While Kanye West might still be waiting from that phone call from Mark Zuckerberg, he can rest easy knowing he has the ear of Recording Academy CEO/president Neil Portnow.
West critiqued the Grammys as “out of touch” in a series of tweets on Wednesday (Feb. 24) afternoon, and publicly requested Portnow get in touch with him. “Neil please reach out as soon as possible so we can make the Grammys culturally relevant again,” West tweeted.
Kanye West Critiques Grammys, Announces New Album for 2016
Not much longer than two hours after his tweet, Portnow provided Billboard with the following statement in response’s to West’s criticisms.
“Kanye West is a creative pioneer who has been recognized and honored by The Recording Academy time and again. We value his input as a member of the creative community, and our doors are always open to him,” Portnow says. “I continue to welcome Kanye, personally, to engage in a direct and productive dialogue about the future of music and the important role that music creators play in shaping that future.”
Portnow also spoke out via the Grammys’ Twitter account
.@kanyewest, I’m not on Twitter but just hit me up and let’s have that sit down. – Neil Portnow
— The GRAMMYs (@TheGRAMMYs) February 24, 2016
So it sounds like his people call Kanye’s people and they’ll “do lunch” old school Hollywood style.
