The Grammy’s this past Sunday left lots of discourse among viewers, most of all being the winner Album of The Year, which was awarded to Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter. For me, this posed the question; What does “Album of the Year” actually mean?
Album of the Year is a lot more nuanced than who had the “best-sounding album” or the “most hits”, this award is given to a collection of music that generated a large cultural shift and makes a statement. Beyonce’s “Cowboy Carter” does just that and so much more. Not only does this album make a giant pivot from Beyonces usual sound, but it reclaims black southern culture and modifies the country genre to something that the masses haven’t quite heard before.Â
“Hit Me Hard And Soft” by Billie Eilish is the top contender for AOTY in online discourse. While this album was impactful and shaped trends, It doesn’t break boundaries and set a new wave of an entire genre like Cowboy Carter does. This does not mean that HMHAS was any less “good”. HMHAS spoke to a generation, It was raw and full of beautiful ballads that were truly moving. But did it cause a culture shift? Did Billie step outside her usual parameters and challenge us with something different?
Charlie XCX’s “Brat” is something that I would place that shift in culture title to. Brat definitely would be outside the mold of the usual AOTY winner, It’s an eclectic cyber-pop clubby album made for a specific category of listeners. However, Isn’t that why it would win? It set a curve on social media, challenges the stereotypical mold of music with interesting and weird sounds, and I think It is genuinely a reflection of what our generation seeks in music. Funky art-pop is back, people want to hear something wildly different, and most of all, people want to party.
This new wave of “people want to party” Is also reflected in the other nominees. Sabrina Carpenters’ “Short n’ Sweet” and “Rise And Fall of the Midwest Princess” from Chappel Roan give this fun pop sound that hasn’t been around for a while. “Short n’ Sweet” follows the formula of generic “pop-girlie” with a fresh spin of embracing sexuality, which is usually forced upon that genre by the industry. Her dirty wordplay and innuendos come off as fun, genuine, and palatable to a wide audience since she is embracing sex herself, not the industry machine. Chappell Roan is at the forefront of embracing sexuality right now with fun upbeat songs on LGBTQ+ themes as well as soulful ballads that follow the same topic.
“Album of The Year” is a highly nuanced award with much deeper cultural layers than what meets the eye. It is an award given to an album that brings something fresh to the scene and excites listeners in a new way. The entire selection of nominees for this award deserved their flowers. Each brought something different and flavorful to the table of music. There is enough discourse around the globe already, and it should not be brought to music. Differences should be celebrated and embraced, and we all should just party.