This year’s Grammy Awards were, in typical fashion, a lavish display of the best mainstream music from the past year. Some of these awards were very well-deserved, while others were more controversial wins. However, the full list of nominees raised a question in my mind: Why are newer artists almost entirely absent from some categories? I looked further into this question and now believe that the Grammys fail to recognize new artists in “outdated” genres of music.
The Grammys have nothing to do with artistic merit. — Kurt Cobain
A Lack of Recognition
Over many years, popular music has changed a lot. Different genres fall in and out of what’s considered mainstream, and some genres of music have become far less popular and relevant in today’s world. For example, rock and jazz used to both be incredibly popular genres of music in their time and while they still have very active communities, they aren’t nearly as popular as they once were. However, while these genres continue to grow and change, awards shows such as the Grammys continue to recognize older artists who used to be at the forefront of these genres instead of newer artists.
In the category of Best Rock Album, The Rolling Stones won the Grammy for their album
Hackney Diamonds, beating out Jack White, Pearl Jam, IDLES, Green Day, Fontaines D.C., and The Black Crowes for this award. However, four of the seven artists nominated formed their bands/started their careers at least 35 years ago. The Grammy nominees in other categories for rock music follow similar trends as well. While I’m not denying that these are all talented artists, the fact that there are so many seasoned artists in this category shows how more recognition is given to these older artists who are already well-established instead of the newer artists who are still trying to push the boundaries of this genre of music.
Posthumous Awards
The Grammys and many other award shows have given out awards posthumously to many artists. These awards are usually celebrated and help represent an artist’s legacy in music. However, at a point, this can go a little too far.
For example, Chick Corea, a famous jazz pianist, died in 2021. This was a very tragic event, and he was nominated for and won multiple Grammys that year. Many people looked at this as a way to recognize how influential he was during his lifetime. However, his estate has continued to release his recordings long after his death. So far, not including the 2021 Grammys closely following his passing, he has been nominated for 8 more Grammys, winning 3. His work has been celebrated by many people over the course of many decades, but at this point, wouldn’t you think that the sheer amount of posthumous Grammy nominations he has is a little excessive? I believe his repeated nominations are taking away from newer artists who could be recognized instead.
Additionally, this past year The Beatles, one of the most influential bands of all time, released a new song titled “Now and Then.” This song was very important this year because it featured a combination of recorded demos from 1977, and 1995, and new additions to create a new Beatles song that still featured the surviving and deceased members of the band. This song was nominated for multiple Grammys and won for Best Rock Performance. Although I enjoyed “Now and Then”, this song wasn’t perfect, wasn’t groundbreaking, and was divisive among some music fans. However, many people feel that it was still awarded a Grammy to recognize the legacy this band has on music today. But what does awarding Grammys based on an artist’s legacy and influence mean for newer musicians?
Keeping New Creativity Out of Older Genres
In each of the examples I listed earlier, an artist was recognized by the Grammys because of the legacy of their work, sometimes posthumously. While this shows a large amount of respect for these artists and is usually well-deserved, it still takes away potential recognition for newer artists in these genres. Both the genres of rock and jazz have declined in popularity over time. But by recognizing older artists instead of newer ones who are still trying to create change in these genres, these genres are discouraged from continuing to grow and expand. By recognizing younger artists in these genres, we can allow these types of music to live on and continue developing far into the future.
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