The Grammy Awards marks the biggest musical celebration on television. I watch it to the see elaborate, production-heavy performances, the heartfelt speeches, and discover new artists. It is by far my favorite award show! So I could not wait to look at the list of nominees and anticipate who would win. But when I looked at the list I felt let down by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. It seems a Grammy nominated-artist is now synonymous with an American Top 40 artist.
The Grammys was originally an award show that honored musicians for their lyrical, vocal, and production abilities regardless of sales. However, the nominations this year are almost identical to the American Music Awards last year. Thus, all the nominees are mainstream musicians who are consistently played on the radio. Since only mainstream artists were nominated, the nominees for the major awards such as record of the year and song of the year mostly consist of pop tunes.
Some of the nominations were simply confusing. Meghan Trainor is a potential winner for Best New Artist. Regardless of how much people like the “All About That Bass” singer and her music, this nomination is odd considering that Trainor technically has been in the music industry for years. She has released EPs since 2011, so I am fairly certain she does not qualify as a “new” singer.
My confusion grows as I scroll down to the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance column. Florence + The Machine, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars, and Wiz Khalifa fill this category. Their alternative, soulful, and rap influences respectively suggest each these musicians seem a bit misplaced in the genre. The Weeknd is also nominated as an R&B artist as well as a pop artist in multiple places.
Not only do the nominees for the major awards mainly derive from one musical genre, but the same artists also dominate most of the categories. I am not suggesting that the nominations are not rightly deserved. Kendrick Lamar, who is the most nominated artist with 11 nominations, Taylor Swift, and the Weeknd all contributed to the incredible music released last year. But with so many nominations, the winner of each category will be somewhat expected and not differ from Sam Smith’s domination at last years award show.
Of course I will still be watching to critique performances and LL Cool J’s questionable hosting skills. I just hope that the element of surprise and the chance for underrated artists to be discovered are not missing from the show. I will have to wait until February 15 to find out!