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    Drake Removes Himself From Competition for 2022 Grammy Awards

    The superstar rapper and singer, long a critic of the awards, was nominated in two categories, best rap album and best rap performance.Drake, the chart-topping rapper and singer, has withdrawn his name from competition in the upcoming Grammy Awards, the latest problem involving headlining talent for the embattled awards, which have struggled with the alienation of other top acts like the Weeknd and Frank Ocean.Drake, one of the most popular and influential artists in pop music today, had two nominations for the 64th annual awards, which were announced two weeks ago. His song “Way 2 Sexy,” featuring Future and Young Thug, was up for best rap performance, and “Certified Lover Boy” — one of the biggest hits of the year — was up for best rap album. He was not nominated in any of the top categories, like album, record or song of the year.But Drake and his managers recently asked that his name be removed from the two rap categories, and the Recording Academy, the organization behind the awards, honored the request, according to representatives for the rapper.The Recording Academy had no comment, but a page on the Grammys’ official website, listing changes to the nominations, was updated on Monday noting the removal of Drake’s two citations.The news was first reported by Variety.Drake’s withdrawal, which emerged just as the final voting period for the awards was opening, is the latest complication for the Grammys. The academy has struggled for years to prevent an exodus among major artists of color, who have made a litany of complaints against the awards, including a poor record of wins for Black artists in the most prestigious categories, as well as a wider failure by the academy and its voters to recognize and appreciate the cultural heft and intricacies of contemporary Black music..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-1kpebx{margin:0 auto;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1kpebx{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-1gtxqqv{margin-bottom:0;}.css-1g3vlj0{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1g3vlj0{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-1g3vlj0 strong{font-weight:600;}.css-1g3vlj0 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1g3vlj0{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0.25rem;}.css-19zsuqr{display:block;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-qjk116{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-qjk116 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-qjk116 em{font-style:italic;}.css-qjk116 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:visited{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}The Recording Academy has also taken steps in recent years to attract a younger and more diverse voting pool and to prove to the music industry that its processes are fair and transparent.But already this year, the awards have been dogged by questions about what has happened behind the scenes. The day before the nominations were announced last month, the academy’s board approved a last-minute plan to expand the ballot in the top four categories to 10 slots, from eight. Comparing the final ballot to an early version of its nominations list, which circulated throughout the industry, showed that the beneficiaries included Taylor Swift, Kanye West, Abba and Lil Nas X.Drake has been nominated for 49 Grammys in his career — counting the two nods he got this year — and has taken home four. But he has long expressed ambivalence about the awards, even after winning, and has often decided not to attend the ceremony even when he has been widely nominated.After his streaming smash “Hotline Bling” won best rap song and best rap/sung performance in 2017, Drake questioned his genre categorization in a radio interview. “‘Hotline Bling’ is not a rap song,” he said at the time. “Maybe because I’ve rapped in the past or because I’m Black, I can’t figure out why.” He added of the awards, “I don’t even want them, because it just feels weird.”In 2019, when Drake and Kendrick Lamar were the two most-nominated artists, each declined invitations to perform on the show. Drake did appear onstage to accept the best rap song award for “God’s Plan,” but seemed to allude in his speech to the Grammys’ fraught history in recognizing hip-hop — a rocky relationship that dated back to the first-ever rap award in 1989, when some artists boycotted the show because the category was not going to be televised.“This is a business where sometimes it’s up to a bunch of people that might not understand what a mixed-race kid from Canada has to say or a fly Spanish girl from New York, or a brother from Houston,” Drake said. “But the point is, you’ve already won if you have people who are singing your songs word for word — you don’t need this right here,” he added, holding up the Grammy.But as Drake started to continue speaking, the Grammys cut to commercial. Drake later called his words “too raw for TV.” A representative for the show said that producers had mistaken a pause in Drake’s speech for the end.Earlier this year, before the 63rd annual show, the Weeknd, who had been shut out of the nominations despite his album, “After Hours,” being one of the biggest hits of 2020, declared that he would boycott the awards in the future to protest its use of anonymous nominations review committees. Those were blue-ribbon industry panels that sorted through voters’ first-round nomination picks and settled on a final ballot.The review committees had long been a subject of intrigue in the business. A legal complaint by Deborah Dugan, who became the academy’s chief executive in 2019 — only to be ejected just five months later — said that those committees were rife with corruption and conflicts of interest. This year the Recording Academy, led by its new chief, the producer Harvey Mason Jr., eliminated those committees in most categories, though the last-minute rule change has once again put a spotlight on the nominations process.In response to the perceived snubs of the Weeknd last year, Drake wrote on Instagram that “we should stop allowing ourselves to be shocked every year by the disconnect between impactful music and these awards and just accept that what once was the highest form of recognition may no longer matter to the artists that exist now and the ones that come after.”He added, “This is a great time for somebody to start something new that we can build up over time and pass on to the generations to come.”The 64th annual Grammys are scheduled to be held in Los Angeles on Jan. 31. More

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    Marilyn Manson Loses a Grammy Nomination, and a Songwriter Gains One

    The Recording Academy has made various changes to its list for the 64th awards, adding Linda Chorney, whose name appeared on an earlier version of the ballot, back to the competition.Since the 64th annual Grammy nominations were announced last week, the Recording Academy, the organization behind the awards, has made various changes to its list, correcting misspellings and adding names that had been omitted from credits. Among the most notable revisions: Marilyn Manson lost one nomination, and a little-known songwriter, Linda Chorney, was added to the competitors for best American roots song.Manson, the shock rocker who is being investigated by the authorities in Los Angeles on accusations of sexual assault (numerous women have come forward), had been nominated twice for his work with Kanye West, including in the album of the year category as a featured artist and a songwriter on West’s album “Donda,” and for best rap song, as one of the writers of West’s “Jail.”Manson, whose real name — and official songwriting credit — is Brian Hugh Warner, has been removed from the rap song category; although Manson is credited as a writer on “Jail, Pt 2,” another track from “Donda,” he is not listed among the writers on the most current version of the album..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-1kpebx{margin:0 auto;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1kpebx{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-1gtxqqv{margin-bottom:0;}.css-1g3vlj0{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1g3vlj0{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-1g3vlj0 strong{font-weight:600;}.css-1g3vlj0 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1g3vlj0{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0.25rem;}.css-19zsuqr{display:block;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-qjk116{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-qjk116 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-qjk116 em{font-style:italic;}.css-qjk116 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:visited{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}The addition of Chorney is more complex, and offers a partial if confusing glimpse into the Grammys’ behind-the-scenes process of tabulating votes.Chorney had been on an initial version of the ballot under best American roots song, for her “Bored.” That version of the list, which circulated outside the Recording Academy in the days before the nominations were announced on Nov. 23, also had just eight slots for the top four categories; the day before that announcement, the Grammys’ board approved increasing that number to 10, adding artists including West and Taylor Swift. When the final nominations list came out, Chorney had been replaced by another artist, though some news outlets online still included her name.This week, the Grammys added Chorney back in. She had been removed, the academy said, because the accounting firm Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, the awards’ longtime partner in collecting and tabulating votes, had performed an “audit” on the votes she received, and the academy decided to remove her name from the ballot.“That audit has now concluded, and Ms. Chorney’s recording has been added back in,” the academy said in a statement. “We apologize for any inconvenience this delay may have caused, but ensuring the integrity of our voting process is paramount.” It offered no explanation for how the early nominations list, which contained Chorney’s name, was released.Why was the audit conducted? In an interview on Wednesday, Chorney said that Harvey Mason Jr., the academy’s chief executive, told her in a phone call this week that she had been “flagged” because of her previous public comments about the Grammys. In 2011, her “Emotional Jukebox” was a surprise nominee for best Americana album. She was criticized at the time for “gaming the system” — she acknowledged using the Grammys’ website to promote herself, a common and permitted tactic at the time — and said she even got death threats. She helped make a movie about the experience titled “When I Sing.”Days after this year’s nominations were announced, the Grammys came under scrutiny for giving nominations to figures like Manson and Louis C.K., the comedian who in 2017 admitted to sexual misconduct. In a recent interview with The Wrap, Mason said that Grammy eligibility is based only on the recordings submitted for the awards, not any artist’s past behavior. “We won’t look back at people’s history,” he said.Chorney praised Mason for looking into the problem and addressing it quickly. When he called her, she said, “I was ecstatic. I felt validated.”The Grammys ceremony will be held on Jan. 31 in Los Angeles, hosted by Trevor Noah. More

