Watch Fiona Apple Explain Why She Wasn’t at the Grammys

Fiona Apple had an exemplary night at Sunday’s Grammys, taking home her first awards from the Recording Academy since her 1998 Best Female Rock Vocal Performance win for “Criminal.” Despite her well-deserved wins for Paste favorite Fetch The Bolt Cutters, Apple was notably absent from the awards show.

Paste predicted Apple would sweep each award she was nominated for, and she came close with two out of three. The singer won Best Rock Performance for standout track “Shameika,” as well as Best Alternative Music Album. It’s not entirely surprising that Apple would refrain from attending last night’s show, as she’s been known to be a fairly elusive figure, rarely giving interviews and refraining from all social media.

Apple’s announcement that she would not be attending the Grammys came via her friend filmmaker Zelda Hallman’s Instagram. In the video, Apple clarifies that she is not boycotting the Grammys, as other celebrities including The Weeknd announced earlier this month, even though she has “problems with the Grammys.” Instead, she reveals that her concerns with maintaining her sobriety were a key factor, stating that “I don’t want to be on national television. I’m just not made for that kind of stuff anymore. I wanna stay sober, and I can’t do that sober.”

Apple pivots from the debate over the validity of the Grammys in the second half of the video:

There’s been a lot of questions about the transparency of the Grammys … what really, really is undeniably important is the transparency in actual courtrooms. And for that reason, I want to ask anybody who’s looking at this to please sign this petition to keep the virtual access to courts open for court watchers.

The Instagram post includes a link to the petition in question, which campaigns to keep and expand access to court proceedings in Maryland’s Prince George’s County in order to maintain accountability in the county’s criminal justice system. In the single day that’s passed since Apple’s video, the petition has gone from 100 to over 1,000 signatures.

Watch Fiona Apple’s full announcement pertaining to the Grammys below. You’ll find the complete list of last night’s winners here.