Louis C.K., Marilyn Manson, Dave Chappelle and Kevin Hart all got Grammy nominations Tuesday, prompting some on social media to question the existence of so-called cancel culture.
All four of the nominees, whom some people have labeled as victims of cancel culture, have generated backlash in the last few years for various controversies.
In 2017, C.K. admitted to sexual misconduct. C.K., who continued to tour a year after the allegations surfaced, also sparked outrage when he mocked survivors of the shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, in a stand-up routine in 2018.
C.K. has not been charged with any crime connected to his sexual misconduct.
He was nominated for best comedy album for his most recent special, "Sincerely Louis C.K.," in which he joked about his sexual misconduct.
Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, faces sexual assault lawsuits from several women, including "Game of Thrones” actor Esmé Bianco, who sued in April alleging that he committed multiple violent sexual assaults, a rape and other abuse from 2009 to 2013.
Manson has not been charged with any crime connected to the allegations. A representative has repeatedly denied all accusations of sexual assault.
In February, Manson addressed abuse allegations made at the time by his ex-partner Evan Rachel Wood. He wrote in an Instagram post: “My art and my life have long been magnets for controversy, but these recent claims about me are horrible distortions of reality. My intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners. Regardless of how — and why — others are now choosing to misrepresent the past, that is the truth."
He was nominated for his work on Kanye West's "Donda." In August, West flabbergasted fans at a listening party by inviting Manson onstage with him.
Chappelle is nominated alongside Amir Sulaiman for best spoken word album for "8:46."
Chappelle came under fire in October after the release of his most recent Netflix special, “The Closer,” which trans Netflix workers and allies said included transphobic and homophobic content.
Many Netflix employees walked out of the company’s headquarters in Los Angeles to protest its continued streaming of the special. The company’s CEO, Ted Sarandos, has held fast with Chappelle, but he said Oct. 19 that “I screwed up” when it came to communicating with employees genuinely hurt by Chappelle’s words.
Chappelle responded to the criticism in a video posted to his Instagram accounted after the backlash.
He ended the video by suggesting that he has yet to be fully “canceled.”
“You have to answer the question, ‘Am I canceled or not?’” he said. The crowd shouted back, “No.”
“Then let’s go,” Chappelle said. “Thank you very much, and good night.”
Hart pulled out of hosting the 2019 Academy Awards after some of his old tweets and jokes, which some at the time called homophobic, resurfaced.
“I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year’s Oscar’s. ... This is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists,” he tweeted in 2018. “I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.”
Hart, who is nominated for best comedy album for "Zero F***s Given," defended Chappelle, whom he called his brother, in an interview published Tuesday in The New York Times.
"That man don’t have a hateful bone in his body," he told The Times. "And I don’t say that because it’s hypothetical — I say that because I know him. I know his world. I know that he embraces the LGBT+ community, because he has friends who are close to him from that community. I know that his kids understand equality, fair treatment, love. I know that his wife embeds that in their kids. I know why people embrace him. He’s a good dude."
Some on social media shared negative responses to the news of the nominations.
"Louis CK, Kevin Hart, and Dave Chappelle were all nominated for Grammys?" Adrienne Lawrence, a legal analyst, tweeted. "If this is 'cancel culture,' may every woman comedian I know be cancelled instead of simply underpaid and unrecognized.""Louis C.K., Dave Chappelle, Kanye, DaBaby, and Marilyn Manson all nominated for Grammys today. Still waiting for ‘Cancel Culture’ to be real," Jillian Sederholm wrote.
"only one grammy nom each for dave chappelle, kevin hart, and louis CK!! cancel culture strikes again!!" David Mack joked.
The Recording Academy did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the reaction.
The 64th Grammy Awards will broadcast live from Los Angeles on Jan. 31.
