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GRAMMYs

Sublime With Rome 

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Sublime With Rome On Their 10 Year Anniversary sublime-rome-talk-latest-album-blessings-10-year-anniversary-rocking-out-post-malone

Sublime With Rome Talk Latest Album 'Blessings,' 10 Year Anniversary & Rocking Out With Post Malone

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Frontman Rome Ramirez says it's only been recently that he feels the band has taken a life of its own, in part because he's grown up. 'Blessings,' the band's third album, reflects both those things
Jennifer Velez
GRAMMYs
Sep 24, 2019 - 3:17 pm

It's been a decade since legendary '90s Southern California ska-punk band resurrected after the death of frontman Bradley Nowell with the help of, at the time, early 20-something-year-old Bay Area native Rome Ramirez. With huge shoes to fill, Ramirez, a huge Sublime fan, took on the opportunity of a lifetime. 

But even though it's been 10 years, and Ramirez acknowledges that some bands don't ever make it to 10, he says it's only been recently that he feels the band has taken a life of its own, in part because he's grown up. Blessings, the band's third album, is a sonic result of both those things. 

https://twitter.com/SublimeWithRome/status/1176155577656868868

Hitting the studio to rehearse before tour starts next week! What new songs are you looking forward to hearing? #MusicMonday

Tickets ➡️ https://t.co/D0M8oEBGFK pic.twitter.com/AiJBreVgfK

— Sublime With Rome (@SublimeWithRome) September 23, 2019

"The album lyrically kind of just encompasses the whole journey, like the whole 10 years of just everything, from my perspective at least from being a kid and then to traveling the world and having a kid," Ramirez told the Recording Academy.

Ramirez joined after founding member and bassist Eric Wilson asked him to join the band. Since then, founding drummer Bud Gaugh has left the band and other drummers have taken over duties, but for Ramirez things have really come together for the band since former Tribal Seeds drummer Carlos (C-Los) Verdugo has hopped onto the drumming seat. 

"That's when we started writing everything kind of for this next record and I kind of cooled it on the partying and everything started to make sense," Ramirez said. "People started growing up, things started kind of aligning into being just more of like a brotherhood, which allows you to just create so much better. "

The Recording Academy spoke more with the band about their latest album Blessings and the work that went into it, rocking out with Post Malone, songwriting challenges, their dynamic as a group and more.

So you shared a stage with Post Malone last month. How was that?

Rome Ramirez: Crazy. Post Malone is a very talented man and he's a big fan of Sublime. [He's a] 24-year-old kid on top of the world and it was really cool for him to reach out to us and ask us if we wanted a jam. So we said, "Heck yeah." We had to learn like 20 of his songs. It was a rad experience.

How was learning those songs so quickly?

Rome Ramirez: There was a process.

C-Los Verdugo: That was some work.

Rome Ramirez: Not going to bullsh*t you. It was a process. But you know, our better half isn't here, Gabrial McNair, and he's our keyboard and horn player, and he really helped us out with just breaking down like the sections. He's a musical guy, where we're kind of just like, "Play it by ear, guys." You know? So he kind of helped us like, "Hey, [these are] the sections." But it was rad. It was a really awesome experience. We got to fly down to New York. And you know, man, when you're dealing with superstars like that, there's just bunch of press everywhere and camera crews on camera crews, filming camera crews. So it was really cool to just kind of get to be around that and get to jam in front of so many people.

You covered one of his songs, "Goodbyes." Why that song?

Rome Ramirez: Because of Young Thug's verse. It was awesome. We really liked that one. It was really close to "Santeria" too, chord-wise, and we could squeeze in the solo in the middle of the song and nobody would know, and nobody does. But yeah, it's pretty rad. So it felt like really close to a Sublime song that Eric had wrote. So it just felt like we should do it.

What did you like about the Young Thug verse?

Rome Ramirez: It's just crazy. It's like sporadic. It doesn't sound like it belongs and it doesn't when you hear it like once, but when you hear it again, you're like, "I think I like it." And by like the third time you're like, "This is like the coolest part of the song. It's tight."

You have Blessings out. You've said this album is dedicated to the fans. Tell me more about that.

Rome Ramirez: Well, I mean, so we've been doing this for like 10 years. That's how long I've been jamming with Eric. The album lyrically kind of just encompasses the whole journey, the whole 10 years of just everything, from my perspective at least from being a kid and then to traveling the world and having a kid. Just the whole story of that. And I don't know, all of the pressures from just outside forces, whether it's your family or your friends or even people in the music business. So I just felt like I haven't really talked about that ever. I don't know why, but it seems like you should. So I decided to, and I was like, "F**k, that sounds good."

I just really wanted to talk about that. I feel like there's a lot of people who would dream to kind of be in the situation that I'm in and [if] they listen to the album, they can kind of hear about the journey. Maybe it'll inspire them or maybe it'll persuade them not to do this. Who knows?

 Were you consciously in a reflecting state of mind because of your 10-year mark?

Rome Ramirez: Well, in the process of writing it we didn't even think of that. Or I didn't even think about that like lyrically because some of these songs were kind of older and then I'd rework them over... This album, we had three years to write so it was kind of rad. But it just kind of made sense. Towards the end when we were kind of thinking about artwork and everything, that's when it was in the album title. That's when it was kind of like, "Yo, we should call this album Blessings." The title song really encompasses the theme of the record, as well.

 What is it like to play with the band that you saw growing up and loved?

C-Los Verdugo: Dream come true.

Rome Ramirez: It's kind of crazy, to be honest. It is kind of nuts. I still think about that from time to time. It's kind of crazy to think about. Everything in my life now is because of Sublime. So it's kind of nuts. I love it, though. I'm so glad it happened to me and not my neighbor. I'd be so jealous.

Eric, how is it for you? To have fans join your band?

Eric Wilson: Pretty cool. I'm just glad to still play it, you know? Still attract people and talented musicians

Looking back, what have you learned as a band together?

Rome Ramirez: You got to be respectful, like your coworkers or your bandmate or your wife or just anyone. Got to be respectful of everybody and you got to make sure everyone's got a say. You know?