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    Jon Batiste and Young Chart-Toppers Lead 2022 Grammy Nominations

    The Recording Academy, which expanded the top competitions to 10 slots, announces its first ballot since ending its heavily criticized review committees in nearly all categories.Nominations for the 64th annual Grammy Awards, announced on Tuesday, recognized chart-topping pop stars like Justin Bieber, Olivia Rodrigo, Doja Cat and Billie Eilish. But the artist with the most chances to win is Jon Batiste, the composer and bandleader known for his work in television and film, who was nominated 11 times, including for his eclectic, soul-inflected album “We Are.”Batiste, who also emerged last year as a voice of social protest, will face off in some of the most prestigious categories, like album and record of the year, as well as in an array of genre fields — including R&B, jazz, American roots and classical — at the ceremony, which is scheduled for Jan. 31 in Los Angeles, and will be broadcast by CBS.The list of nominees is even more robust than usual this year, after the Recording Academy, which presents the awards, expanded the ballots for the top four categories — album, record and song of the year, and best new artist — to include 10 nominees, up from eight. As recently as four years ago, there were just five slots in those categories.For album of the year, Batiste — perhaps best known as the musical director on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” on CBS — competes against Bieber (“Justice,” in a deluxe version), Doja Cat (“Planet Her,” also deluxe), Rodrigo (“Sour”), Eilish (“Happier Than Ever”), Taylor Swift (“Evermore”), Lil Nas X (“Montero”), Kanye West (“Donda”), H.E.R. (“Back of My Mind”), and Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga (“Love for Sale,” a tribute to Cole Porter).Record of the year, which recognizes the recording of a single track, pits hits like Rodrigo’s “Drivers License,” Bieber’s “Peaches,” Doja Cat’s “Kiss Me More,” Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” and “Leave the Door Open” by Silk Sonic, the retro-soul project of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak, against Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever,” Brandi Carlile’s “Right on Time,” Bennett and Lady Gaga’s “I Get a Kick Out of You,” and “I Still Have Faith in You,” a comeback single by Abba — the Europop icons who were never nominated for a Grammy in their heyday of the 1970s and early ’80s.For song of the year, a songwriter’s award, the nominees include “Drivers License,” “Happier Than Ever,” “Kiss Me More,” “Leave the Door Open,” “Peaches,” “Right on Time” and “Montero,” along with Ed Sheeran’s “Bad Habits,” Carlile and Alicia Keys’s “A Beautiful Noise,” and “Fight for You” by H.E.R., who won the prize last year for a protest anthem, “I Can’t Breathe.”The new artist category is a mix of fresh pop stars and lesser-known acts. It includes Rodrigo, the singer and actress who rocketed to fame this year with hits like “Drivers License” and “Good 4 U”; the Kid Laroi, who has been ubiquitous on pop radio with “Stay,” featuring Bieber; and Saweetie, whose “Best Friend” featuring Doja Cat is another radio fixture; along with Finneas, Eilish’s producer brother; Japanese Breakfast, the alternative project led by Michelle Zauner, who has also won acclaim as a memoirist; the band Glass Animals; Arlo Parks; Baby Keem; Jimmie Allen; and Arooj Aftab.Olivia Rodrigo has seven nominations, including best new artist.Mat Hayward/Getty ImagesHarvey Mason Jr., the chief executive of the academy, said in an interview that the decision to expand the ballot was in part driven by the rapid growth of the quantity of music released in the streaming age; according to Spotify, for example, some 60,000 tracks are added to that service every day..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-1kpebx{margin:0 auto;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1kpebx{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-1gtxqqv{margin-bottom:0;}.css-1g3vlj0{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1g3vlj0{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-1g3vlj0 strong{font-weight:600;}.css-1g3vlj0 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1g3vlj0{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0.25rem;}.css-19zsuqr{display:block;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-qjk116{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-qjk116 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-qjk116 em{font-style:italic;}.css-qjk116 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:visited{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}“We saw an opportunity,” Mason said. “We felt it was an important time to allow our members to be heard in a wider and deeper way.”One prominent name that is nowhere to be found on this year’s ballot is Morgan Wallen, the country singer-songwriter who made one of the year’s most popular albums, “Dangerous: The Double Album” — it held the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s chart for 10 weeks straight — but came under fire after he was caught on video casually using a racial slur.Wallen has spent much of the year in industry purgatory, dropped from most radio playlists, though he remains a steady seller and is planning a major tour next year. His absence from top categories like album of the year is not surprising, yet he was also not nominated for any country award, despite holding on to substantial support in Nashville. (At the Country Music Association Awards this month, “Dangerous” was a contender for album of the year.)In the music industry, this year’s nominations are being scrutinized for the effects of a series of changes to the Recording Academy’s voting procedures, which have come under harsh criticism in recent years, often because of whom they have left out.Last year, for example, Abel Tesfaye, who performs as the Weeknd, accused the Grammys of being “corrupt” after he failed to receive any nominations, despite his album “After Hours” being a gigantic hit. In protest, Tesfaye pledged not to submit his music for Grammy consideration in the future.His attack focused attention on a little-understood part of the nomination process — the use of “review committees,” whose anonymous members pared down the choices of the academy’s more than 11,000 voting members to a final ballot, ostensibly to preserve the awards’ integrity.But those committees became the focus of criticism for perceived conflicts of interest and other agendas, and this year, the academy eliminated them in most categories. (They remain part of the process for “craft” categories, like packaging, liner notes and engineering.)The impact of those changes on this year’s ballot may be debated in weeks to come. For the most part, the effect seems less dramatic than many expected. This year, the distribution of Grammy nods has followed a familiar pattern of mixing pop superstars with heroes of the old guard (like the 95-year-old Bennett) and deeply skilled musicians who have the respect of the industry’s rank-and-file, even if they do not top charts (like Batiste).Batiste was nominated for eight awards for “We Are,” along with three connected to “Soul,” the 2020 animated film, for which Batiste has already won an Oscar for best original score (shared with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross).Justin Bieber has eight nominations across several genres, including pop and R&B.Mike Coppola/Getty ImagesAnother Grammy rule change has allowed more songwriters to become eligible for album of the year. In past years, writers had to contribute to 33 percent of an album to qualify, but that threshold has been removed. One effect is that dozens of names — including featured artists, producers and engineers, in addition to songwriters — can now be on the ballot as contributors to a single album. If Bieber’s “Justice” wins, for example, around 100 people will take home Grammys.Also notable are this year’s four rock categories. Last year, the Grammys earned plaudits for nominating many women, but this year the list is almost entirely male-dominated. For rock album, AC/DC competes against Paul McCartney, Foo Fighters, Chris Cornell and Black Pumas.Alternative music album features a more diverse mix, with Halsey (“If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power”) competing against Japanese Breakfast (“Jubilee”), Arlo Parks (“Collapsed in Sunbeams”), St. Vincent (“Daddy’s Home”) and the men of Fleet Foxes (“Shore”).Among other categories, the contenders for best pop vocal album are Bieber’s “Justice,” Doja Cat’s “Planet Her,” Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever,” Rodrigo’s “Sour” and Ariana Grande’s “Positions.”Drake, whose “Certified Lover Boy” was ignored by the top categories, is up for two awards: best rap performance (“Way 2 Sexy”) and best rap album, in which “Certified” will compete against “Donda,” J. Cole’s “The Off-Season,” Nas’s “King’s Disease II” and Tyler, the Creator’s “Call Me If You Get Lost.”The nominees for best country album are Chris Stapleton’s “Starting Over,” Sturgill Simpson’s “The Ballad of Dood and Juanita,” Mickey Guyton’s “Remember Her Name,” Brothers Osborne’s “Skeletons,” and “The Marfa Tapes” by Miranda Lambert, Jon Randall and Jack Ingram.Kacey Musgraves’s latest, “Star-Crossed,” was not eligible for country album, after being deemed insufficiently country by the academy’s screening committee; it was moved to the pop category, but received no nominations there. That decision drew wide notice in the industry since Musgraves’ last album, “Golden Hour,” won best country album — as well as album of the year — in 2019.The nominees for producer of the year, nonclassical, are Jack Antonoff (for his work with Swift, Lana Del Rey and others), Rogét Chahayed (Doja Cat), Mike Elizondo (Twenty One Pilots, Turnstile), Hit-Boy (“Judas And The Black Messiah: The Inspired Album”) and Ricky Reed (Lizzo, Batiste).With this year’s ballot, Jay-Z becomes the most nominated artist in Grammy history. He had been tied with Quincy Jones for 80 nods, but with another three — as a songwriting contributor on Bieber’s “Justice,” and twice in best rap song, for collaborations with DMX and West — he is now at 83. Jay-Z has won 23 Grammys so far.The nominations recognize music released from Sept. 1, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2021, and can be voted on by more than 11,000 members of the Recording Academy, who must qualify as working musicians.This year’s ballot was winnowed down from nearly 22,000 submissions — down slightly from the more than 23,000 submitted last year, which was a record. More

