Morgan Heritage on the GRAMMYs red carpet

Morgan Heritage

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Morgan Heritage On Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley And The GRAMMYs

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Reggae band's Gramps Morgan talks about the future of the reggae genre, the group's recent GRAMMY nomination and how a rock icon is inspiring his 60th GRAMMYs red carpet look
Renée Fabian
GRAMMYs
Jan 23, 2018 - 4:47 pm

Morgan Heritage have been mixing up the magic this year, and now they have a 60th GRAMMY Awards nomination to prove it.

Meet The Nominees: Morgan Heritage | 60th GRAMMYs

The band of siblings, comprising Peter "Peetah" Morgan, Una Morgan, Roy "Gramps" Morgan, Nakhamyah "Lukes" Morgan, and Memmalatel "Mr. Mojo" Morgan, have earned their second career GRAMMY nomination for Best Reggae Album for 2017's Avrakedabra, a 12-track masterpiece that pushes the boundaries of traditional reggae.

"We look at hip-hop music and country music and rock music and as it was 40 years ago doesn't sound the same way it does today, so the genre has to grow," says Gramps Morgan. "It cannot just sound the same it sounded 40 years ago. [We] really want to be adamant to show you the music can grow while still maintaining its roots."

With tracks such as "Pineapple Wine," "Ride And Roll," "One Life To Live," and "Dancing In The Moonlight," Morgan Heritage has infused elements of funk and even dubstep into their well-worn comfort zone of roots reggae that Jambands.com called "not lit only with spiritual light, but also secular enjoyment."

While Morgan Heritage has their own prior GRAMMY moment to celebrate — they won a GRAMMY for Best Reggae Album for Strictly Roots at the 58th GRAMMY Awards — it's another seminal GRAMMY moment that stands out in Gramps Morgan's mind from watching previous telecasts.

"My favorite GRAMMY moment as a child growing up in Springfield, Mass., was when Michael Jackson won all of those GRAMMYs for 'Thriller,'" said Gramps Morgan. "You remember that blue and gold outfit, he just looked so royal, as the King of Pop should look. I remember that moment, saying, 'Wow, how can somebody win so many GRAMMYs?'"

For The Record: Michael Jackson

And this year, Morgan Heritage are looking to have a little fun while they attend the 60th GRAMMY Awards on Jan. 28 in New York, with inspiration from a surprising source.

"This year I'm trying to get a little creative," says Gramps Morgan. "I'm working with Elvis Presley's mentor, a tailor. You gotta see me on the red carpet. Make sure you're there. It's gonna be a secret. Trying to get a little creative and have fun this year."

Anthony Hamilton

Anthony Hamilton

Photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

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Anthony Hamilton Wants To Celebrate His Birthday With A GRAMMY Win

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R&B singer/songwriter on recording his album in Nashville, Tenn., and why this year's GRAMMYs will be extra special for him
Renée Fabian
GRAMMYs
Jan 28, 2018 - 11:02 am

The name Anthony Hamilton is likely to sound familiar to many of you, as the singer/songwriter is one of the many giants of the R&B genre.

Meet The Nominees: Anthony Hamilton

The Charlotte, N.C., native broke through with his 2003 GRAMMY-nominated album and the title track, Comin' From Where I'm From, and since then he has been innovating with subsequent GRAMMY-nominated recordings, including "Charlene," "Soul Music" and "Best Of Me." He earned his first career GRAMMY win for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for "You've Got The Love I Need" with soul great Al Green at the 51st GRAMMY Awards.

Now Hamilton has earned his 17th career nomination at the 60th GRAMMY Awards for Best Traditional R&B Performance for ""What I'm Feelin'," which comes from his 2016 album of the same name. He created the album entirely in Nashville, Tenn., which he credits as providing a lot of inspiration for the sound of the project.

"I recorded the whole album here at Blackbird Studio and I recorded some of it at House of Blues Studios, so this had a whole different overall approach away from the norm in a city, in a place where music is really real, so I felt that," says Hamilton. "And these great studios that I created in definitely had a lot of influence."

Not new to the GRAMMY arena, this year's GRAMMY Awards will be special for Hamilton, as it falls on his birthday. A GRAMMY win might just add a little extra verve to his special day.

"It's on my birthday, which is the 28th of January," says Hamilton. "I'm looking for the sweetest cake."

Catching Up On Music News Powered By The Recording Academy Just Got Easier. Have A Google Home Device? "Talk To GRAMMYs"

Little Big Town, 2018

Little Big Town

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Little Big Town On Latest GRAMMY Nomination

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The GRAMMY-winning country band react to their latest GRAMMY nomination
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Jan 27, 2018 - 2:28 pm

GRAMMY-winning country act Little Big Town — comprised of Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Schlapman, Jimi Westbrook, and Phillip Sweet — have scored an impressive 11 career GRAMMY nominations, with two wins so far. That total includes two brand new nominations for this year, where they stand in contention for Best Country Duo/Group Performance ("Better Man") and Best Country Album (Breaker).

Little Big Town: Meet The Nominees | 60th GRAMMYs

Though they're now old hats at getting nominated, learning about regocnition from the GRAMMYs doesn't get old for the group.

