, dishes, disinfectants and being contagious — Masks, lending books and self-isolating — Exercise, laundry, what counts as soap — Pets, moving and personal health — Answers about the virus from Axios experts — What to know about social distancing — How to minimize your risk.
  10. Other resources: CDC on how to avoid the virus, what to do if you get it, the right mask to wear.

Subscribe to Mike Allen's Axios AM to follow our coronavirus coverage each morning from your inbox.