Eric Wilson: Trust.

Rome Ramirez: Trust. It's much like a marriage, much like a marriage. You got to know that when they go home, they're not all cheating around someone else.

In what way is it like a marriage?

Rome Ramirez: Playing with other bands, you know? That's a big thing. Family is everything. Obviously, it's crazy because it's...been 10 years. It's hard for bands to even exist for 10 years. Let alone a band with such a rich legacy like Sublime. And then someone like my a** coming in and introducing it to a new wave of people and stuff. So it can be really kind like [tumultuous] grounds .. it can be kind of crazy to navigate through. And I think it's awesome. I think it's a blessing that we're still here able to rock it and there are still people showing [up.] We're still selling out shows and stuff and that's sick. We're really grateful for that.

Do you still feel the pressure to live up to Sublime's legacy?

Rome Ramirez: I mean, it's really just wanting to do a good a** job of just making good sh*t. I just don't want to f**k anything up. I'd hate to be the guy who writes like the worst album and people read back on Sublime in a hundred years and they're like, "There was that one time where that dude wrote this terrible album." So as long as I just don't do that and try and make good sh*t that Eric thinks is tight, too, that's all I really care about is just making sure that we're all proud.

C-Los Verdugo: I just do the best I can to show respect to the old album versions of Sublime and also the live versions. So giving respect to how the songs were actually made because those are songs that are going to be timeless and people want to hear them the way they are on the record. They don't want to hear my little things I could do, so I pay respect to those. But for our new stuff, this is all stuff that we're creating together. So that's special.

Rome Ramirez: Kind of we can f**k around a little bit.

Eric, do the classic Sublime songs performed with the new band take on a new meaning for you?

Eric Wilson: I never thought of that before ... No. I mean, it's always meant the same through anything. It's always kind of a trip to hear it on the radio whenever we sit down at a restaurant or whatever, [it's a trip] they're still playing it like that.

At what point did Sublime with Rome start to take on a life of its own?

Rome Ramirez: Probably this album. Probably when C-Los joined the band. Honestly, probably it's right around that time. That's when we started writing everything kind of for this next record and I kind of cooled it on the partying and everything started to make sense. People started growing up, things started kind of aligning into being just more of like a brotherhood, which allows you to just create so much better. 

Carlos, what do you think about that?

C-Los Verdugo: It's great, you know? But it's just a vibe, we'd just all get together. I think if it was someone that they vibed with it, it might be the same, but I just lucked out to be able to jump [on with] these guys.

Rome Ramirez: He's a good guy. You should hang out with him.

C-Los Verdugo: I fit well.

Rome Ramirez: We like him.

So what do you feel like makes you three strong as a band?

C-Los Verdugo: We all hang out together.

Rome Ramirez: Yeah, out of all the bands we go on the road with, we're the only ones that get along with each other. That and C-Los is a really good cook and no one sounds like us. That's the cool thing. That's like a really sick thing is like we always stand out on the bill, which I think is like rad because you have like your rap acts and you have like your rock and roll acts, and we can kind of float around and just do our thing. It's just something unique. It's a formula that they created that we get to benefit of kind of just rocking with. 

What do you like most about working with each other?

Rome Ramirez: I mean, for me personally, I like how everything I do has to be kind of, at least in my end, I try and make it as cool as possible because Eric likes really cool shit. He likes particular cool shit. And you know, I could get used to listening to the same bands that I fucking grew up with. He actually listens and discovers more new music than I do, which is kind of rad. So, he keeps me on my toes as a f**king writer, you know, to not always just be writing the same f**king songs all the time. And come with it. Keep learning, keep listening and trying new stuff, for sure.

Eric Wilson: It's all about getting all the influences that you're into and then writing something that's from that and making it yours. 

There are several parts to the album-making process. What is your favorite?

Rome Ramirez: The recording part. The writing part's a bummer. It's the work part, but the recording part's sick. It's so fun. Just getting [to] watching everyone record parts and getting tones right and, "Let's try that drum set instead of this one." Or, "Let's go through this compressor. Let's try this guitar." That part's fun as hell. I like that part.

C-Los Verdugo: I think the playback's always fun once you create something that's sounding solid and starting to form the song.

That's really interesting because when you're on stage when someone's listening to the album, they don't necessarily think about the engineers and the mixers.

Rome Ramirez: Yeah, those dudes are important. I mean, it's a huge part of the job. The better those guys are, the more time we have mentally and physically to just devote to the writing and the sound designing. And I think that's rad because when you got to kind of wear that hat, it's just more sh*t you got to think about in the kitchen. You just want to focus on the dish.

Speaking of behind the scenes people, how was it working with Rob Cavallo on this album? 

Rome Ramirez: Dude, the GRAMMYs bought him a guitar because he's like such a crazy songwriter/producer dude the GRAMMY's actually bought him a guitar and I use that on a lot of the album.

Oh, fun fact.

Rome Ramirez: Yeah, that's a good one. But anyway, yeah, well, Rob and Doug McKean, the two guys who recorded and did the album, they're exactly what I was talking about in the question before. [It applies] to them because ... that's who I was thinking of when I was talking about that. Sh*t sounded good, like fast. And for me, because I can be such a stickler when it comes to that kind of sh*t. It was just really rad to just be totally big league. To like, "Quiet down a little boy, we got it from here." And it was like, "Dang. Okay. I could learn some sh*t."

They're the pros and it sounded so sick and I didn't have to think about none of that crap, mixing, or the mic, none of that stuff. Just the lyrics, just the melodies and the songs. And I'm sure the guys just had to worry about their sh*t, too. It makes it easier.

Going back to the songwriting part, why do you think it's a bummer to do that part?

Rome Ramirez: Well I don't mean a bummer, but I just mean you know how in every part of a job there's the part of the job [which is] ... the hard part? That's like the hard part for me [because] it's really easy to write just a song that doesn't mean anything. You'd be surprised how incredibly easy it is. And to really write music that makes you feel something, you have to go to places that you don't necessarily really want to visit or think about. And then you have to also make a song out of it. It's like one thing to just dig it up and think about it, but then you have to make it a song and then you have to make it sound good.