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    Grammys Snubs and Surprises: Kacey Musgraves, Jon Batiste and Abba

    A jazz musician snagged the most nominations, and the Weeknd, an artist who said he’s boycotting the awards, found his name on the ballot.Doja Cat, Justin Bieber, Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo — sure, of course.H.E.R., Brandi Carlile, Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga — OK, fine, that makes some sense. These are the Grammys, after all.But Jon Batiste — the most-nominated artist overall? And … Abba? Who knew.The contenders for the 64th annual Grammy Awards in January were announced on Tuesday. The New York Times music team — reporter Joe Coscarelli, chief pop music critic Jon Pareles and pop music critic Jon Caramanica — are here to break them down.JOE COSCARELLI Let’s just start with the real shocker: A jazz pianist leads the field with 11 total nominations.Yes, Batiste is a genre-crossing multihyphenate who works as the bandleader and musical director for CBS’s “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.” He’s already won a Golden Globe and an Oscar (best original score for Pixar’s “Soul,” alongside Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross) and is liable to pop up anywhere music is played — even alongside Madonna, as she promoted her “Madame X” concert movie in Harlem.Yet seeing him not only in the R&B, jazz, classical and American roots categories but also in the general field — record and album of the year — alongside those I considered shoo-ins (Rodrigo, Eilish, Taylor Swift, Doja Cat) was the sort of surprise that only the Grammys can consistently provide.Which is to say, was this actually a twist or was this the most Grammys thing that could have possibly happened? I’m torn, because on one hand, it felt like we were moving away from this. On the other, Jacob Collier got an album of the year nod last time around.JON CARAMANICA Last year, when talking about the ubiquity of the retro rock-soul band Black Pumas, we underscored a now-familiar Grammy sleight of hand: Rather than nominate older musicians well past their prime popularity, the show instead nominates younger musicians who make music in an old-fashioned way. That can mean Black Pumas, and it can mean Billie Eilish.This year, it means Jon Batiste, who is 35, but pointedly carries on the long tradition of New Orleans music, and who in recent years has become an institutionalist, a slightly less progressive version of his bandleader competitor, Questlove of “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.”The Grammys are, naturally, the ultimate institution — I would not be surprised if, a decade or two from now, Batiste becomes the show’s musical director. That he is also the bandleader on the marquee late-night show on CBS, the network that also broadcasts the Grammys, isn’t evidence of a fix, but it’s a reminder that the presumed and actual audiences for the awards show and the network both skew old — and that in this echo chamber, and perhaps only in this echo chamber, Batiste qualifies as a pop star..css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-1kpebx{margin:0 auto;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1kpebx{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-1gtxqqv{margin-bottom:0;}.css-1g3vlj0{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1g3vlj0{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-1g3vlj0 strong{font-weight:600;}.css-1g3vlj0 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1g3vlj0{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0.25rem;}.css-19zsuqr{display:block;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-qjk116{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-qjk116 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-qjk116 em{font-style:italic;}.css-qjk116 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:visited{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}JON PARELES Batiste is an impressive musician and performer — pianist, singer, dancer — and his album, “We Are,” is a trove of good intentions and good playing, including New Orleans connections with appearances by Trombone Shorty and the Hot 8 Brass Band. Like Black Pumas (also nominated this year!), Batiste’s album harks back to vintage soul and R&B, clearly a sweet spot for Grammy voters, although it also ventures toward hip-hop. The album is a serious, thoughtful statement, celebrating New Orleans roots — Batiste is a member of a longstanding musical family — and his own memories of growing up. It also has positive-thinking message songs like “Freedom” and “We Are.” But Batiste’s nightly broadcast exposure clearly has a lot to do with all his nominations; someone’s still watching network TV.You get a lot of Grammy nominations by qualifying for multiple categories — and a lot of nominations does not guarantee a lot of wins. Batiste is in R&B, jazz, American roots, soundtrack (for “Soul”), music video and even contemporary classical for one of the album tracks, “Movement 11” — which is a stretch, since it shares far more similarity to a two-minute jazz improvisation with added strings than it does to its fellow nominees, like the Dutch composer Louis Andriessen’s knotty orchestral song cycle, “The Only One.”COSCARELLI Rounding out album of the year, in addition to Batiste’s “We Are,” you have “Love for Sale” by Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, “Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe)” by Justin Bieber, “Planet Her (Deluxe)” by Doja Cat, “Back of My Mind” by H.E.R., “Happier Than Ever” by Billie Eilish, “Montero” by Lil Nas X, “Sour” by Olivia Rodrigo, “Evermore” by Taylor Swift and “Donda” by Kanye West.Many of those artists are also represented in song and record of the year, where you also get a mix of Brandi Carlile, Ed Sheeran, Silk Sonic and Abba’s “I Still Have Faith in You,” which is apparently a record that moved people? That means no Halsey, Ariana Grande, BTS, Megan Thee Stallion, Chris Stapleton or Tyler, the Creator in the major categories, which plenty will see as galling.The 2019 best album winner, Kacey Musgraves, was also eligible again, for her latest LP, “Star-Crossed,” which wasn’t nominated as a body of work. Instead, she landed only two nods overall: best country song and best country solo performance for “Camera Roll,” despite the album being reportedly removed from the country categories by the Recording Academy’s genre police.PARELES One thing that struck me, as a writer for a sometime print publication, was the sheer typographical burden of this year’s Grammy nominations. The list simply has not looked like this before. The album of the year category goes on for three full pages to name all the songwriters, producers and engineers credited on albums by Batiste, Bieber, Doja Cat, H.E.R., Lil Nas X, Swift and West.It’s a reflection of how albums are made now. It’s not a band and a producer sequestered in the studio. It’s about beat-shopping, samples, songwriting camps, remote collaborations, multiple tweaks and iterations — and all the participants want those credits and publishing points. The nominees alone are going to be a sizable voting bloc for each album, especially in a category split 10 ways.COSCARELLI But then there’s Gaga and Bennett, Eilish and Rodrigo, whose credits are minuscule by comparison. That could potentially give them an edge with more conservative voters who remain concerned with the bespoke quality of the music.Along with expanding the Big Four categories to 10 nominees each — and lowering the bar for how much any one collaborator has to contribute to be among those recognized in the best album field (hello, Zadie Smith!) — this year also marked the end of the so-called Nominations Review Committees. (These were the source of the Weeknd’s frustration last year, after he was snubbed and eventually decided to boycott.)Rather than some shadowy cabal taking the members’ top vote-getters, considering them and then making their own final decision on the nominees anyway, the Recording Academy says these picks are pure: Whoever got the most votes from their music industry peers is who is appearing on the final ballot.Do you see that reflected here? My sense is that it benefits those with wide name recognition and enduring industry connections and respect — Bieber, Abba, maybe even Carlile, who has a record of the year nomination and two for song, including an Alicia Keys duet. At the same time, you could imagine the secret committees keeping out something like Lady Gaga and Bennett’s “Love for Sale,” because it’s so stereotypically Old and Stuffy Grammys — the kind of thing it felt like they were distancing themselves from in recent history.CARAMANICA I will not lie: my heart palpitated a little erratically (and worryingly) when I read the first name in the first category, record of the year: Abba. Now look, I exult at weddings just like the next sap, and I honor anyone whose albums were in my parents’ vinyl collection. But this new Abba music is thin, thin, thin. It exists primarily as an advertisement for the old Abba music, and the group’s avatar-led stage show that’s debuting next year.PARELES That’s obviously one of the Grammys’ better-late-than-never nominations. Abba never got a Grammy in its prime; this nomination is the apology.Meanwhile, count me surprised that Arooj Aftab turns up in the best new artist category. She is a Pakistani musician who studied at the Berklee School of Music and is based in Brooklyn, mingling South Asian music, jazz and chamber music; some of the songs on her (third) album, “Vulture Prince,” presumably the one that caught the Grammys’ attention, have lyrics by the 13th-century Persian mystical poet Rumi. It’s a lovely album, but I hardly expected to see her name alongside Rodrigo and Saweetie. Persian aside, there’s also still a language barrier for Grammy voters in this category; where are streaming blockbusters like Rauw Alejandro, whose debut album came out last November?COSCARELLI Best new artist is confusing, especially with the removal of the nomination committees taken into account. Enough people knew Aftab, Baby Keem and Japanese Breakfast to put them ahead of, say, Polo