2023 Grammy Awards – Best and Worst

Admittedly, I initially did not plan on making this post. Because honestly, my overall reaction to this year’s Grammy Awards was – “I mean, I guess…” Plus, at first, I honestly could not think of five moments from the night that I genuinely loved. The worst definitely outpaced the best for me. But I persevered and managed to pull together five things about this year’s Grammy Awards that I didn’t hate. Read on for the full list of best and worst.

BEST 

1. Everyone’s a Winner – Well, almost everyone. I did appreciate that there was no sweep, like the last time Adele was nominated for example, for 25, and she won AOTY, SOTY, and ROTY, along with the pop categories. This year, Grammy voters definitely spread the wealth. Multiple people went home with at least one or two awards. 

2. Queer Representation – Kim Petras made history as the first openly transgender woman to win a Grammy for her collaboration with Sam Smith before the duo served up one of the few memorable performances of the night. It was also sweet to have Brandi Carlile’s wife and their two adorable children introduce her performance. 

3. 50 Years of Hip-Hop/Rap Celebration – I’ll avoid my rant about how Grammy voters obviously have little to no respect for Hip-Hop/Rap (more on that below) and appreciate this brilliantly assembled celebration of the genre. From old-school legends like Rakim and Run DMC to artists who defined the early ‘00s like Missy Elliot and Nelly, and the new talent on the rise, like Da Baby and GloRilla – it was a fitting celebration of one of the most beloved, yet misunderstood art forms. It would have been nice to see some legends like Nas and Eminem, though it was understandable why the latter was not present, considering his feelings about the Grammys. 

4. Bad Bunny’s Puerto Rican Celebration – It was certainly not my favorite opening performance at the Grammys – not even close. Admittedly I’m not the biggest or, honestly, even a mild fan of Bad Bunny’s music. However, I appreciated the high energy of the performance and its tribute to Bad Bunny’s cultural heritage. And it certainly got the audience on their feet, which is always a win. 

5. In Memoriam – Unless it is the Academy Awards, which for some reason, cannot seem to get something as simple as an In Memoriam tribute right, the In Memoriam segments are usually one of my favorite parts of an award show. I know that may seem a bit morbid, however, it’s more an appreciation of the celebration of the talented artists who left an indelible impact on the industry. And this year’s In Memoriam segment struck the perfect chord from Kacey Musgraves’ tender cover of Loretta Lynn’s Coal Miner’s Daughter, Quavo’s emotional tribute to Takeoff and culminating in Sheryl Crow, Bonnie Raitt and Mick Fleetwood’s pitch-perfect performance of Songbird, in tribute of Christine McVie. 

Honorable Mention – Taylor Swift NOT winning Song of the Year for a more than decade-plus song originally from a decade-plus old album that was already nominated for Album of the Year years ago. I don’t care that it is a re-recording that was expanded to 10 minutes, complete with an accompanying insufferable video. It is an old song that should not have been nominated. 

WORST 

1. The Show that Wouldn’t End – Four hours! Four long hours. It was like a bad date that seemingly would not end. And for the record, by the third hour, it felt like five. Grammy producers need to do better. There is simply no reason why this show has to be so long. Especially when it is not like most of the performances were particularly interesting or memorable. 

2. Lackluster Performances – Outside of a few that I have already referenced – Bad Bunny’s opening performance, In Memoriam segment, Hip-Hop/Rap tribute – many of the performances ranged from serviceable to unmemorable, to plain boring. And that just made an already very long night feel a lot longer. 

3. No Adele, Beyoncé or Kendrick Performance – It probably should have been a sign that this was not going to be a great night when three of the biggest names in music, with the most nominations, all declined to perform. With Adele, one can argue that it may have been down to logistics, as she was still wrapping up her residency show. But with Kendrick and Beyoncé, the cynic in me almost wonders if it was because they knew exactly how this night would go and did not want to give Grammy producers another chance to use their appearance for ratings, all while they never win the big awards. 