That whole process is work and then you have to do that like 20 times and then narrow it down to 10. For me, it's just I can't do [that process] often, I've realized. I write a lot of music and only some of it's good and it's because it's hard to do that and I can't do that very often. So for me, it takes a tremendous amount of focus and just honesty.

Is that still hard three albums in?

Rome Ramirez: Yeah. Well, luckily we just put this one out, so I won't have to do that again for a while.  It's cool, though. It's my responsibility as a creator, as an artist. I shouldn't be putting out no wishy washy bullsh**. Got to put out good stuff, great stuff that people [because it] might have an effect on people.

I also want to talk about ska. What do you guys love about that genre specifically?

Rome Ramirez: I think ska is rad because it's like Motown, but on like the two, you know? A lot of the times they're singing about some dark sh*t, but it's on a beat that is like just up. 

Eric Wilson: It came from Jamaica, and all the coolest music comes from like poverty-stricken places like that. Or like the Cuban music, you know, percussion. That all comes from poverty. It brings everybody away from all that when they're playing, make them all happy, upbeat and stuff. It's really cool.

Rome Ramirez: They're all talking about wanting to leave the hood, and everybody's dancing, dude.

Going back to the album, is there a favorite song that you guys have?

Rome Ramirez: Yeah, mine's probably "Light On."

How come?

Rome Ramirez: Just because that song, it means a lot to me. Lyrically, that was a tough one to write. Just to get it right. And that kind of summarizes the missing part of being on the road and stuff and then at the detriment of watching your loved ones kind of grow older. And that's what that was about. So I think every time I play that song, I just think of my mom and my kid, so I'm going to rank that as number one right now.

What about you guys?

Eric Wilson: I like all of them.

Rome Ramirez: I like that.

C-Los Verdugo: I like that one, ["Light On,"] and "Black Out." "Black Out's" good. It's just a fun song to play live. I mean, it's kind of... it's pretty simple, but for me, it's just like I like the chords, I guess.

You're on tour, how has the tour been going for you guys? Do you enjoy being on the road?

Rome Ramirez: Yeah, totally. This is the fucking coolest shit in the world. Like, dude, I used to work at Staples before this. This is so much sicker than that. I'm like, no way. I got homies that are just trying to figure out what the hell to do with their lives. And they're like 35, you know? So this is the sh**. Yeah, we're away from our loved ones and stuff. But man, what a good reason. 

How do you guys stay energized and stuff on the road?

C-Los Verdugo: Sleep. 

Rome Ramirez: It's crucial. Especially as a little older you get. More sleep, less alcohol.

C-Los Verdugo: Yeah, water. I'm not drinking so many IPAs.

Coheed And Cambria's Claudio Sanchez Talks Comics, Kurt Vonnegut & What's Next For 'The Amory Wars'

GRAMMYs

Johnny Ventura, Lido Pimienta & Jean Dawson

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In The BLM Movement, Latinx Artists Look Inward amid-black-lives-matter-conversations-black-latinx-artists-urge-non-black-latinx-do

Amid Black Lives Matter Conversations, Black Latinx Artists Urge Non-Black Latinx To Do Better

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Jean Dawson, Lido Pimienta, Johnny Ventura and more talk anti-Blackness in the Latinx community and how music can be one of the greatest catalysts for change
Jennifer Velez
GRAMMYs
Jul 13, 2020 - 5:51 pm

"I am not free as long as one person of color remains chained. Nor is anyone of you," writer and poet Audre Lorde cautioned during her keynote speech addressing racism at a Connecticut women’s conference in 1981. Her message was clear: Racism cannot be dismantled until every person fights to eliminate it—that included women who, in world ruled by white males, faced oppression because of their gender, but benefited from whiteness. 

Almost 40 years later, the late writer’s words are even more far-reaching. 

As the U.S. faces trials brought forth by systemic, societal and cultural racism ignited by George Floyd’s killing at the hands of police, the Latinx community, multi-faceted and multi-dimensional, as described by Pew Research Center, are now turning inward to evaluate their own role in a conversation about race, privilege and anti-Blackness. 

The Latinx community is extremely diverse, comprising indigenous, Black and white people (among others). Though it is often unified by the Spanish language, many members are now saying that the community must reckon with its own history of anti-Blackness. Being Black, no matter your cultural background, can more than likely mean experiencing heightened racism such as police brutality—a privilege light-skinned and white-passing Latinx don’t have to worry about. 

As the music industry goes through its own discussion on systemic racism, music leaders are calling for change, in and out of the industry. But how? Latinx have to acknowledge a history of anti-Blackness, rooted by colonialism, to understand why this is a question in the first place, they say.

A history of anti-Blackness

Half Black and half Mexican, Jean Dawson grew up an anomaly to many. He was born in San Diego to a Black father and a Mexican mother, but raised in Tijuana after he and his mother moved there. 

"I was in Mexico and people didn't know what I was," the singer/songwriter says over Zoom. "There was a whole lot of stuff."

Some Mexicans would call him "Kalimba," he recalls. Kalimba, an Afro-Mexican singer, was a part of an influentially successful pop group called OV7 in the ‘90s. He and his sister, M'balia Maricha, were two Afro-Mexicans in a predominately light-skinned Mexican group, and as scarce as hen’s teeth in the overall industry. 

Dawson commuted to San Diego every day for school, something not so uncommon in a border town. He now lives in Los Angeles, though he says that life in the U.S. isn't much better than it was back home. "Police in the United States don't see me as a Mexican man. Even if they do, they see me as a threat," he says. "They see me as all these things rather than being a 24-year-old college-educated musician."

And he isn’t the only music artist with accounts of discrimination. In and out of the U.S., the latest Black Lives Movement protests have Black and Afro-Latinx artists sharing their own personal stories of racism.

In a livestreamed conversation with the newly formed Conciencia Collective, a Latinx group of music professionals addressing race issues, ChocQuibTown’s Goyo shared she’s been taken off a bus in Colombia because she was Black. 