G, Tems, Jack Harlow and Maneskin (shudder)?I do miss the secret committees when it comes to rock. Last year, they seemed to make a point to shake up typically staid categories like best rock song, album and performance, the latter of which was all women for the first time, including Fiona Apple, Phoebe Bridgers and Haim. This year it’s back to basics: AC/DC, Black Pumas (for a live release), Chris Cornell, Deftones and Foo Fighters. Kings of Leon, Weezer and Paul McCartney also turn up in the rock field.That can’t help but feel like regression, even if it’s what the voters wanted.Kanye West’s “Donda” is up for album of the year.Randall Hill/ReutersCARAMANICA Joe, you see that shift also in the best rap album nominations. Last year, they consisted of purist-oriented artisanal albums at the intersection of process and aesthetic that the Grammys has long valorized in other genres. This year, the nominees are … reasonably popular and generally respected rap albums.That includes “Donda,” which is also nominated for album of the year. West received five total nominations this year, representing something of a coming in from the cold for someone who, in Grammy terms, now qualifies as a legacy artist. He has been nominated over 70 times in his career, but apart from last year’s win for best contemporary Christian music album, hasn’t taken home a trophy since 2013. He also hasn’t been nominated for album of the year for an album of his own since his 2007 album “Graduation.” (He has been nominated as a producer on others’ albums.)The nominations of “Donda” and “Hurricane” (best melodic rap performance) also means nominations for the Weeknd, even after his boycott. (He is also nominated for his contributions to Doja Cat’s album.)COSCARELLI The inclusion of “Donda” in album of the year can’t help but highlight the lack of Drake’s “Certified Lover Boy,” which earned a rap album and a rap performance nod (for “Way 2 Sexy”) but nothing in the top categories. Both are among the year’s biggest albums commercially.Also on that best-seller list? Morgan Wallen, who has outperformed both rappers but came away with absolutely no nominations amid his soft industry banishment for drunkenly shouting a racial slur in a video captured by a neighbor. Does that count as a snub, or just a cultural land mine avoided?CARAMANICA It’s also worth mentioning Taylor Swift here — a lonely nomination for album of the year, for “Evermore,” perhaps the least commercially impactful album of her career, and also another nomination in the same category by dint of her writing “contributions” to Olivia Rodrigo’s “Sour.”PARELES In a way, Swift’s album nomination is the appropriate one: “Evermore” is an old-fashioned full-length album, made to be heard as a whole. Also on the absentee list: Lana Del Rey and Lorde, even though their (and Swift’s) producer Jack Antonoff is nominated as producer of the year, in part for his work with them.COSCARELLI I see neither of you want to touch the subject of Wallen right now — just like the Grammys.CARAMANICA On the other hand, there are a handful of TikTok hits that have now led to Grammy nominations: Giveon’s slow and aching “Heartbreak Anniversary” is nominated for best R&B song, and the British rock band Glass Animals had a huge TikTok hit this year with “Heat Waves,” and now the band, which has been releasing music for several years, is nominated for best new artist. Walker Hayes’s goofy country stomper “Fancy Like” started its ascent on TikTok and now is nominated in best country song.PARELES Well, at least they’re trying. You have to sympathize, a little, with how difficult it is for the Grammys to try to sum up all of music when there are so many niche audiences that barely intersect. But we’re lucky that hardly anyone who cares about music takes the Grammys as the ultimate judgment. More

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    Grammy Nominees 2022: The Full List

    Artists, albums and songs competing for trophies at the 64th annual ceremony were announced on Tuesday. The show will take place Jan. 31 in Los Angeles.Nominees for the 64th annual Grammy Awards were announced on Tuesday. Jon Batiste leads all artists with 11 nominations; Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R. follow with eight; Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo have seven each.The ceremony will be the first since the awards made a major change to its nominating process: In late April, the board of the Recording Academy, the governing body of the Grammys, voted to eliminate the use of anonymous expert committees to whittle down the final ballot in dozens of categories, a practice that had been in place since 1989. The Grammys have been criticized in recent years by prominent artists including Jay-Z, Drake, Kanye West and Frank Ocean, who amplified concerns that Black artists have been routinely passed over in the top all-genre categories. In March, the Weeknd announced a boycott of the Grammys, citing the committees.The ceremony will be held on Jan. 31, 2022, at the Crypto.com Arena (formerly the Staples Center) in Los Angeles.Here is the full list of nominees.Record of the Year“I Still Have Faith in You,” Abba“Freedom,” Jon Batiste“I Get a Kick Out of You,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga“Peaches,” Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon“Right on Time,” Brandi Carlile“Kiss Me More,” Doja Cat featuring SZA“Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish“Montero (Call Me by Your Name),” Lil Nas X“Drivers License,” Olivia Rodrigo“Leave the Door Open,” Silk SonicAlbum of the Year“We Are,” Jon Batiste“Love for Sale,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga“Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe),” Justin Bieber“Planet Her (Deluxe),” Doja Cat“Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish“Back of My Mind,” H.E.R.“Montero,” Lil Nas X“Sour,” Olivia Rodrigo“Evermore,” Taylor Swift“Donda,” Kanye WestSong of the Year“Bad Habits,” Fred Gibson, Johnny McDaid and Ed Sheeran, songwriters (Ed Sheeran)“A Beautiful Noise,” Ruby Amanfu, Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, Alicia Keys, Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, Linda Perry and Hailey Whitters, songwriters (Alicia Keys and Brandi Carlile)“Drivers License,” Daniel Nigro and Olivia Rodrigo, songwriters (Olivia Rodrigo)“Fight for You,” Dernst Emile Ii, H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas, songwriters (H.E.R.)“Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish O’Connell and Finneas O’Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)“Kiss Me More,” Rogét Chahayed, Amala Zandile Dlamini, Lukasz Gottwald, Carter Lang, Gerard A. Powell Ii, Solána Rowe and David Sprecher, songwriters (Doja Cat featuring Sza)“Leave the Door Open,” Brandon Anderson, Christopher Brody Brown, Dernst Emile Ii and Bruno Mars, songwriters (Silk Sonic)“Montero (Call Me by Your Name),” Denzel Baptiste, David Biral, Omer Fedi, Montero Hill and Roy Lenzo, songwriters (Lil Nas X)“Peaches,” Louis Bell, Justin Bieber, Giveon Dezmann Evans, Bernard Harvey, Felisha “Fury” King, Matthew Sean Leon, Luis Manuel Martinez Jr., Aaron Simmonds, Ashton Simmonds, Andrew Wotman Aand Keavan Yazdani, songwriters (Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon)“Right on Time,” Brandi Carlile, Dave Cobb, Phil Hanseroth and Tim Hanseroth, songwriters (Brandi Carlile)Best New ArtistArooj AftabJimmie AllenBaby KeemFinneasGlass AnimalsJapanese BreakfastThe Kid LaroiArlo ParksOlivia RodrigoSaweetieBest Pop Solo Performance“Anyone,” Justin Bieber“Right on Time,” Brandi Carlile“Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish“Positions,” Ariana Grande“Drivers License,” Olivia RodrigoBest Pop Duo/Group Performance“I Get a Kick Out of You,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga“Lonely,” Justin Bieber and Benny Blanco“Butter,” BTS“Higher Power,” Coldplay“Kiss Me More,” Doja Cat featuring SZABest Traditional Pop Vocal Album“Love for Sale,” Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga“’Til We Meet Again (Live),” Norah Jones“A Tori Kelly Christmas,” Tori Kelly“Ledisi Sings Nina,” Ledisi“That’s Life,” Willie Nelson“A Holly Dolly Christmas,” Dolly PartonBest Pop Vocal Album“Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe),” Justin Bieber“Planet Her (Deluxe),” Doja Cat“Happier Than Ever,” Billie Eilish“Positions,” Ariana Grande“Sour,” Olivia RodrigoBest Dance/Electronic Recording“Hero,” Afrojack and David Guetta“Loom,” Ólafur Arnalds featuring Bonobo“Before,” James Blake“Heartbreak,” Bonobo and Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs“You Can Do It,” Caribou“Alive,” Rüfüs Du Sol“The Business,” TiëstoBest Dance/Electronic Music Album“Subconsciously,” Black Coffee“Fallen Embers,” Illenium“Music Is the Weapon (Reloaded),” Major Lazer“Shockwave,” Marshmello“Free Love,” Sylvan Esso“Judgement,” Ten CityBest Alternative Music Album“Shore,” Fleet Foxes“If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power,” Halsey“Jubilee,” Japanese Breakfast“Collapsed in Sunbeams,” Arlo Parks“Daddy’s Home,” St. VincentBest Contemporary Instrumental Album“Double Dealin’,” Randy Brecker and Eric Marienthal“The Garden,” Rachel Eckroth“Tree Falls,” Taylor Eigsti“At Blue Note Tokyo,” Steve Gadd Band“Deep: The Baritone Sessions, Vol. 2,” Mark LettieriBest Rock Performance“Shot in the Dark,” AC/DC“Know You Better (Live From Capitol Studio A),” Black Pumas“Nothing Compares 2 U,” Chris Cornell“Ohms,” Deftones“Making a Fire,” Foo FightersBest Metal Performance“Genesis,” Deftones“The Alien,” Dream Theater“Amazonia,” Gojira“Pushing the Tides,” Mastodon“The Triumph of King Freak (A Crypt of Preservation and Superstition),” Rob ZombieBest Rock Song“All My Favorite Songs,” Rivers Cuomo, Ashley Gorley, Ben Johnson and Ilsey Juber, songwriters (Weezer)“The Bandit,” Caleb Followill, Jared Followill, Matthew Followill and Nathan Followill, songwriters (Kings of Leon)“Distance,” Wolfgang Van Halen, songwriter (Mammoth Wvh)“Find My Way,” Paul McCartney, songwriter (Paul McCartney)“Waiting on a War,” Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins, Rami Jaffee, Nate Mendel, Chris Shiflett and Pat Smear, songwriters (Foo Fighters)Best Rock Album“Power Up,” AC/DC“Capitol Cuts – Live From Studio A,” Black Pumas“No One Sings Like You Anymore Vol. 1,” Chris Cornell“Medicine at Midnight,” Foo Fighters“McCartney III,” Paul McCartneyBest R&B Performance“Lost You,” Snoh Aalegra“Peaches,” Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon“Damage,” H.E.R.“Leave the Door Open,” Silk Sonic“Pick Up Your Feelings,” Jazmine SullivanBest Traditional R&B Performance“I Need You,” Jon Batiste“Bring It on Home to Me,” BJ The Chicago Kid, PJ Morton and Kenyon Dixon featuring Charlie Bereal“Born Again,” Leon Bridges featuring Robert Glasper“Fight for You,” H.E.R.