Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X are walking into what should be one of the most exciting days of their careers as they attend their first-ever Grammy Awards on Sunday, where they are the top-nominated acts.

But 10 days before arguably the biggest night in music, the industry erupted when the Recording Academy announced it had put its recently hired CEO, Deborah Dugan, on administrative leave for misconduct. Dugan and her lawyers fired back at the academy, claiming that the awards show is rigged.

Dugan was fired only months into her job as head of the Recording Academy and this week filed an explosive complaint with the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission that alleged she was sexually harassed and that the music organisation was a “boy's club” that favours friends. The academy, which has accused Dugan of misconduct, has said it has launched an investigation.

The personnel allegations had largely overshadowed Dugan's charges about the integrity of the Grammys' awards process — a huge problem given that its annual ceremony is set to be televised on CBS in three days.

“The system should be transparent and there are incidents of conflicts of interest that taint the results,” Dugan said on ABC.

The academy vehemently defended its voting process in response to Dugan's complaint and interview.

“Spurious allegations claiming members or committees use our process to push forward nominations for artists they have relationships with are categorically false, misleading and wrong," Chief Awards Officer Bill Freimuth said in a statement.

Dugan's complaint charged that a “secret committee” that decides who gets Grammy nominations contains people with business and personal relationships with artists, and that they push their favourites ahead. The Grammy membership generally selects 20 potential nominees in categories and internal committees whittle those lists down to the five or seven eventual nominees.

She charged that an artist who was ranked 18th out of 20 in the initial song of the year process last year got a nomination and the artist was actually on the committee that decided the nominees. The same artist, who Dugan did not identify, is represented professionally by someone on the Recording Academy board.

Dugan suggested the conflict was behind two notable snubs in the category, of songs performed by Ariana Grande and Ed Sheeran, although there has been some question about whether Grande had submitted her indelible hit, “Thank U, Next,” for the award.

Brandi Carlile, Kendrick Lamar and Lady Gaga were among the nominees for this award, which was won by “This is America,” performed by Childish Gambino.

In the category of jazz vocals, Dugan alleged that an artist nominated for an award participated in the nomination process. Again, she did not name the artist involved.

Overall, she said some 30 artists whose work was not chosen as a potential nominee by the Recording Academy membership were added to that list because they had personal or business relationships with people on the nomination committees or the Academy's board.

Dugan also said that nominations were handed out to songs or albums because the producer of the annual awards show wanted them to be performed on the show.

Freimuth said in the academy statement that while it is inevitable some on the committees full of industry luminaries will have worked with some of the artists in contention, there are “strict rules in place to address any conflict of interest.”

Committees are chosen weeks before the first round entry list is created, so it is unknown whether any members will be involved in a nomination, Freimuth said. And if a committee member qualifies for a Grammy, they leave the room for listening sessions and are not allowed to vote in that category.

Producer Ken Ehrlich did not answer a message seeking a response to Dugan's allegations.

That energy puts a dark cloud over nominees like Lizzo, Eilish and Lil Nas X, breakthrough acts who are competing for top prizes like album of the year, record of the year and best new artist.

Tarriona "Tank" Ball of the New Orleans soul-funk band Tank and the Bangas, nominated for best new artist, said she's not letting the drama ruin the big achievement for her band.

"I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be it and I don't want anything taking away from all the nominees," Ball said. "This is our moment. This is our time, and nobody takes away from it."

Alicia Keys is hosting the Grammys, which airs live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles at 8 p.m. Eastern. The show will be jam-packed with performances, including Ariana Grande, BTS, Camila Cabello, Demi Lovato, Jonas Brothers, DJ Khaled, Rosalia, Aerosmith, Bonnie Raitt, Tyler, the Creator, Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton, John Legend and Cyndi Lauper.

The show will also include special tributes to Prince, Nipsey Hussle — who is posthumously nominated for three awards — and longtime Grammys producer Ken Ehrlich, who is wrapping up his career with the show Sunday.

Lizzo, the top nominee competing for eight awards, will also perform.

Her major-label debut, "Cuz I Love You," is nominated for album of the year along with projects from Grande, Lana Del Rey, Vampire Weekend, H.E.R., Bon Iver, Eilish and Lil Nas X.

Lizzo's No. 1 hit, "Truth Hurts," is also up for song and record of the year. Eilish, who will also perform, also scored song and record of the year nods for her No. 1 hit, "Bad Guy."

Other record of the year nominees include Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road," Grande's "7 Rings," Post Malone and Swae Lee's "Sunflower," H.E.R.'s "Hard Place," Bon Iver's "Hey, Ma" and Khalid's "Talk."

Taylor Swift was shut out of album and record of the year, but she did score a nod for song of the year — a songwriter's award. Her tune "Lover" is nominated against "Truth Hurts," "Bad Guy," "Hard Place," Lady Gaga's "Always Remember Us This Way" from "A Star Is Born," Lewis Capaldi's "Someone You Loved," Lana Del Rey's "Norman (Expletive) Rockwell" and Tanya Tucker's "Bring My Flowers Now," which was co-written by Brandi Carlile.

The Grammys will hand out roughly 10 awards during the live show; most of its 84 awards are given out at a pre-ceremony held right before the live show. Presenters this year include Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Billy Porter, Trevor Noah, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, Cynthia Erivo, Ava DuVernay, Shania Twain and Common.