“Cancelled” comedians Dave Chappelle and Louis C.K. are both 2023 Grammy nominees.
The Recording Academy announced their nominees for the awards on Tuesday.
Both of the controversial figures are nominated for best comedy album.
Other comedians nominated for the award include Jim Gaffigan, Patton Oswalt, and Randy Rainbow.
Chappelle is nominated for his Netflix special “The Closer,” which was met with intense backlash over his mockery of transgender people.
In the special, Chappelle compared being transgender to wearing blackface, saying that if he was a woman, he would be “mad as sh-t.”
The comedian also defended author J.K. Rowling saying they are both on “Team TERF,” or trans-exclusionary radical feminists.
Former Netflix employee Terra Field, who was co-vice president of Netflix’s transgender employee resource group, resigned in protest of the special.
C.K., who was accused of sexual misconduct around the time of the “Me Too” movement, was nominated for his stand-up special, “Sorry.”
“Both comedians had previously received Grammy nominations after their scandals. C.K. won best comedy album at the 2022 show for ‘Sincerely Louis CK,’ while Chappelle was nominated at that ceremony for best spoken word album for his “8:46″ special,” the New York Daily News reports. “C.K. has now been nominated for best comedy album five times, while Tuesday’s nod marked Chappelle’s fourth in the category.”
Chappelle recently hosted Saturday Night Live, much to the dismay of many transgender activists. However, this time, they were not the most offended group after it aired. The comedian was accused of “anti-semitism” for his monologue about Kanye West, which included jokes about the Jewish community.
After the episode aired, Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, tweeted, “We shouldn’t expect @DaveChappelle to serve as society’s moral compass, but disturbing to see @nbcsnl not just normalize but popularize #antisemitism. Why are Jewish sensitivities denied or diminished at almost every turn? Why does our trauma trigger applause?”
Chappelle has not apologized for the jokes at time of publishing.