In an Instagram post, Legendary merengue and salsa musician Johnny Ventura recounted a trip to the U.S. that quickly became uncomfortable when an airport immigration officer wouldn’t believe he was staying at an upscale hotel in New York. The officer stopped asking where he was really staying only until after a Puerto Rican co-worker let him know who Ventura was.

Dawson and Goyo’s accounts solidify two facts: No matter who you are, if you’re Black, you’re a target. Also, there are undeniable microaggressions and discrimination towards Black Latinx in the culture. 

Across Latin countries, whether in North, South America or the Caribbean, microaggressions show up in casual expressions. For example, there's the phrase "Hay que mejorar la raza" or "We have to better the race," while family members issue constant reminders to not get too much sun in order to keep skin as light as possible. Such microaggressions perpetuate anti-Black and anti-indigenous ideologies that go unquestioned. 

"There [were] people in my family that when they met my father through my mother immediately were like, 'No, you can't be with him because he's Black,'" Dawson says. 

Light skin, light eyes, light hair—the closer a Latinx person comes to whiteness can often equate to a higher perceived desirability within the culture.

Roughly 130 million people of African descent live in Latin America, according to a 2016 report by Princeton University’s Project on Ethnicity and Race in Latin America. Slavery by the Spanish and Portuguese plays a role in that number. Despite Black Latinx making up an estimated quarter of the population now, their Black identity continues to be belittled and erased through language and racial identifiers.  

Dominican-American journalist Jennifer Mota noted that calling someone "Spanish" who may not be, as is sometimes done in Latin countries, is erasing their indigenous or Black identity, even if they speak Spanish.

"I am Spanish-speaking.... I was not born in Spain, nor were my parents," she wrote on her Instagram. "Spanish is both a language and a nationality, when you label someone Spanish & they are not, you are erasing their specific culture, nationality, and experience."

Colombian-Canadian singer/songwriter Lido Pimienta adds that doing so is erasing the fact that colonization ever happened. 

“People call me Spanish, I'm not Spanish, I'm Colombian. I speak Spanish, because I was colonized by Spain,” she says.“[Being called] Spanish is this negation, that there was ever colonization.”

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Beyond language, eurocentric beauty standards dominate media in many Latin countries. Travel to Mexico, Colombia or almost any other Spanish-speaking country and you’ll see street ads, television soap operas and other programming featuring light-skinned people.  

"Whatever is closest or with more proximity to whiteness in sound, in look, in aesthetic. That's the person that we want, and that's the person that's going to get the platform." Pimienta says of the media and entertainment mindset in Colombia, where roughly 10 percent of the population is Black, and traces of the country's only Black president, Juan José Nieto Gil, have been erased from history, including in books and portraits.

The cover of her recently released album Miss Colombia dismantles these notions of white supremacy, targeting beauty pageants (which are highly regarded in the country), where only two Black women from the country have won a Miss Universe title. Pimienta protests that reality when she, a Black, indigenous Colombian, stands front and center wearing a crown.

The Black erasure and whitewashing that happens in Latin countries is blatant and is a result of colonization, University of Florida assistant professor Jillian Hernandez says. 

"The Spanish basically [formed] a whole cast of different races, the exploitation of indigenous people and then of the enslaved Africans that were brought to Latin America," she says. "Because so many Latinx have light skin privilege, there has been the sort of ideology of white aspiration."

Even when it comes to music consumption, music with Black roots, like reggaeton, is minimized among some Latinx. 

"Black Latinx music [is] often looked down upon as a lesser form of Latinx music, even though it's clearly super popular and clearly super lucrative," Hernandez continues. "Those are again the same hierarchies that we get from the same racist colonialism."

Hernandez adds those hierarchies can also show up at award shows and "urbano" artists can become pigeonholed. "What cultural forms [of music] are ... taken the most seriously or given the most awards?" she asks. Both the GRAMMYs and Latin GRAMMYs have been critiqued for their urban categories. The GRAMMYs have renamed their urban contemporary category and the Latin GRAMMYs have added a reggaeton category. 

Unlearning Anti-Blackness 

Hernandez says these ideologies start at home: "In many ways, we're trained in our families to be anti-Black and anti-indigenous." Johnny Ventura, a 80-year-old singer/musician from the Dominican Republic, has for decades represented Afro-Latinos through salsa and merengue music, both of which derive from Black music. 

Off and on the stage, he’s made a point to celebrate Blackness. If Latinos, he believes, discriminate amongst themselves, they are enabling white Americans and Europeans that engage in racism.

For him, combating anti-Blackness meant teaching his children to love who they are. "In my home, the moment my kids were born, we called them 'Negrito lindo, negrito bello, negrito bello,'" he says. ("Negrito" is an endearing word deriving from "negro," or "Black" in Spanish.) Ventura took care to pair the word with "beautiful" when using it to refer to his kids.

He brought that same mentality to the stage: In Ventura's music, you’ll proudly hear him call himself negro often. "[I do it] justifiably to combat that," he says, referring to anti-Blackness. 

In the U.S., where one-quarter of all U.S. Latinos self-identify as Afro-Latino, Afro-Caribbean or of African descent with roots in Latin America (according to a 2016 Pew Research study), Latinx are outlining ways to bring these conversations to light at home. 

But in order to truly dismantle white supremacy in Latin culture, Latinx should not be seen as just one thing, Pimienta says. 

"Every [Latin American] country has their thing that they can do, because it's not a monolith," she explains. "And there's not one way of being Black."

University of California San Diego Ethnic Studies assistant professorJosé Fusté agrees that people need to be careful about seeing all Latinos as the same. "I'm Puerto Rican. We don't deal with ICE. We don't have that situation. We need to be very real about our privilege when it comes to that, even though we're colonial subjects," he says.

While he says someone from Central America may not necessarily relate in every aspect to someone from Cuba, many non-white Latinx share being made the "other" in the U.S. 

