The Weeknd may be throwing some major shade at the Grammys. On Tuesday, the 30-year-old singer released the music video for his single, "Save Your Tears," from his 2020 album, After Hours, and while some fans were surprised to see his drastically altered face, some believed the video offered more than just a few disses at the awards show. The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, was not nominated for the 2021 ceremony, despite the success of After Hours.
In the four-minute-long video, the musician has since removed the bloodied bandages he donned during the 2020 American Music Awards and other live appearances, instead debuting a plastic surgery-like look created by the use of prosthetics. One of the first possible digs at the Grammys comes as the musician performs at a masquerade ball, the attendees wearing lavish masks, which many on social media believed referenced "fake" celebrities. Another possible diss occurs at the 1:50 mark of the video when The Weeknd throws a gold trophy away after singing, "I broke your heart like someone did to mine / And now you won't love me for a second time."
Despite the commercial and professional success of After Hour and "Blinding Lights" breaking the record for the longest-running song ever in the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, among other milestones, The Weeknd's name was left completely off the list of 2021 Grammy Awards nominees. His lack of nominations had immediately sparked outrage among fans, and the musician himself had even hit out at the awards show. In a tweet at the time, he claimed the Grammys "remain corrupt," adding, "you owe me, my fans and the industry transparency..."
Addressing the apparent snub, the Recording Academy's interim president/CEO Harvey Mason Jr. told Billboard explained, "for The Weeknd, in every year you only have a certain amount of people you can nominate for each category.. ...In my experience, it's not really been about trying to even the playing field for every different group and make sure that everyone's included. It's really about trying to highlight quality and excellence."
Given the awards show drama and his snub, Twitter exploded following the Tuesday release of the "Save Your Tears" music video. The social media platform quickly filled with theories from fans dissecting each still, pointing out the different ways in which the video possibly took a dig at the Grammys. Scroll down to see what they're saying.