4. Is a Host Necessary – In fairness to Trevor Noah, he wasn’t awful by any means. Certainly not the worse I have seen in terms of award show hosts. However, even while serviceable, I was left with the feeling all night that the show would have lost nothing if there was no host. 
5. Beyoncé Loses AOTY (Again) – *Sigh* Get comfortable, this one is going to be a little long. A few disclaimers before I start. One, I did not hate Harry Styles’ album. I thought it was a perfectly fine pop album. Two, I am not a Beyoncé stan or one of the Beyhive. I like and respect her as an artist, but that’s it. Three, I didn’t initially love Renaissance. It was an album that had to grow on me over several months. That said, her loss for AOTY this past Sunday night was frustrating because of the many layers and nuances of the situation. It is easy to say, “it’s just an award,” and it is. But it also represents a much larger and deeper conversation. The Grammys were first handed out in 1959. In its 63-year history, only 11 black artists have won AOTY – 11, as in the number after 10. Now stop and think about how many legendary, impactful black artists you can list in a minute. And yet, only 11 have won AOTY. And of that 11, only three were women – the last in 1999. So yes, that means it has also been 24 years since a black woman won AOTY. That’s issue number one. But this year’s ceremony also significantly piggy-backed off Beyonce ́ s popularity by regularly promoting that she could become the most-winning artist ever. And that she did. Except for the quiet part that was left unsaid – that only one of those wins was in the big categories. A SOTY win for Single Ladies. So no AOTY awards, ever. But touting this “most winning artist” narrative allowed them to pat themselves on the back and play, “see, we award black artists. She’s won a lot.” And the narrative extended to some Grammy voters, who in an anonymous voter article, declared how she “won all the time.” See how that manipulative psychology works? Play up her breaking a record so once again, many can insist how, “she always wins,” except for how that never seems to extend to the major categories. Mind you, for all the, “she wins all the time,” voters seem to have no such issue regarding Taylor Swift who currently sits at a record-breaking three Album of the Year awards and is very likely, poised to make it a fourth, come next year. That is okay. That is acceptable and deserving, even. But suddenly Beyoncé, “wins too much.” Issue number two. The bottom line is that a white artist can make a good album that is critically well-received and they will win AOTY. See Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, etc. Yet black artists almost need to be perfect and they STILL don’t win. My friend commented after this year’s show that she’s not sure what else Beyoncé can do. And I warily responded to her that the answer is nothing. Because it’s not that she needs to make an amazing album – she has, multiple times. It’s not that she needs to be culturally relevant and have a musical impact – she has. And repeatedly the voters decided it simply wasn’t good enough – issue number three. And I haven’t even touched on issues regarding the Academy’s attitude towards Hip-Hop/Rap – a genre that is continuously treated as the barely tolerated step-child. It is clear that most recording academy voters, still one, do not understand Hip-Hop/Rap and two, don’t have much respect for the genre. And until they do, we will continue to have situations where Eminem wins an Academy Award for the record-breaking Lose Yourself but loses ROTY for the same song and Kendrick Lamar will win a Pulitzer Prize for his album DAMN. and yet the award that supposedly represents the best of the music industry decides said album is not worthy of Album of the Year.

Grammy Awards 2021 – Best & Worst

Image Courtesy Google Images

So the 2021 Grammy Awards happened. And as this is a pop culture blog, I guess I probably should write something about it. Truthfully, trying to come up with five things I enjoyed about this year’s show was all but impossible, and so I limited my best and worst to four each. I should add that I had no such issues picking the worst.

In the end, this year’s ceremony was mostly predictable (yeah who didn’t call Taylor Swift winning Album of the Year), with one or two surprises thrown into the mix (hello Billie Eilish winning Record of the Year) and a combination of bad, to decent and good performances. I can’t say there was any that wowed and made me sit up in awe.

I’m sure by this point you can tell that I wasn’t particularly impressed by this year’s ceremony. But as I said, it had its okay moments. And so without further ado, here’s my best and worst of this year’s Grammy Awards.