"We have common ground whether we like it or not. But we also have differences," he says. "I'll never know what it's like to be an Afro-Latino. It's my job to try to find out and understand it for myself and try to convey it to others. It's my responsibility."

Beyond holding conversations at home, educational programs like Ethnic Studies at colleges and universities can help dismantle racism, some argue. An option for those with educational resources or interest in education as Ethnic studies teaches the histories and stories of Black and people of color.  

Black and Latinx artists are using music as a way to educate for without access to Ethnic Studies. ChocQuibTown’s "Somos los Prietos" and Myke Towers’ recently released "MICHAEL X" highlight their experience and share their support for struggles faced by Black people in and out of the U.S.

Dawson released a song called “Policia” or “Police," which he wrote before Floyd’s death but decided to release after to raise funds for inner-city children, the wrongfully incarcerated and trans people. 

Ventura decided not to celebrate his 64th music anniversary this year after Floyd’s killing, which he took personally. "I usually celebrate, but this time I didn’t," he says. "Things that I thought stayed in the past haven’t and Floyd represents all Black people."

A Debt Is Due

The latest Black Lives Matter protests have sparked a wave of accountability that began with the police system and has swept through several corners of society, causing the music industry to experience its own wave of trials. Historically, the music industry has been complicit in systemic racism and erasure of Blackness. White gatekeepers, as Wesley Morris explains for The New York Times Magazine, have too many times determined a song to be "Too Black for certain white people." Or claimed genres for their own without acknowledging its Black roots. 

The relationship between Black artists and the music industry is fueled by a historic dehumanization of Blackness that happens in the U.S. and Latin America.

There is a kind of obsession with Black culture, Fusté says. "There is a kind of love-hate relationship. There is an infatuation with it. There's an obsession with it at the same time that there's a dehumanization of it."

Blackface Minstrelsy happened in the U.S. but also other places like Puerto Rico, Cuba and Mexico, he notes. 

Online movements #BlackOutTuesday and coalitions like the Black Music Action Coalition have called for the acknowledgment of the industry’s exploitation and called for support for Black artists and music professionals. A similar coalition was created in the U.K.

Companies like Swedish music electronics company Teenage Engineering, which makes products used by dance music producers, plan to begin sharing its revenue with some Black musicians in the U.S. as a way to acknowledge their part in making their products popular. 

Sony Music Group, Warner Music Group and Universal Music Group have announced donations aiming to support social justice organizations. Sony and Universal also announced inside initiatives to support their Black employees.

Republic Records, under Universal, has vowed to drop the industry term "urban" in its genres and every other facet of the label. (The "urban" genre has been used as an umbrella term that boxes in Black artists and music industry professionals.)

Leading Latin music publication Remezcla, meanwhile, is taking the same pledge to stop using the Spanish equivalent of urban, or "musica urbana."

"There's so much power in the media, how they frame this," Hernandez says. "If Remezcla says we're not going to see ‘musica urbana,’ that is changing the discourse."

She continues: “It's not going to save anyone's life, but it will change how histories of popular music and culture are written because it is a moment. When inspired by a social movement, a group of people decide, 'You know what? We're going to change the discourse about this particular genre of music.'"

Beyond language, several aspects of the music industry need to rethink who it champions and promotes. In 2018, Amara La Negra explained to a bewildered Breakfast Club how colorism exists in the Latin music industry.

"They’ll always pick the lighter [skin tone]. The ones that look like... [the] J.Los and Shakiras and stuff before they look at us," she said.

There could be less stereotyping and a lot more support for Black artists, especially women and LGBTQ musicians who continue to face sexism and homophobia.

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"The music industry is based a lot on stereotypes that at a marketing level that maybe are not opening doors for artists or for telling Black stories," Goyo said in a talk with Conciencia Collective. "We don’t see ourselves represented on T.V."

Prominent artists in Latin music genres are being asked to set an example, too. An Op-Ed by Katelina Eccleston published in Remezcla called “Why Urbano Artists' Scarce Comments On The #BLM Movement Are a Problem” called out the lack of response from some reggaetón and Latin trap artists who make music with Black and Afro-Caribbean roots. Eccleston referenced Bad Bunny in particular, an artist who is widely known for voicing his opinion on politics but was slow to speak up on #BlackLivesMatter. Bunny, who had been unplugging while Floyd’s death happened, eventually released a statement to TIME that called for educating friends and family on racism. 

"Urbano artists—especially those who aren’t Black—have a duty to speak up on behalf of racial injustice outside of when it’s trendy. It’s not only a crucial means of compensating for the exploitation of Black aesthetics, but an element of solidarity of the advancement towards racial equality in the U.S., Latin America and as far as their influence reaches," Eccleston writes. 

Pimienta says non-Latinx artists creating Black Latinx music should recognize their privilege if they perform Black music. "When you see it in culture, in music, in the music industry, and it's not questioned, we are, as an industry, perpetuating white supremacy."

Pimienta also argues that the industry needs to rethink branding Europeans as Latin. "When you have artists from Europe that break into the music scene, and they're branded as Latin, it is problematic."

RELATED: Ivan Barias On Silence As Complicity, Holding Major Labels Accountable & How To Be A Non-Black Latinx Ally

How popular culture can be a vehicle for change

Already, Latinx in the music industry have started conversations on privilege and solidarity, with Conciencia Collective and journalists—including Mota and La Gata—holding livestream talks. 

Fusté believes music and pop culture can lead the way on the necessary conversations that need to happen.

"We need to be honest about those things, and the music needs to reflect that. I think we're going there, honestly. I'm optimistic about it. Because I think, if anything, music is going to teach us that," he says. "There are people that will consume these videos, these talks. I think the artist can reach people directly in a way that's never happened before."

Goyo uses her platform to bring Ethnic Studies (she refers to it as Ethno-studies) to the world.

"Ethno-education is a powerful tool that goes from the university to other places to explain history," she said in her conversation with Conciencia Collective.

Meanwhile, the Latinx music industry is taking on race issues but also holding space for women and the LGBTQ community to talk about the intersections of race and other identities.