"We try not to think about it too much, because it feels so good when you get nominated," gushes Fairchild. "And it feels so bad when you don't!" adds Schlapman jokingly.

Little Big Town is also on the official lineup of performers for Music's Biggest Night, and Schlapman and Fairchild were excited to note that means at least three (or even more) outfit changes throughout the night.

"They'll turn that into 12 outfits," guitarist Westbrook jokes.

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Justin Hurwitz

Justin Hurwitz

Photo: Tara Ziemba/AFP/Getty Images

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Film Composer Justin Hurwitz On His Latest GRAMMY Nominations

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Mastermind behind La La Land's stunning film score shares why his four GRAMMY nominations are especially great
Renée Fabian
GRAMMYs
Jan 27, 2018 - 1:39 pm

You remember this 2016 film — it encapsulates the romantic glory of the city of Los Angeles, and even nearly won the Oscar for Best Picture at the 2017 Academy Awards — La La Land.

Meet The Nominees: Justin Hurwitz | 60th GRAMMYs

Of course the magic of the film is largely thanks to the standout soundtrack, which just happened to be composed by Justin Hurwitz. With sprawling soundscapes that captured the essence of a metropolitan utopia while Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and Mia (Emma Stone) waltzed through a timeless love story, Hurwitz made his hometown glisten, sparkle and outright sing along with them.

Now Hurwitz is looking to add music's biggest prize to his collection of awards garnered for his work on La La Land, including two Oscars and two Golden Globes, with four 60th GRAMMY Awards nominations. The composer is up for Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media and Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media for La La Land, Best Song Written For Visual Media for "City Of Stars," and Best Arrangement, Instruments And Vocals for "Another Day Of Sun."

For Hurwitz, though his music has gotten plenty of acclaim since the film was released, the GRAMMYs offer a special kind of recognition.

"It feels great," says Hurwitz. "It's kind of a slightly different kind of honor in the sense that it's the music industry that's nominating, it's the music industry that's voting. It's a more eclectic group of songs and artists that they draw from."

The 33-year-old composer earned a previous GRAMMY nomination for Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media for his work on the drum-themed film Whiplash at the 58th GRAMMY Awards. But that doesn't mean he isn't excited to attend this year's 60th celebration in New York.

"Being a part of the GRAMMYs, being nominated, and getting to go and meet so many people and the fellow nominees is a really fun part of it too."

Catching Up On Music News Powered By The Recording Academy Just Got Easier. Have A Google Home Device? "Talk To GRAMMYs"

Avenged Sevenfold

Avenged Sevenfold

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Avenged Sevenfold's "Craziest Record" Earns GRAMMY Nomination

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Guitarist Synyster Gates on how the band's 'craziest' record of their entire career earned them a GRAMMY nomination
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Jan 27, 2018 - 10:15 am

After nearly 20 years, seven albums, numerous awards, painful tragedy, and multiple musical evolutions, the members of Avenged Sevenfold have earned their first GRAMMY nomination for Best Rock Song for "The Stage."

Meet The Nominees: Avenged Sevenfold | 60th GRAMMY

Progressive, sprawling and epic, "The Stage" is the opening and title track on A7X's seventh studio album, which saw a surprise release on Oct. 28, 2016, and launched the quintet's sound in a bold new direction.

"This was definitely a really crazy record to write," says guitarist Synyster Gates. "'The Stage' in particular is a super-long, thematic, building, progressive opening track that excites you as an artist and it excites you to introduce it to your fans, but you don't think GRAMMYs or radio."

Gates continues, "The irony of this, our last record, Hail To The King — I wouldn't say we were trying to make a sell-out record, but we were trying to make a super-concise, one vibe a song, because we'd never done that before, and so it's got tons of these three-four-minute bangers that seem maybe a little bit more radio palatable, and nothing for that one. But we write the craziest record of our entire career and that's when we get the GRAMMY nomination."

For The Stage, the band enlisted GRAMMY-nominated producer/engineer Joe Barresi (Melvins, Queens Of The Stone Age, Monster Magnet, Tool) for the first time. True to the LP's title, Barresi pushed the band to get the feel of their exhilarating stage show.

"Joe Barresi brought a lot of new things to the table," lead singer M. Shadows revealed on Full Metal Jackie (as told by Blabbermouth). "And one thing that I had never done was to do full-song vocal takes, where you sing from the very first lyric all the way to the end of the song, and as your voice starts straining, and as it gets a little more tough on the vocals, you get that live feel."

Exploring uncharted territory in the studio can be exhausting and time consuming. But in a world where many successful bands feel pressured to restart the album cycle with regularity, taking the time to craft the new album was a conscious decision.

"We kind of reached this point in life where we don't really want to put out anything just to put something out," Shadows told Rolling Stone. "We really don't want it to be like, 'Two years are up. You've had your break; now do another record and get it out there.' We needed to wait until something really inspired us, and that's why the record took a long time to get done."

Definitely worth the wait, "The Stage" gives Avenged Sevenfold their first crack at a GRAMMY win the 60th GRAMMY Awards on Jan. 28. A7X are currently on tour in the U.S., headed for Europe this summer, and they continue to push themselves musically, recently releasing their first acoustic recording, Live At The GRAMMY Museum.