BEST

• Pandemic Appropriate Ceremony – This year’s Grammy Awards was the first big awards show to try an in-person ceremony while sticking to the limitations of the pandemic. And I must say, it surprisingly worked very well. The small, outdoor venue created a nice intimate atmosphere and admittedly, it was nice to see winners accepting their awards in person again and being applauded by their peers. Word is the Academy Awards are considering using the show as a model and will attempt to have some type of in-person ceremony as well. I hope they do.

• Trevor Noah Delivers – It wasn’t the greatest hosting performance of all time but it was by no means terrible. And these days, that’s good enough. The main thing Noah had going for him was enthusiasm. If you read my Golden Globes recap, you’d know this was the factor I felt most hurt Amy Poehler and Tina Fey’s performance. At one point in the night, they just seemed over it. But to his credit, Trevor Noah remained upbeat, warm, and inviting throughout the night, with a few awesome zingers to boot.

• Harry Styles Cements Solo Career – Directioner no more. Harry Styles cemented his solo career legacy at Sunday night’s ceremony with a slinky and sexy Bowie/Jagger-esque opening performance of his hit single Watermelon Sugar, followed by his first Grammy Award win for Best Pop Solo Performance. And he did it all while wearing boas of varying colors throughout the night.

• H.E.R.’s Deserving Song of the Year – It’s easy to be cynical and consider H.E.R’s I Can’t Breathe as award baity. And maybe on some level, it was. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a powerful and necessary message. All great artists channel their truth, whatever that may be, through their art. Their hurt, pain, fears, triumphs, etc. And that’s exactly what H.E.R. along with her co-writers, D’Mile and Tiara Thomas did through I Can’t Breathe, making it a more than worthy Song of the Year.

WORST

• Taylor Swift’s Anemic Performance – Don’t worry, I’m not going to comment on her record-making third Album of the Year win.  I imagine many are tired of reading my rants about how Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly was robbed (it was). And frankly, based on this year’s list of Album of the Year nominees, Taylor’s win was a complete whatever to me – not undeserving but not exactly a triumphant win for me either. To quote Ms. Swift herself, “it’s not hate, it’s not dislike, it’s just indifference”. That said, what was that performance? This is the second time Taylor Swift has won Album of the Year while delivering a mediocre at best Grammy performance. If I had not listened to the album and only had that performance to go by, I’d be very confused as to why this woman won Album of the Year. It just never went anywhere. It started okay and just meandered for however long the performance lasted.

• No Eddie Van Halen Tribute – Simply unacceptable. Eddie Van Halen deserved far more than a barely minute acknowledgment in the In Memoriam segment. Considering how under-represented rock was and has been in the last few years, amongst the major categories, the least the producers could have done was put together a small yet fitting tribute for one of the greatest rock guitarists of all time.

• Dua Lipa’s Everything – I don’t get it. I have tried and I simply do not get the Dua Lipa hype. Her music to me is mediocre, her voice even more so (though I guess when your genre is pop/dance, strong singing ability is not really required) and last Sunday’s performance didn’t exactly sell me on her being a stellar performer either. At one point, it felt like I could see her counting steps in her head. It felt very high school talent show. When I think of Lady Gaga’s Fame debut or Robyn’s Body Talk, I just cannot buy into the Dua Lipa hype.

• What Was With the Envelope? – Whose idea was it to design the envelopes as they did? I get that they were trying to go for something cool and interesting but these envelopes were just impractical. And watching multiple presenters try to figure out just how to open the damn thing was a little cringe.

And there you have it. My 2021 Grammy Awards recap. I sincerely hope next year’s nominees are just a teensy bit more exciting for me, so I can return to the days when I passionately cared about this ceremony.

5 Biggest Snubs of 2021 Grammy Nominations

The nominations for the 2021 Grammy Awards were announced this week, and it would be an understatement to say many people had a lot of feelings about said nominations. Spoiler alert – many of these feelings were not positive.