Goya and Pimienta have used their music to talk about their experiences being Black women. Pabllo Vittar, Lauren Jauregui, Tatiana Hazel and Urias joined the collective in a conversation about how gender and sexuality affect Black and Latinx of color.

Vittar says racism and homophobia affects Brazil; it's something the government doesn’t seek to improve and the media hardly shows.

"I always try to use my platform to show what’s happening in my country, what’s happening in cities with the Black Lives Matter movement,” he says in the conversation. “I want the media in Brazil to also show that there is also a lot of suffering from racism, homophobia and some many other things in Brazil."

While there is work that needs to be done in the industry, Pimienta says space for indigenous folk music and other music made by Black and indigenous artists—what she calls outsider music—that challenge identity norms is growing.

"I feel like we are now at this point where people are hungry for that. I feel like we've gone through the shiny and the perfectly packaged and the perfect ideals of womanhood…" she says. "I feel really good. I feel like finally I don't have to explain myself. That's where I'm trying to go."

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Mexican Singer/Songwriter Caloncho Is On A Mission To Give Back—In Music And Beyond

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How the Guadalajara-based, Latin GRAMMY-nominated performer is determined to make a positive difference in his home country
Jennifer Velez
GRAMMYs
Mar 6, 2020 - 12:47 pm

Caloncho loves life. The tattoo on his left arm—a mom-heart-style illustration with "Vida" written in the center—is just one way he makes that known. The 33-year-old Mexican singer/songwriter, born Oscar Castro, has very much built a reputation around his optimism and zeal for living. Even when he forgoes his love-soaked lyrics with words of disillusion, his guitar-heavy reggae, rock steady pop sound keeps the mood warm and light, making it easy to forget you’re hearing about heartbreak; it transports you to a tropical island and makes you want to get up and dance.

The curly-haired singer exudes a calm warmth in person too. His vibe is as sunny as the city he finds himself in on the last days of February: Santiago de Queretaro, a small colonial town in North-Central Mexico.

Caloncho is in Queretaro to perform for an intimate group of fans on the last stop of the Live At Aloft Hotels Homecoming Tour, a partnership between the new Marriott hotel in the city and Universal Music Group, which features artist performances in their home countries.

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The popular singer doesn’t mind the positive associations with his music. “If I die tomorrow, I'm glad, I'm happy,” he says hours before his performance, sitting in the hotel lobby wearing yellow high socks with a smiley face printed on them. "I think I’ve done something for people through my music because they’ve told me they like it and that it actually helps [them], so that's useful.”

Being helpful is equally important to Caloncho. It’s “a mission” for him. More than making people feel happy, Caloncho, who studied international relations in college, wants to make a genuine difference in the world. Optimism gives people faith, he believes.

The day before, he swapped his guitar for a pair of gloves, rubber boots and a face mask to do something beneficial outside of music.

The tour stop has enabled him to build a partnership with a local nonprofit in Queretaro raising awareness on the pollution called Habitantes del Rio. The singer brought together locals, Aloft employees and media to clean a section of Queretaro’s polluted river. The historic river, which at one point provided water for many to use, has become extremely contaminated over several years. You’ll find soccer cleats, television parts, glass and even human waste flowing in or around the river.

The river’s state reflects a greater problem the country faces; six out of every 10 rivers are polluted in Mexico.

Queretaro’s river, flowing across most of the state like a belt, has caused local townspeople health problems and has overall become bothersome, not just because the water is a sewage green color but because it emits an extremely toxic smell.

Local authorities have initiated plans and programs to clean the river, but to no prevail. Habitantes also set up cleaning dates throughout the year to help solve the issue. So far, they have taken 15 tons of trash from the river.

Caloncho learned of the organization while at a music festival. He thinks it’s important for people to know what’s going on in the country and feels a responsibility to do good not just through music, but everywhere else, too. "Music is a great vehicle for sharing issues," he says as he gets ready to pick up trash with the nonprofit.

Cameras and photographers follow the singer around as he gravitates towards one part of the river, a muddy corner that looks like a small landfill in the making. The green water flows by behind him.

Back in his hotel lobby a day later, Caloncho reflects on his river experience.

“I love to travel. I love to do what I do. It was just a great opportunity to visit Querétaro with Habitantes del Rio," he says. "I admire the job they do, what they think. I was really excited to clean the river, to be part of it and to let the people know that they have something vital that's actually a treasure."

The singer hopes the cleanup, now documented on his social media, can inspire local fans to help out as well. "They have a river, their place, and this is an example for [what can be done for] the rest of the rivers throughout Mexico and the planet," he says.

Humans have been the cause of the river’s unhealthy condition since the mid 17th century. In college, Caloncho faced one of the most debated questions related to the actions of human beings: "Are human beings good or bad?"

Caloncho still isn’t sure how to answer that question. For him, though, there is power in choice.

"We have to protect [rivers] and we have so much power as individuals to do that. Every choice of consumption that we get to get every day, everything we choose, is going to have an impact and environmental weight," he says.

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Photo: Jeremy Cohen

The singer will begin working on his forthcoming album in a few days and feels strongly about including songs that will make people think. Caloncho wants to include more of his thoughts on society and human emotional intelligence, even incorporating discourse, something he says is not easy to do.

"Ideology is not an easy thing to get into a song," he says. "But I'm trying."

The love songs he’ll include, though, will be Classic Caloncho. He’ll include a special message to his daughters, who he didn’t have when he began making music.

“I want them to be independent and intelligent,” he shares. “[The album will have] a letter to them. I think it's kind of personal in that way.”

Fatherhood has only added to the singer’s love for life. While he loves to make music and going on tour, he admits leaving his children at home is tough.

“I feel so full when I'm home playing with them and just existing, watching them grow. I think that everything is primitive and easy and as simple as that,” he says. “There's nothing else to do other than enjoying our existence … I could be doing nothing at all, just sitting, watching, and that's beautiful … I'm in love. I love existing, I love my daughters.”

Caloncho released an EP titled Pa with his youngest baby girl on the cover last year. Evidently, his determination to make a difference in and out of music is also tied to fatherhood.