“How Much Can a Heart Take,” Lucky Daye featuring YebbaBest R&B Song“Damage,” Anthony Clemons Jr., Jeff Gitelman, H.E.R., Carl McCormick and Tiara Thomas, songwriters (H.E.R.)“Good Days,” Jacob Collier, Carter Lang, Carlos Munoz, Solána Rowe and Christopher Ruelas, songwriters (SZA)“Heartbreak Anniversary,” Giveon Evans, Maneesh, Sevn Thomas and Varren Wade, songwriters (Giveon)“Leave the Door Open,” Brandon Anderson, Christopher Brody Brown, Dernst Emile II and Bruno Mars, songwriters (Silk Sonic)“Pick Up Your Feelings,” Denisia “Blue June” Andrews, Audra Mae Butts, Kyle Coleman, Brittany “Chi” Coney, Michael Holmes and Jazmine Sullivan, songwriters (Jazmine Sullivan).css-1xzcza9{list-style-type:disc;padding-inline-start:1em;}.css-3btd0c{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-3btd0c{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-3btd0c strong{font-weight:600;}.css-3btd0c em{font-style:italic;}.css-1kpebx{margin:0 auto;font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.125rem;line-height:1.3125rem;color:#121212;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-family:nyt-cheltenham,georgia,’times new roman’,times,serif;font-weight:700;font-size:1.375rem;line-height:1.625rem;}@media (min-width:740px){#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-1kpebx{font-size:1.6875rem;line-height:1.875rem;}}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1kpebx{font-size:1.25rem;line-height:1.4375rem;}}.css-1gtxqqv{margin-bottom:0;}.css-1g3vlj0{font-family:nyt-franklin,helvetica,arial,sans-serif;font-size:1rem;line-height:1.375rem;color:#333;margin-bottom:0.78125rem;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-1g3vlj0{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.5rem;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}}.css-1g3vlj0 strong{font-weight:600;}.css-1g3vlj0 em{font-style:italic;}.css-1g3vlj0{margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0.25rem;}.css-19zsuqr{display:block;margin-bottom:0.9375rem;}.css-12vbvwq{background-color:white;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;width:calc(100% – 40px);max-width:600px;margin:1.5rem auto 1.9rem;padding:15px;box-sizing:border-box;}@media (min-width:740px){.css-12vbvwq{padding:20px;width:100%;}}.css-12vbvwq:focus{outline:1px solid #e2e2e2;}#NYT_BELOW_MAIN_CONTENT_REGION .css-12vbvwq{border:none;padding:10px 0 0;border-top:2px solid #121212;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-rdoyk0{-webkit-transform:rotate(0deg);-ms-transform:rotate(0deg);transform:rotate(0deg);}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-eb027h{max-height:300px;overflow:hidden;-webkit-transition:none;transition:none;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-5gimkt:after{content:’See more’;}.css-12vbvwq[data-truncated] .css-6mllg9{opacity:1;}.css-qjk116{margin:0 auto;overflow:hidden;}.css-qjk116 strong{font-weight:700;}.css-qjk116 em{font-style:italic;}.css-qjk116 a{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-underline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:visited{color:#326891;-webkit-text-decoration-color:#326891;text-decoration-color:#326891;}.css-qjk116 a:hover{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Best Progressive R&B Album“New Light,” Eric Bellinger“Something to Say,” Cory Henry“Mood Valiant,” Hiatus Kaiyote“Table for Two,” Lucky Daye“Dinner Party: Dessert,” Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder and Kamasi Washington“Studying Abroad: Extended Stay,” MasegoBest R&B Album“Temporary Highs in the Violet Skies,” Snoh Aalegra“We Are,” Jon Batiste“Gold-Diggers Sound,” Leon Bridges“Back of My Mind,” H.E.R.“Heaux Tales,” Jazmine SullivanBest Rap Performance“Family Ties” Baby Keem featuring Kendrick Lamar“Up,” Cardi B“My Life,” J. Cole featuring 21 Savage and Morray“Way 2 Sexy,” Drake featuring Future and Young Thug“Thot ___,” Megan Thee StallionBest Melodic Rap Performance“Pride Is the Devil,” J. Cole featuring Lil Baby“Need to Know,” Doja Cat“Industry Baby,” Lil Nas X featuring Jack Harlow“Wusyaname,” Tyler, The Creator featuring Youngboy Never Broke Again and Ty Dolla Sign“Hurricane,” Kanye West featuring the Weeknd and Lil BabyBest Rap Song“Bath Salts,” Shawn Carter, Kasseem Dean, Michael Forno, Nasir Jones and Earl Simmons, songwriters (DMX featuring Jay-Z and Nas)“Best Friend,” Amala Zandile Dlamini, Lukasz Gottwald, Randall Avery Hammers, Diamonté Harper, Asia Smith, Theron Thomas and Rocco Valdes, songwriters (Saweetie featuring Doja Cat)“Family Ties,” Roshwita Larisha Bacha, Hykeem Carter, Tobias Dekker, Colin Franken, Jasper Harris, Kendrick Lamar, Ronald Latour and Dominik Patrzek, songwriters (Baby Keem featuring Kendrick Lamar)“Jail,” Dwayne Abernathy, Jr., Shawn Carter, Raul Cubina, Michael Dean, Charles M. Njapa, Sean Solymar, Brian Hugh Warner, Kanye West and Mark Williams, songwriters (Kanye West featuring Jay-Z)“My Life,” Shéyaa Bin Abraham-Joseph & Jermaine Cole, songwriters (J. Cole featuring 21 Savage and Morray)Best Rap Album“The Off-Season,” J. Cole“Certified Lover Boy,” Drake“King’s Disease II,” Nas“Call Me If You Get Lost,” Tyler, the Creator“Donda,” Kanye WestBest Country Solo Performance“Forever After All,” Luke Combs“Remember Her Name,” Mickey Guyton“All I Do Is Drive,” Jason Isbell“Camera Roll,” Kacey Musgraves“You Should Probably Leave,” Chris StapletonBest Country Duo/Group Performance“If I Didn’t Love You,” Jason Aldean and Carrie Underwood“Younger Me,” Brothers Osborne“Glad You Exist,” Dan + Shay“Chasing After You,” Ryan Hurd and Maren Morris“Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home),” Elle King and Miranda LambertBest Country Song“Better Than We Found It,” Jessie Jo Dillon, Maren Morris, Jimmy Robbins and Laura Veltz, songwriters (Maren Morris)“Camera Roll,” Ian Fitchuk, Kacey Musgraves and Daniel Tashian, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves)“Cold,” Dave Cobb, J.T. Cure, Derek Mixon and Chris Stapleton, songwriters (Chris Stapleton)“Country Again,” Zach Crowell, Ashley Gorley and Thomas Rhett, songwriters (Thomas Rhett)“Fancy Like,” Cameron Bartolini, Walker Hayes, Josh Jenkins and Shane Stevens, songwriters (Walker Hayes)“Remember Her Name,” Mickey Guyton, Blake Hubbard, Jarrod Ingram and Parker Welling, songwriters (Mickey Guyton)Best Country Album“Skeletons,” Brothers Osborne“Remember Her Name,” Mickey Guyton“The Marfa Tapes,” Miranda Lambert, Jon Randall and Jack Ingram“The Ballad of Dood & Juanita,” Sturgill Simpson“Starting Over,” Chris StapletonBest New Age Album“Brothers,” Will Ackerman, Jeff Oster and Tom Eaton“Divine Tides,” Stewart Copeland and Ricky Kej“Pangaea,” Wouter Kellerman and David Arkenstone“Night + Day,” Opium Moon“Pieces of Forever,” Laura SullivanBest Improvised Jazz Solo“Sackodougou,” Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, soloist“Kick Those Feet,” Kenny Barron, soloist“Bigger Than Us,” Jon Batiste, soloist“Absence,” Terence Blanchard, soloist“Humpty Dumpty (Set 2),” Chick Corea, soloistBest Jazz Vocal Album“Generations,” The Baylor Project“Superblue,” Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter“Time Traveler,” Nnenna Freelon“Flor,” Gretchen Parlato“Songwrights Apothecary Lab,” Esperanza SpaldingBest Jazz Instrumental Album“Jazz Selections: Music From and Inspired by Soul,” Jon Batiste“Absence,” Terence Blanchard featuring the E Collective and the Turtle Island Quartet“Skyline,” Ron Carter, Jack DeJohnette and Gonzalo Rubalcaba“Akoustic Band Live,” Chick Corea, John Patitucci and Dave Weckl“Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV),” Pat MethenyBest Large Jazz Ensemble Album“Live at Birdland!,” The Count Basie Orchestra directed by Scotty Barnhart“Dear Love,” Jazzmeia Horn and her Noble Force“For Jimmy, Wes and Oliver,” Christian McBride Big Band“Swirling,” Sun Ra Arkestra“Jackets XL,” Yellowjackets + WDR Big BandBest Latin Jazz Album“Mirror Mirror,” Eliane Elias With Chick Corea and Chucho Valdés“The South Bronx Story,” Carlos Henriquez“Virtual Birdland,” Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra“Transparency,” Dafnis Prieto Sextet“El Arte Del Bolero,” Miguel Zenón and Luis PerdomoBest Gospel Performance/Song“Voice of God,” Dante Bowe featuring Steffany Gretzinger and Chandler Moore; Dante Bowe, Tywan Mack, Jeff Schneeweis and Mitch Wong, songwriters“Joyful,” Dante Bowe; Dante Bowe and Ben Schofield, songwriters“Help,” Anthony Brown & Group Therapy; Anthony Brown and Darryl Woodson, songwriters“Never Lost,” CeCe Winans“Wait on You,” Elevation Worship and Maverick City Music; Dante Bowe, Chris Brown, Steven Furtick, Tiffany Hudson, Brandon Lake and Chandler Moore, songwritersBest Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song“We Win,” Kirk Franklin and Lil Baby; Kirk Franklin, Dominique Jones, Cynthia Nunn and Justin Smith, songwriters“Hold Us Together (Hope Mix),” H.E.R. and Tauren Wells; Josiah Bassey, Dernst Emile and H.E.R., songwriters“Man of Your Word,” Chandler Moore and KJ Scriven; Jonathan Jay, Nathan Jess and Chandler Moore, songwriters“Believe for It,” CeCe Winans; Dwan Hill, Kyle Lee, CeCe Winans and Mitch Wong, songwriters“Jireh,” Elevation Worship and Maverick City Music featuring Chandler Moore and Naomi Raine; Chris Brown, Steven Furtick, Chandler Moore and Naomi Raine, songwritersBest Gospel Album“Changing Your Story,” Jekalyn Carr“Royalty: Live at the Ryman,” Tasha Cobbs Leonard“Jubilee: Juneteenth Edition,” Maverick City Music“Jonny X Mali: Live in LA,” Jonathan McReynolds and Mali Music“Believe for It,” CeCe WinansBest Contemporary Christian Music Album“No Stranger,” Natalie Grant“Feels Like Home Vol. 2,” Israel and New Breed“The Blessing (Live),” Kari Jobe“Citizen of Heaven (Live),” Tauren Wells“Old Church Basement,” Elevation Worship and Maverick City MusicBest Roots Gospel Album“Alone With My Faith,” Harry Connick, Jr.