There were quite a lot of WTF, huh, what, why…reactions across social media. A few names were expected (should we all just prepare for Taylor Swift’s record-breaking third Album of the Year win), others were a pleasant surprise (hi Jhene Aiko) and some were just inexplicable (Noah Cyrus…really? Miley was never even nominated for New Artist).

There are certainly debates to go around on who should and should not have been nominated, so I’m sure some will disagree with this list or at the least think I should mention another artist or two. But the following is just my opinion of the snubs that particularly stood out to me the most.

The Weeknd Shut Out – At this point it’s probably all been said. Possibly the one consensus across the board regarding this year’s nominations was, “where the hell was The Weeknd”. It genuinely was the first thing that immediately stood out to me when I read the list. Whether you are a fan of The Weeknd’s music or not, his critical and commercial impact this past year is unquestionable – an 80 Metacritic score for After Hours, almost 450,000 in first-week sales and of course Blinding Lights not only a Billboard Top 100 number one single, but a global smash. To not only be left out of the big categories – Album of the Year, Song of the Year and, Record of the Year – but left out entirely is just baffling. There is simply just no way to make sense of this.

No Album of the Year Nomination for Fiona Apple – While she did not have the commercial success like The Weeknd did, Apple’s first full-length studio album in eight years, Fetch the Bolt Cutters, topped almost every critic’s list, garnering a stunning Metacritic score of 98. Only Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly and Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy came as close to a score that high with a 96 and 94 respectively. Certainly, Fetch the Bolt Cutters was not the most fun or accessible album to listen to. It was equal parts stunning and strange. However, it was certainly more deserving of an Album of the Year nomination than a few of the albums that were nominated. That said, at least Grammy voters didn’t completely forget about her, as the album and single, did garner three nominations in Rock and Alternative categories.

No Love for The Chicks – The artists formerly known as The Dixie Chicks returned with their first full-length studio album in almost 14 years, Gaslighter (yeah, as crazy as it is to believe, it’s been that long). As a long-time fan of The Chicks (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve played and sang along very loudly and very badly to Fly), I will say this wasn’t my favorite album of theirs. That said, the depth of these women’s talent means that even their “not the best” is still pretty damn good. The album had an indescribable depth and poignancy to it. It may not have been Album of the Year worthy, but it was certainly worth a few country nods.

No Love for Country Music At All – Speaking of country nods, didn’t seem like Grammy voters had much love for country artists at all. The biggest snubs were Luke Combs and Maren Morris. Morris at least received a nod for Best Country Song for her hit The Bones. However, many felt the song should have garnered at least a Song of the Year or Record of the Year (or both) nomination, particularly it has become Morris’ highest-selling single and seen crossover success on pop radio. That said, one nomination is better than none, which is the story of Luke Combs’ Grammy journey. And much like The Weeknd’s snub, this one is particularly baffling. Combs’ sophomore album, What You See is What You Get, was one of the biggest selling country albums of the year and one of the most critically successful, even winning the Country Music Association (CMA) Award for album of the year. And therefore, to say it’s surprising that a committee of Combs’ peers did not nominate him for any of the individual country categories is an understatement.

Harry Styles Misses Out on The Big 3 Categories – In the interest of fairness, Harry’s doing a lot better than some other artists on this list, with three nominations (two in the pop category and one for Best Music Video). He’s also now become the first member of One Direction to receive the industry’s highest nod for his solo work. So not too shabby. That said, with the critical and commercial success Styles enjoyed this year, for his sophomore album Fine Line, it was surprising that he didn’t garner at least a Record of the Year nomination.

So there we have it. Another year of Grammy nominations and another year that I feel my interest waning. I can’t say I’ll likely watch the January ceremony, especially as we’re still living in unprecedented times. But I might have been more willing to entertain the idea if the nominations had been a little less “what’s happening here” and more “I’m loving all of this”.