"Everything is okay in terms of creating music. I could just relax and do love songs and chill but I want to be useful. Maybe it's related to being a father now, I don't know," he says.

Caloncho released his first EP, Homeotermo, in 2011. A series of EPs titled Fruta and Fruta Vol. II followed before he released his latest album Bálsamo in 2017.

Fruta earned him a Latin GRAMMY nom for Best Alternative Album in 2014. That year he was also nominated for Best New Artist.

His journey into music began thanks to his late grandfather, who also gave him his nickname, "Caloncho."

“My grandfather, my father's father, he used to play norteña. He used to play mostly with an accordion. And he gave me my first guitar too,” he says. “He had a Yamaha Electone his living room, which I now have, so it was like going to my grandparents' house was just discovering music through this Electone and another synthesizer he had.”

The Beatles were another early influence; their CD is the first he ever purchased.

“I love them. They created pop music and it's always a reference when recording. I love their sound. We actually studied the process of how do they get to that voice and guitar and drum sound,” he says.

When he’s not creating music on his own, he’s collaborating with Latin GRAMMY-nominated singer El David Aguilar in a band called Vacación. The band is influenced by a variety of Mexican and Latin American musical styles and genres including boleros. Together, they combine some of the most praised songwriting in the Spanish language. After his intimate performance in Queretaro, Caloncho will continue a spring tour with the side project.

The singer/songwriters share an album, Tiempo Compartido, and Caloncho has learned a lot from Aguilar.

“He's an amazing musician, an extraordinary human being,” he says. “I've learned to not be afraid of having a discourse, even though it doesn't rhyme, even though it's not sexy.”

Of making an English album, Caloncho says he’d love to someday, but the language hasn’t come as naturally to him. 

Whatever happens, Caloncho is content with taking it slow. “I'm just finding myself. I'm getting to know myself as composer, and as a human—like everybody else.” 

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Donna Missal

Donna Missal at SXSW 2019

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Report: How Music Creates Jobs, Drives Tourism, Improves Wellness & More

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Recording Academy partner Sound Diplomacy unleashes "a set of tools, case studies and lessons to increase the value of music in your city"
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Mar 14, 2019 - 10:43 am

For anyone working in the music world, Austin, Texas is the place to be in mid-March each year. South By Southwest brings together the industry's brightest minds, biggest players and sharpest talents to explore the business and craft of music. Attendees network, listen and soak up wisdom to bring home and implement in their own music communities, wherever they may be. For over three decades, this ritual has helped music professionals tackle the challenges of building and sustaining music in their city.

Who does your music policy impact? Who is responsible for music policy in a city? Find out answers to these burning questions & more in The Music Cities Manual, available now at https://t.co/xNc2Feje4r pic.twitter.com/yLeU32Bf3I

— Sound Diplomacy (@SoundDiplomacy) March 14, 2019

In the spirit of this connectivity of resources, and to coincide with this year's SXSW, international strategic consultants Sound Diplomacy released a special report titled "The Music Cities Manual: How Music Increases Economic, Social And Cultural Growth In Your City." The extensive report details the what, why and how of supporting music locally through everything from city policy to education and communication and beyond, providing a fresh and tangible idea bank for music people in cities and towns of all sizes to spur and sustain growth.

As partners of the Recording Academy, Sound Diplomacy shares the mission of supporting music by thinking big but starting small and understanding the power of local music markets have to lift up the industry at large. The Academy's 12 Chapters serve music communities nationwide based on the core philosophy that when local music economies innovate and thrive, the entire community benefits. Many of the principles in Sound Diplomacy's report speak directly to the work the Academy does each day to keep music strong across a diverse array of local marketplaces.

Inside The Music Cities Manual

"The Music Cities Manual" describes itself as "a set of tools, case studies and lessons to increase the value of music in your city," i.e., a report for everyone involved in the music process from musicians to developers, city government to bar owners and festivals to hoteliers. The report also showcases music's uncanny ability to create jobs, drive tourism, enhance social inclusion and even improve wellness. However, as the report points out, "few cities understand how to plan, manage and develop music for economic, social and cultural gain." 

In other words, how can cities best optimize the power of music to benefit their local economy? 

"Music pumps from speakers in shopping malls and metro stations, hospitals and car parks. From choirs in churches to the call to prayer, from the boardrooms of our multinational record labels to the basement of a pub, music fosters creativity, dialogue, creates commerce and incubates talent."

Music As Infrastructure

In order to solve a problem, we must first understand it. Sound Diplomacy's method outlines 13 key indicators of a thriving music policy, centering around the idea that music is infrastructure. This means city governance declaring, through official communication, music's importance to its community. Let's look to the Midwest: The report cites Chicago's 2007 Chicago Music Policy as one of the first to send this message to not only its own local community, but to people everywhere about the importance of music's role in Chicago.

The report's 13 key indicators are chock-full of resources for action items such as creating a coalition, asset mapping, sparking tourism, supporting venues, encouraging entrepreneurs, expanding music education, and prioritizing affordability. All of these measures speak to a connectivity between creatives, policymakers and business owners that can grow a city's music community in a healthy and lasting way.

Cities As Agents Of Change

Sound Diplomacy also presents several case studies, taking a closer look at Melbourne, Australia's "Agent Of Change" principle, which set new obligations on property developers to adequately soundproof buildings within 50 feet of an existing venue, London's Music Venue Trust task force, which provided an outline for the city's grassroots venues to thrive, and New York City's repeal of its outdated Cabaret Law, making the Big Apple much for more friendlier for live music and entertainment. These real-world cases provide easily relatable change examples, and considering the sheer size of the cities referenced, the notion of making an impact in smaller music communities seems far less daunting.

Our #NewYork Chapter celebrated the 61st #GRAMMYs nominees, including producers, songwriters, and engineers earlier this week.