“That’s Gospel, Brother,” Gaither Vocal Band“Keeping On,” Ernie Haase and Signature Sound“Songs For the Times,” The Isaacs“My Savior,” Carrie UnderwoodBest Latin Pop Album“Vértigo,” Pablo Alborán“Mis Amores,” Paula Arenas“Hecho a la Antigua,” Ricardo Arjona“Mis Manos,” Camilo“Mendó,” Alex Cuba“Revelación,” Selena GomezBest Música Urbana Album“Afrodisíaco,” Rauw Alejandro“El Último Tour Del Mundo,” Bad Bunny“Jose,” J Balvin“KG0516,” KAROL G“Sin Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios),” Kali UchisBest Latin Rock or Alternative Album“Deja,” Bomba Estéreo“Mira Lo Que Me Hiciste Hacer (Deluxe Edition),” Diamante Eléctrico“Origen,” Juanes“Calambre,” Nathy Peluso“El Madrileño,” C. Tangana“Sonidos de Karmática Resonancia,” ZoéBest Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)“Antología de la Musica Ranchera, Vol. 2,” Aida Cuevas“A Mis 80’s,” Vicente Fernández“Seis,” Mon Laferte“Un Canto por México, Vol. II,” Natalia Lafourcade“Ayayay! (Súper Deluxe),” Christian NodalBest Tropical Latin Album“Salswing!,” Rubén Blades y Roberto Delgado & Orquesta“En Cuarentena,” El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico“Sin Salsa No Hay Paraíso,” Aymée Nuviola“Colegas,” Gilberto Santa Rosa“Live in Peru,” Tony SuccarBest American Roots Performance“Cry,” Jon Batiste“Love and Regret,” Billy Strings“I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free,” The Blind Boys of Alabama and Béla Fleck“Same Devil,” Brandy Clark featuring Brandi Carlile“Nightflyer,” Allison RussellBest American Roots Song“Avalon,” Rhiannon Giddens, Justin Robinson and Francesco Turrisi, songwriters (Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi)“Call Me a Fool,” Valerie June, songwriter (Valerie June featuring Carla Thomas)“Cry,” Jon Batiste and Steve McEwan, songwriters (Jon Batiste)“Diamond Studded Shoes,” Dan Auerbach, Natalie Hemby, Aaron Lee Tasjan and Yola, songwriters (Yola)“Nightflyer,” Jeremy Lindsay and Allison Russell, songwriters (Allison Russell)Best Americana Album“Downhill From Everywhere,” Jackson Browne“Leftover Feelings,” John Hiatt with the Jerry Douglas Band“Native Sons,” Los Lobos“Outside Child,” Allison Russell“Stand for Myself,” YolaBest Bluegrass Album“Renewal,” Billy Strings“My Bluegrass Heart,” Béla Fleck“A Tribute To Bill Monroe,” The Infamous Stringdusters“Cuttin’ Grass – Vol. 1 (Butcher Shoppe Sessions),” Sturgill Simpson“Music Is What I See,” Rhonda VincentBest Traditional Blues Album“100 Years of Blues,” Elvin Bishop and Charlie Musselwhite“Traveler’s Blues,” Blues Traveler“I Be Trying,” Cedric Burnside“Be Ready When I Call You,” Guy Davis“Take Me Back,” Kim WilsonBest Contemporary Blues Album“Delta Kream,” The Black Keys featuring Eric Deaton and Kenny Brown“Royal Tea,” Joe Bonamassa“Uncivil War,” Shemekia Copeland“Fire It Up,” Steve Cropper“662,” Christone “Kingfish” IngramBest Folk Album“One Night Lonely [Live],” Mary Chapin Carpenter“Long Violent History,” Tyler Childers“Wednesday (Extended Edition),” Madison Cunningham“They’re Calling Me Home,” Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi“Blue Heron Suite,” Sarah JaroszBest Regional Roots Music Album“Live in New Orleans!,” Sean Ardoin and Kreole Rock and Soul“Bloodstains & Teardrops,” Big Chief Monk Boudreaux“My People,” Cha Wa“Corey Ledet Zydeco,” Corey Ledet Zydeco“Kau Ka Pe’a,” Kalani Pe’aBest Reggae Album“Pamoja,” Etana“Positive Vibration,” Gramps Morgan“Live N Livin,” Sean Paul“Royal,” Jesse Royal“Beauty in the Silence,” Soja“10,” SpiceBest Engineered Album, Non-Classical“Cinema,” Josh Conway, Marvin Figueroa, Josh Gudwin, Neal H Pogue and Ethan Shumaker, engineers; Joe LaPorta, mastering engineer (The Marías)“Dawn,” Thomas Brenneck, Zach Brown, Elton “L10MixedIt” Chueng, Riccardo Damian, Tom Elmhirst, Jens Jungkurth, Todd Monfalcone, John Rooney and Smino, engineers; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer (Yebba)“Hey What,” BJ Burton, engineer; BJ Burton, mastering engineer (Low)“Love for Sale,” Dae Bennett, Josh Coleman and Billy Cumella, engineers; Greg Calbi and Steve Fallone, mastering engineers (Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga)Producer of the Year, Non-ClassicalJack AntonoffRogét ChahayedMike ElizondoHit-BoyRicky ReedBest Remixed Recording“Back to Life” (Booker T Kings of Soul Satta Dub); Booker T, remixer (Soul II Soul)“Born for Greatness” (Cymek Remix); Spencer Bastin, remixer (Papa Roach); track from: “Greatest Hits Vol. 2 The Better Noise Years”“Constant Craving” (Fashionably Late Remix); Tracy Young, remixer (K.D. Lang)“Inside Out” (3scape DRM Remix); 3scape DRM, remixer (Zedd and Griff)“Met Him Last Night (Dave Audé Remix); Dave Audé, remixer (Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande)“Passenger” (Mike Shinoda Remix); Mike Shinoda, remixer (Deftones); track from: “White Pony” (20th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)“Talks” (Mura Masa Remix); Alexander Crossan, remixer (PVA)Best Global Music Performance“Mohabbat,” Arooj Aftab“Do Yourself,” Angelique Kidjo and Burna Boy“Pà Pá Pà,” Femi Kuti“Blewu,” Yo-Yo Ma and Angelique Kidjo“Essence,” Wizkid featuring TemsBest Global Music Album“Voice of Bunbon, Vol. 1,” Rocky Dawuni“East West Players Presents: Daniel Ho and Friends Live in Concert,” Daniel Ho and Friends“Mother Nature,” Angelique Kidjo“Legacy +,” Femi Kuti and Made Kuti“Made In Lagos: Deluxe Edition,” WizkidBest Children’s Music Album“Actívate,” 123 Andrés“All One Tribe,” 1 Tribe Collective“Black to the Future,” Pierce Freelon“A Colorful World,” Falu“Crayon Kids,” Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam BandBest Spoken Word Album“Aftermath,” Levar Burton“Carry On: Reflections for a New Generation From John Lewis,” Don Cheadle“Catching Dreams: Live at Fort Knox Chicago,” J. Ivy“8:46,” Dave Chappelle and Amir Sulaiman“A Promised Land,” Barack ObamaBest Comedy Album“The Comedy Vaccine,” Lavell Crawford“Evolution,” Chelsea Handler“Sincerely Louis C.K.,” Louis C.K.“Thanks for Risking Your Life,” Lewis Black“The Greatest Average American,” Nate Bargatze“Zero ___ Given,” Kevin HartBest Musical Theater Album“Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella,” Andrew Lloyd Webber, Nick Lloyd Webber and Greg Wells, producers; Andrew Lloyd Webber and David Zippel, composers/lyricists (Original Album Cast)“Burt Bacharach and Steven Sater’s Some Lovers,” Burt Bacharach, Michael Croiter, Ben Hartman and Steven Sater, Producers; Burt Bacharach, composer; Steven Sater, lyricist (World Premiere Cast)“Girl From the North Country,” Simon Hale, Conor Mcpherson and Dean Sharenow, Producers (Bob Dylan, composer and lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast)“Les Misérables: The Staged Concert (The Sensational 2020 Live Recording),” Cameron Mackintosh, Lee Mccutcheon and Stephenmetcalfe, producers (Claude-Michel Schönberg, composer; Alain Boublil, John Caird, Herbert Kretzmer, Jean-Marc Natel and Trevor Nunn, lyricists) (The 2020 Les Misérables Staged Concert Company)“Stephen Schwartz’s Snapshots,” Daniel C. Levine, Michael J Moritz Jr, Bryan Perri and Stephen Schwartz, producers (Stephen Schwartz, composer and lyricist) (World Premiere Cast)“The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical,” Emily Bear, producer; Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, composers/lyricists (Barlow & Bear)Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media“Cruella,” (Various Artists)“Dear Evan Hansen,” (Various Artists)“In The Heights,” (Various Artists)“One Night In Miami…,” (Various Artists)“Respect,” Jennifer Hudson“Schmigadoon! Episode 1,” (Various Artists)“The United States vs. Billie Holiday,” Andra DayBest Score Soundtrack for Visual Media“Bridgerton,” Kris Bowers, composer“Dune,” Hans Zimmer, composer“The Mandalorian: Season 2 – Vol. 2 (Chapters 13-16),” Ludwig Göransson, composer“The Queen’s Gambit,” Carlos Rafael Rivera, composer“Soul,” Jon Batiste, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, composersBest Song Written For Visual Media“Agatha All Along [From Wandavision: Episode 7],” Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, songwriters (Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez featuring Kathryn Hahn, Eric Bradley, Greg Whipple, Jasper Randall and Gerald White)“All Eyes On Me [From Inside],” Bo Burnham, songwriter (Bo Burnham)“All I Know So Far [From Pink: All I Know So Far],” Alecia Moore, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, songwriters (Pink)“Fight for You [From Judas and the Black Messiah],” Dernst Emile Ii, H.E.R. and Tiara Thomas, songwriters (H.E.R.)“Here I Am (Singing My Way Home) [From Respect],” Jamie Hartman, Jennifer Hudson and Carole King, songwriters (Jennifer Hudson)“Speak Now [From One Night in Miami…],” Sam Ashworth and Leslie Odom, Jr., Songwriters (Leslie Odom, Jr.)Best Immersive Audio Album“Alicia,” George Massenburg and Eric Schilling, immersive mix engineers; Michael Romanowski, immersive mastering engineer; Ann Mincieli, immersive producer (Alicia Keys)“Clique,” Jim Anderson and Ulrike Schwarz, immersive mix engineers; Bob Ludwig, immersive mastering engineer; Jim Anderson, immersive producer (Patricia Barber)“Fine Line,” Greg Penny, immersive mix engineer; Greg Penny, immersive mastering engineer; Greg Penny, immersive producer (Harry Styles)“The Future Bites,” Jake Fields and Steven Wilson, immersive mix engineers; Bob Ludwig, immersive mastering engineer; Steven Wilson, immersive producer (Steven Wilson)“Stille Grender,” Morten Lindberg, immersive mix engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive mastering engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive producer (Anne Karin Sundal-Ask and Det Norske Jentekor)Best Immersive Audio Album (for 63rd Grammy Awards)“Bolstad: Tomba Sonora,” Morten Lindberg, immersive mix engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive mastering engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive producer (Stemmeklang)“Dear Future Self (Dolby Atmos Mixes),” Fritz Hilpert, immersive mix engineer; Jason Banks, Fritz Hilpert and David Ziegler, immersive mastering engineers; Tom Ammerman, Arno Kammermeier and Walter Merziger, immersive producers (Booka Shade)“Fryd,” Morten Lindberg, immersive mix engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive mastering engineer; Morten Lindberg, immersive producer (Tove Ramlo-Ystad and Cantus)“Mutt Slang Ii – A Wake of Sorrows Engulfed in Rage,” Elliot Scheiner, immersive mix engineer; Darcy Proper, immersive mastering engineer; Alain Mallet and Elliot Scheiner, immersive producers (Alain Mallet)“Soundtrack of the American Soldier,” Leslie Ann Jones, immersive mix engineer; Michael Romanowski, immersive mastering engineer; Dan Merceruio, immersive producer (Jim R. Keene and the United States Army Field Band)Best Engineered Album, Classical“Archetypes,” Jonathan Lackey, Bill Maylone and Dan Nichols, engineers; Bill Maylone, mastering engineer (Sérgio Assad, Clarice Assad and Third Coast Percussion)“Beethoven: Cello Sonatas – Hope Amid Tears,” Richard King, engineer (Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax)“Beethoven: Symphony No. 9,” Mark Donahue, engineer; Mark Donahue, mastering engineer (Manfred Honeck, Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra)“Chanticleer Sings Christmas,” Leslie Ann Jones, engineer (Chanticleer)“Mahler: Symphony No. 8, ‘Symphony Of A Thousand,’” Alexander Lipay and Dmitriy Lipay, engineers; Alexander Lipay and Dmitriy Lipay, mastering engineers (Gustavo Dudamel, Fernando Malvar-Ruiz, Luke McEndarfer, Robert Istad, Grant Gershon, Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, Los Angeles Master Chorale, National Children’s Chorus, Pacific Chorale and Los Angeles Philharmonic)Producer of the Year, ClassicalBlanton AlspaughSteven EpsteinDavid FrostElaine MartoneJudith ShermanBest Orchestral Performance“Adams: My Father Knew Charles