Why Bon Iver Isn't Playing the Grammys

Justin Vernon of Bon Iver attends the Bushmills 'Since Way Back' party at The Wooly in New York.

Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon says his band turned down an offer to play the upcoming Grammy Awards telecast because they were not comfortable with the required collaborative appearance. "We kind of said 'fuck you' a little bit," the singer told Billboard.

The problem, said Vernon, was not the musicians with whom Bon Iver was being asked to perform. "Awesome people," he said, without naming them. "People I would love to play a song with. But you know what? Fuckin' rock & roll should not be decided by people that have that job [booking the show]. Rock & roll should be the fuckin' people with guitars around their backs."   

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