This year’s Grammy Awards were greeted with a variety of controversies, and most notable was the lack of women nominees. Recording Academy President Neil Portnow was also quoted saying that women need to “step up” if they want to be recognized in the industry.
Understandably, many people — including celebrities — were infuriated by these remarks. Lorde was not only the only female artist to be nominated for Album of the Year, but she was also the only nominee who wasn’t granted her own solo performance at the awards ceremony.
In response to the snub, Lorde tweeted about her ability to “murder a stage.” She then took a step further by taking out an entire ad in a New Zealand newspaper to both thank her fans and clap back at Portnow.
Part of her statement reads, “Thank you, also, for believing in female musicians. You set a beautiful precedent!”
Lorde using her voice to shed light on the disparities women in the music industry face is powerful, and it’s empowering to see that she isn’t backing down from what she believes in.