Ives; Harmonielehre,” Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor (Nashville Symphony Orchestra)“Beethoven: Symphony No. 9,” Manfred Honeck, conductor (Mendelssohn Choir of Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra)“Muhly: Throughline,” Nico Muhly, conductor (San Francisco Symphony)“Price: Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3,” Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor (Philadelphia Orchestra)“Strauss: Also Sprach Zarathustra; Scriabin: The Poem of Ecstasy,” Thomas Dausgaard, conductor (Seattle Symphony Orchestra)Best Opera Recording“Bartók: Bluebeard’s Castle,” Susanna Mälkki, conductor; Mika Kares and Szilvia Giancarlo Guerrero, conductor (Nashville Symphony Orchestra)“Glass: Akhnaten,” Karen Kamensek, conductor; J’Nai Bridges, Anthony Roth Costanzo, Zachary James and Dísella Lárusdóttir; David Frost, producer (The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus)“Janáček: Cunning Little Vixen,”” Simon Rattle, conductor; Sophia Burgos, Lucy Crowe, Gerald Finley, Peter Hoare, Anna Lapkovskaja, Paulina Malefane, Jan Martinik and Hanno Müller-Brachmann; Andrew Cornall, producer (London Symphony Orchestra; London Symphony Chorus and LSO Discovery Voices)“Little: Soldier Songs,” Corrado Rovaris, conductor; Johnathan McCullough; James Darrah and John Toia, producers (The Opera Philadelphia Orchestra)“Poulenc: Dialogues Des Carmélites,” Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor; Karen Cargill, Isabel Leonard, Karita Mattila, Erin Morley and Adrianne Pieczonka; David Frost, producer (The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus)Best Choral Performance“It’s a Long Way,” Matthew Guard, conductor (Jonas Budris, Carrie Cheron, Fiona Gillespie, Nathan Hodgson, Helen Karloski, Enrico Lagasca, Megan Roth, Alissa Ruth Suver and Dana Whiteside; Skylark Vocal Ensemble)“Mahler: Symphony No. 8, ‘Symphony of a Thousand,’” Gustavo Dudamel, conductor; Grant Gershon, Robert Istad, Fernando Malvar-Ruiz and Luke McEndarfer, chorus masters (Leah Crocetto, Mihoko Fujimura, Ryan McKinny, Erin Morley, Tamara Mumford, Simon O’Neill, Morris Robinson and Tamara Wilson; Los Angeles Philharmonic; Los Angeles Children’s Chorus, Los Angeles Master Chorale, National Children’s Chorus and Pacific Chorale)“Rising w/ the Crossing,” Donald Nally, conductor (International Contemporary Ensemble and Quicksilver; The Crossing)“Schnittke: Choir Concerto; Three Sacred Hymns; Pärt: Seven Magnificat-Antiphons,” Kaspars Putnins, conductor; Heli Jürgenson, chorus master (Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir)“Sheehan: Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom,” Benedict Sheehan, conductor (Michael Hawes, Timothy Parsons and Jason Thoms; The Saint Tikhon Choir)“The Singing Guitar,” Craig Hella Johnson, conductor (Estelí Gomez; Austin Guitar Quartet, Douglas Harvey, Los Angeles Guitar Quartet and Texas Guitar Quartet; Conspirare)Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance“Adams, John Luther: Lines Made By Walking,” JACK Quartet“Akiho: Seven Pillars,” Sandbox Percussion“Archetypes,” Sérgio Assad, Clarice Assad and Third Coast Percussion“Beethoven: Cello Sonatas – Hope Amid Tears,” Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax“Bruits,” Imani WindsBest Classical Instrumental Solo“Alone Together,” Jennifer Koh“An American Mosaic,” Simone Dinnerstein“Bach: Sonatas and Partitas,” Augustin Hadelich“Beethoven and Brahms: Violin Concertos,” Gil Shaham; Eric Jacobsen, conductor (The Knights)“Mak Bach,” Mak Grgić“Of Power,” Curtis StewartBest Classical Solo Vocal Album“Confessions,” Laura Strickling; Joy Schreier, pianist“Dreams of a New Day – Songs by Black Composers,” Will Liverman; Paul Sánchez, pianist“Mythologies,” Sangeeta Kaur and Hila Plitmann (Virginie D’Avezac De Castera, Lili Haydn, Wouter Kellerman, Nadeem Majdalany, Eru Matsumoto and Emilio D. Miler)“Schubert: Winterreise,” Joyce DiDonato; Yannick Nézet-Séguin, pianist“Unexpected Shadows,” Jamie Barton; Jake Heggie, pianist (Matt Haimovitz)Best Classical Compendium“American Originals – A New World, A New Canon,” Agave and Reginald L. Mobley. Geoffrey Silver, producer.“Berg: Violin Concerto; Seven Early Songs and Three Pieces for Orchestra,” Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor; Jack Vad, producer.“Cerrone: The Arching Path,” Timo Andres and Ian Rosenbaum. Mike Tierney, producer.“Plays,” Chick Corea. Chick Corea and Birnie Kirsh, producers.“Women Warriors – The Voices of Change,” Amy Andersson, conductor; Amy Andersson, Mark Mattson and Lolita Ritmanis, producers.Best Contemporary Classical Composition“Akiho: Seven Pillars,” Andy Akiho, composer. (Sandbox Percussion)“Andriessen: The Only One,” Louis Andriessen, composer. (Esa-Pekka Salonen, Nora Fischer & Los Angeles Philharmonic)“Assad, Clarice and Sérgio, Connors, Dillon, Martin and Skidmore: Archetypes,” Clarice Assad, Sérgio Assad, Sean Connors, Robert Dillon, Peter Martin and David Skidmore, composers. (Sérgio Assad, Clarice Assad and Third Coast Percussion)“Batiste: Movement 11,” Jon Batiste, composer (Jon Batiste)“Shaw: Narrow Sea,” Caroline Shaw, composer (Dawn Upshaw, Gilbert Kalish and Sō Percussion)Best Instrumental Composition“Beautiful is Black,” Brandee Younger, composer (Brandee Younger)“Cat and Mouse,” Tom Nazziola, composer (Tom Nazziola)“Concerto for Orchestra: Finale,” Vince Mendoza, composer (Vince Mendoza and Czech National Symphony Orchestra featuring Antonio Sánchez and Derrick Hodge)“Dreaming In Lions: Dreaming In Lions,” Arturo O’farrill, composer (Arturo O’farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble)“Eberhard,” Lyle Mays, composer (Lyle Mays)Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella“Chopsticks,” Bill O’Connell, arranger (Richard Baratta)“For The Love Of A Princess (From ‘Braveheart’),” Robin Smith, Arranger (Hauser, London Symphony Orchestra and Robin Smith)“Infinite Love,” Emile Mosseri, Arranger (Emile Mosseri)“Meta Knight’s Revenge (From ‘Kirby Superstar’),” Charlie Rosen and Jake Silverman, arrangers (The 8-Bit Big Band featuring Button Masher)“The Struggle Within,” Gabriela Quintero and Rodrigo Sanchez, arrangers (Rodrigo Y Gabriela)Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals“The Bottom Line,” Ólafur Arnalds, Arranger (Ólafur Arnalds and Josin)“A Change is Gonna Come,” Tehillah Alphonso, Arranger (Tonality and Alexander Lloyd Blake)“The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire),” Jacob Collier, Arranger (Jacob Collier)“Eleanor Rigby,” Cody Fry, Arranger (Cody Fry)“To The Edge Of Longing (Edit Version),” Vince Mendoza, Arranger (Vince Mendoza, Czech National Symphony Orchestra and Julia Bullock)Best Recording Package“American Jackpot / American Girls,” Sarah Dodds and Shauna Dodds, Art Directors (Reckless Kelly)“Carnage,” Nick Cave and Tom Hingston, Art Directors (Nick Cave and Warren Ellis)“Pakelang,” Li Jheng Han and Yu, Wei, Art Directors (2nd Generation Falangao Singing Group and the Chairman Crossover Big Band)“Serpentine Prison,” Dayle Doyle, Art Director (Matt Berninger)“Zeta,” Xiao Qing Yang, Art Director (Soul Of Ears)Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package“All Things Must Pass: 50th Anniversary Edition,” Darren Evans, Dhani Harrison and Olivia Harrison, art directors (George Harrison)“Color Theory,” Lordess Foudre and Christopher Leckie, art directors (Soccer Mommy)“The Future Bites (Limited Edition Box Set),” Simon Moore, art director (Steven Wilson)“77-81,” Dan Calderwood and Jon King, art directors (Gang of Four)“Swimming in Circles,” Ramón Coronado and Marshall Rake, art directors (Mac Miller)Best Album Notes“Beethoven: The Last Three Sonatas,” Ann-Katrin Zimmermann, album notes writer (Sunwook Kim)“The Complete Louis Armstrong Columbia and RCA Victor Studio Sessions 1946-1966,” Ricky Riccardi, album notes writer (Louis Armstrong)“Creation Never Sleeps, Creation Never Dies: The Willie Dunn Anthology,” Kevin Howes, album notes writer (Willie Dunn)“Etching the Voice: Emile Berliner and the First Commercial Gramophone Discs, 1889-1895,” David Giovannoni, Richard Martin and Stephan Puille, album notes writers (Various Artists)“The King of Gospel Music: The Life and Music of Reverend James Cleveland,” Robert Marovich, album notes writer (Various Artists)Best Historical Album“Beyond the Music: Her Complete RCA Victor Recordings,” Robert Russ, compilation producer; Nancy Conforti, Andreas K. Meyer and Jennifer Nulsen, mastering engineers (Marian Anderson)“Etching the Voice: Emile Berliner and the First Commercial Gramophone Discs, 1889-1895,” Meagan Hennessey and Richard Martin, compilation producers; Richard Martin, mastering engineer (Various Artists)“Excavated Shellac: An Alternate History of the World’s Music,” April Ledbetter, Steven Lance Ledbetter and Jonathan Ward, compilation producers; Michael Graves, mastering engineer (Various Artists)“Joni Mitchell Archives, Vol. 1: The Early Years (1963-1967),” Patrick Milligan and Joni Mitchell, compilation producers; Bernie Grundman, mastering engineer (Joni Mitchell)“Sign O’ the Times (Super Deluxe Edition),” Trevor Guy, Michael Howe and Kirk Johnson, compilation producers; Bernie Grundman, mastering engineer (Prince)Best Music Video“Shot in the Dark,” (AC/DC); David Mallet, video director; Dione Orrom, video producer.“Freedom,” (Jon Batiste); Alan Ferguson, video director; Alex P. Willson, video producer.“I Get a Kick Out of You,” (Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga); Jennifer Lebeau, video director; Danny Bennett, Bobby Campbell and Jennifer Lebeau, video producers.“Peaches,” (Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon); Collin Tilley, video director.“Happier Than Ever,” (Billie Eilish); Billie Eilish, video director; Michelle An, Chelsea Dodson and David Moore, video producers.“Montero (Call Me By Your Name),” (Lil Nas X); Lil Nas X and Tanu Muino, video directors; Frank Borin, Ivanna Borin, Marco De Molina and Saul Levitz, video producers.“Good 4 U,” (Olivia Rodrigo); Petra Collins, video director; Christiana Divona, Marissa Ramirez and Tiffany Suh, video producers.Best Music Film“Inside,” (Bo Burnham); Bo Burnham, video director; Josh Senior, video producer.“David Byrne’s American Utopia,” (David Byrne); Spike Lee, video director; David Byrne and Spike Lee, video producers.“Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles,” (Billie Eilish); Patrick Osborne and Robert Rodriguez, video directors.“Music, Money, Madness … Jimi Hendrix in Maui,” (Jimi Hendrix); John McDermott, video director; Janie Hendrix, John McDermott and George Scott, video producers.“Summer of Soul,” (Various Artists); Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, video director; David Dinerstein, Robert Fyvolent and Joseph Patel, video producers. 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    Grammys Settle With Ousted C.E.O.

    The settlement between the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, and Deborah Dugan, its former chief executive, came just weeks before arbitration over her dismissal was to begin.The Recording Academy, the organization behind the Grammy Awards, has reached a confidential settlement with Deborah Dugan, its ousted chief executive, just weeks before arbitration hearings over her dismissal were set to begin.In a joint statement issued late Thursday, the two sides said: “The Recording Academy and Deborah Dugan have agreed to resolve their differences and to keep the terms of their agreement private.”By settling, the Recording Academy avoids what could have been a rare glimpse at its opaque internal politics. The arbitration was set to begin on July 12 in Los Angeles, and despite earlier promises to make the hearings open to the public, the academy had in recent weeks been pushing to keep the proceedings secret.The settlement closes a contentious period in Grammys history. Ms. Dugan, a former media executive who had led Red, the nonprofit co-founded by Bono of U2, was brought in to the academy in 2019 as a change agent. The academy had for years faced complaints about its voting process and its poor record of recognizing women and people of color in many of the top awards, and in 2018, Neil Portnow, Ms. Dugan’s predecessor, was criticized for suggesting that women should “step up” to be recognized at the Grammys.But Ms. Dugan spent only five months at the helm. In January 2020, just 10 days before the ceremony that year, Ms. Dugan was placed on administrative leave — and later fired — over what the academy said were “concerns raised to the Recording Academy board of trustees, including a formal allegation of misconduct by a senior female member of the Recording Academy team.”In a discrimination complaint lodged with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Ms. Dugan said her dismissal was an act of retaliation after she challenged the “boys’ club” that she said dominated the academy. It also came a few weeks after she wrote a detailed letter to the academy’s human resources department alleging voting irregularities, financial mismanagement and conflicts of interest.Perhaps most shocking to music insiders, Ms. Dugan also accused a prominent outside lawyer for the academy of making unwanted sexual advances toward her shortly after she got the job. (That lawyer, Joel Katz, disputed Ms. Dugan’s account.)The academy denied her allegations and portrayed her as a disruptive force at the organization, which sees itself as a home for the entire music community.“What we expected was change without chaos,” Christine Albert, the academy’s board emeritus at the time, said in an interview with The New York Times after Ms. Dugan was dismissed but before she filed her discrimination complaint.Lawyers for Ms. Dugan declined to comment further about the settlement. Representatives of the Recording Academy did not respond early Friday to requests for comment. More

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    Grammy Officials Oppose an Open Hearing on Reasons for Ousting C.E.O.

    The lawyer for the former chief executive, Deborah Dugan, said the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, had already agreed to an open session to discuss her grievances.As the organization behind the Grammy Awards prepares for an arbitration hearing next month with Deborah Dugan, its ousted chief executive, lawyers for Ms. Dugan have accused the Grammys of reneging on a promise to have the proceedings be open to the public.The arbitration, over Ms. Dugan’s dismissal early last year after just five months on the job, could be a rare window into the opaque politics of the Recording Academy, after years of complaints from artists and others in the music industry that the group fails to adequately recognize women and minorities and is rife with conflicts of interest.Those criticisms boiled over when Ms. Dugan was placed on administrative leave by the academy just 10 days before the 62nd annual Grammys ceremony, in January 2020, and later fired. As the dispute played out between Ms. Dugan and the academy, Harvey Mason Jr., who was then the chairman and interim chief, declared the academy’s dedication to transparency.In a letter on Feb. 4, 2020, Mr. Mason, who has since taken over as chief executive, told Ms. Dugan that the academy had agreed to waive the confidentiality provision of the arbitration clause in Ms. Dugan’s employment contract.“The Recording Academy has absolutely nothing to hide,” Mr. Mason wrote, “and, in fact, welcomes the opportunity to tell its story so that the entire music community and the world can hear the truth — and nothing but the truth — about what you did to this proud institution during your brief tenure as president/C.E.O.“In short,” Mr. Mason continued, “we welcome a full public airing of your allegations against the Academy as well as the Academy’s many claims and defenses against you.”Harvey Mason Jr. wrote that “The Recording Academy has absolutely nothing to hide,” in a letter dated Feb. 4, 2020.Jordan Strauss/Invision, via Associated PressBut as the hearing, now set for July 12 in Los Angeles, approaches, the academy has requested the proceedings remain closed. In correspondence with the arbitrator, Sara Adler, and lawyers for both sides, the academy’s lawyers said that the organization “was and is willing to make public the results of this arbitration, and the reasoning for those results, and nothing more,” according to Anthony J. Oncidi of Proskauer Rose, a law firm that has long represented the academy.According to Mr. Oncidi, the confidentiality provision cited in Mr. Mason’s letter last year covered only the disclosure of “the existence, content or result of any arbitration,” and that a full public hearing would expose other confidential information and cause “further emotional distress” to witnesses.In an email to Ms. Adler last week, Michael J. Willemin, a lawyer for Ms. Dugan at the firm Wigdor LLP, said that the academy was changing its position and should be required to keep the hearing open.“The simple, undeniable fact,” Mr. Willemin wrote, “is that the parties agreed to open this proceeding to the public, and, therefore, it must be open to the public unless Ms. Dugan agrees otherwise.”According to the academy, Ms. Dugan was dismissed because she alienated the staff and exhibited bullying behavior toward an executive assistant assigned to her.Ms. Dugan cast the decision to dismiss her differently in a discrimination complaint lodged with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Ms. Dugan — who had led Red, the nonprofit co-founded by Bono of U2, and was brought into the Grammys as a change agent — said her dismissal was an act of retaliation after she challenged the “boys’ club” that she said dominated the academy.Dugan’s ouster also came three weeks after she wrote a detailed letter to the academy’s human resources department alleging voting irregularities, financial mismanagement and conflicts of interest involving members of the academy’s board and its executive committee. She also accused a prominent outside lawyer for the academy of making unwanted sexual advances toward her. (That lawyer, Joel Katz, disputed Ms. Dugan’s account.)The Recording Academy has for years faced complaints about its voting process and its poor record of recognizing women and people of color in many of the top awards. In 2018, Neil Portnow, Ms. Dugan’s predecessor, was criticized for suggesting that women should “step up” to be recognized at the Grammys.This year, the academy voted to eliminate most of its anonymous nomination review committees, in which experts selected by academy executives made the final decision on who made the final ballot in 61 of the Grammys’ 84 categories.Those committees were criticized by Ms. Dugan and came under fire from top musicians like the Weeknd. The next Grammy ceremony, set for Jan. 31, 2022, will be the first in years in which the committees will play no part in making up the ballots of most awards, although they will still be used for 11 categories like production and packaging. More

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    Grammys Drop Anonymous Nominating Committees After Backlash

    Since 1989, small groups have whittled down 61 of the awards’ 84 categories. The Weeknd, who criticized the process, applauded the change but said he would not lift his boycott.The governing body of the Grammy Awards voted on Friday to change its nominating process, eliminating a step that has recently come under fire — the use of anonymous expert committees to decide who makes the final ballot in dozens of categories.Each year, the Recording Academy convenes music professionals to serve on its nomination review committees for 61 of the Grammys’ 84 categories. They whittle down the initial nomination choices by the academy’s thousands of voters to determine the ballot, and their work is intended to protect the integrity of the awards process.The committees began in 1989, but in recent years they have come under intense criticism from artists, music executives and even Grammy insiders as examples of an unaccountable system rife with conflicts of interest and mysterious agendas.Before this year’s Grammys, in March, the pop star the Weeknd — who had been shut out of the nominations despite the success of his latest album, “After Hours” — announced that he would be boycotting the show from now on, and focused his blame on the nomination process.“Because of the secret committees,” the Weeknd told The New York Times, “I will no longer allow my label to submit my music to the Grammys.”The Weeknd’s rebuke came after years of complaints by musicians, particularly Black artists in genres like hip-hop and R&B, many of whom have been lauded repeatedly in genre categories but blocked in the four most prestigious awards: album, record and song of the year, and best new artist. Among the most outspoken have been Jay-Z, Drake, Kanye West and Frank Ocean.In a statement to The Times early Monday, the Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, applauded the move by the academy but said he would not lift his boycott.“Even though I won’t be submitting my music, the Grammys’ recent admission of corruption will hopefully be a positive move for the future of this plagued award and give the artist community the respect it deserves with a transparent voting process,” the Weeknd said.At this year’s ceremony, Beyoncé became the most-awarded woman in Grammy history, with 28 wins. But of her career total, only one prize was in a major category, when she took home a song of the year trophy in 2010 as one of the credited songwriters on “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).”In a statement, Harvey Mason Jr., the interim chief executive of the Recording Academy, praised the decision by the academy’s board as part of “a year of unprecedented, transformational change” at the institution.“This is a new academy, one that is driven to action and that has doubled down on the commitment to meeting the needs of the music community,” Mason added. The proposal was discussed for over a year, and involved a special committee of academy members and leaders, the organization said.The workings of the nomination committees have long been a subject of intrigue in the music industry. The identities of the committee members are kept secret to protect those people from outside influence and fan attacks, according to the academy.But the process came under particular scrutiny last year, when Deborah Dugan, the academy’s former chief, made a number of detailed accusations as part of a legal complaint over her ouster from the organization.According to her complaint, many people on the committees had conflicts of interest. In one example she gave, one artist who was up for the song of the year category was allowed to sit on the committee for that category, and was also represented by a board member.Last year, the academy instituted a rule that musicians on the committees must sign disclosure forms to prevent conflicts.The decision to cut the committees was made during a meeting of the academy’s board of trustees. Although they are being eliminated for the four top prizes and all genre categories, review panels will remain for 11 so-called craft categories, which cover awards for production, packaging, album notes and historical recordings.The board also decided to reduce to 10 from 15 the number of genre award categories the academy members may vote on, beyond the top four prizes, and added two awards: best global music performance and best música urbana album, a Latin category.The changes will take effect with the 64th annual Grammy Awards, to be held on Jan. 31, 2022, which will cover music released during a 13-month window from Sept. 1, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2021. More