Find out who takes home GRAMMY gold on Feb. 10! pic.twitter.com/3XnYTnFYLn

— Recording Academy / GRAMMYs (@RecordingAcad) January 31, 2019

Creating Inter-City Music Networks

In fact, the report goes another step to show how connection between music cities can benefit local markets on a global scale, examining Music Cities Network, a resource for improving communication and cooperation between music communities around the world. This is just one tool the report offers toward its encouragement to "be international," by starting, "With your sister cities and existing partnerships in other municipal departments, from tourism to economic development."

This top-down and bottom-up approach provides everyone who touches or is affected by music with steps to take toward a stronger community. And the best news is the benefits of a healthy music city go beyond cultural, social and even economic areas. Music's ability to improve health and wellbeing means, as the report states, "Better, happier, more efficient people, from birth to death."

As thousands descend upon Austin and SXSW 2019 kicks off its Music Conference, the Sound Diplomacy report provides the framework to implement new ideas across the musical landscape in any town, making the adage of "think globally, act locally" more than a bumper sticker.

Likewise, the Recording Academy continues its work on behalf of music creators across many tiers of the industry, from local events to educate and connect members to game-changing Advocacy work on Capitol Hill. Through these tireless efforts, and projects such as working with Sound Diplomacy in its Chapter cities, the Academy continues to support and foster a better tomorrow for music.

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2021 GRAMMYs: Complete Nominees List

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The 63rd GRAMMY Awards are airing Sunday, March 14, 2021, on CBS! Find out who is nominated in each of the 83 categories in the full nominees list below
GRAMMYs
Nov 24, 2020 - 9:45 am

Updated Jan. 5, 2021.

The 63rd GRAMMY Awards are airing Sunday, March 14, 2021, on CBS! Find out who is nominated in each of the 83 categories in the full nominees list below. Use the links to jump to a desired field.

General Field

Pop

Dance/ Electronic Music

Contemporary Instrumental Music

Rock

Alternative

R&B

Rap

Country

New Age

Jazz

Gospel/ Contemporary Christian Music

Latin

American Roots Music

Reggae

Global Music

Children's

Spoken Word

Comedy

Musical Theater

Music For Visual Media  

Composing/ Arranging

Package

Notes

Historical 

Production, Non-Classical

Production, Immersive Audio

Production, Classical

Classical

Music Video/Film

 

General Field

1. Record Of The Year
Award to the Artist and to the Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s) and/or Mixer(s) and mastering engineer(s), if other than the artist.

  • BLACK PARADE
    Beyoncé
    Beyoncé & Derek Dixie, producers; Stuart White, engineer/mixer; Colin Leonard, mastering engineer
     
  • COLORS
    Black Pumas
    Adrian Quesada, producer; Adrian Quesada, engineer/mixer; JJ Golden, mastering engineer
     
  • ROCKSTAR
    DaBaby Featuring Roddy Ricch
    SethinTheKitchen, producer; Derek "MixedByAli" Ali, Chris Dennis, Liz Robson & Chris West, engineers/mixers; Glenn A Tabor III, mastering engineer
     
  • SAY SO
    Doja Cat
    Tyson Trax, producer; Clint Gibbs, engineer/mixer; Mike Bozzi, mastering engineer
     
  • EVERYTHING I WANTED
    Billie Eilish
    Finneas O'Connell, producer; Rob Kinelski & Finneas O'Connell, engineers/mixers; John Greenham, mastering engineer
     
  • DON'T START NOW
    Dua Lipa
    Caroline Ailin & Ian Kirkpatrick, producers; Josh Gudwin, Drew Jurecka & Ian Kirkpatrick, engineers/mixers; Chris Gehringer, mastering engineer
     
  • CIRCLES
    Post Malone
    Louis Bell, Frank Dukes & Post Malone, producers; Louis Bell & Manny Marroquin, engineers/mixers; Mike Bozzi, mastering engineer
     
  • SAVAGE
    Megan Thee Stallion Featuring Beyoncé
    Beyoncé & J. White Did It, producers; Stuart White, engineer/mixer; Colin Leonard, mastering engineer

2. Album Of The Year
Award to Artist(s) and to Featured Artist(s), Songwriter(s) of new material, Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s), Mixer(s) and Mastering Engineer(s) credited with at least 33% playing time of the album, if other than Artist.

  • CHILOMBO
    Jhené Aiko
    Fisticuffs & Julian-Quán Việt Lê, producers; Fisticuffs, Julian-Quán Việt Lê, Zeke Mishanec, Christian Plata & Gregg Rominiecki, engineers/mixers; Jhené Aiko Efuru Chilombo, Julian-Quán Việt Lê, Maclean Robinson & Brian Keith Warfield, songwriters; Dave Kutch, mastering engineer
     
  • BLACK PUMAS (DELUXE EDITION)
    Black Pumas
    Adrian Quesada, producer; Adrian Quesada, engineer/mixer; Eric Burton & Adrian Quesada, songwriters; JJ Golden, mastering engineer
     
  • EVERYDAY LIFE
    Coldplay
    Daniel Green, Bill Rahko & Rik Simpson, producers; Mark “Spike” Stent, engineer/mixer; Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion & Chris Martin, songwriters; Emily Lazar, mastering engineer
     
  • DJESSE VOL.3
    Jacob Collier
    Jacob Collier, producer; Ben Bloomberg & Jacob Collier, engineers/mixers; Jacob Collier, songwriter; Chris Allgood & Emily Lazar, mastering engineers
     
  • WOMEN IN MUSIC PT. III
    HAIM
    Rostam Batmanglij, Danielle Haim & Ariel Rechtshaid, producers; Rostam Batmanglij, Jasmine Chen, John DeBold, Matt DiMona, Tom Elmhirst, Joey Messina-Doerning & Ariel Rechtshaid, engineers/mixers; Rostam Batmanglij, Alana Haim, Danielle Haim, Este Haim & Ariel Rechtshaid, songwriters; Emily Lazar, mastering engineer
     
  • FUTURE NOSTALGIA
    Dua Lipa
    Lorna Blackwood & Koz, producers; Josh Gudwin & Cameron Gower Poole, engineers/mixers; Clarence Coffee Jr. & Dua Lipa, songwriters; Chris Gehringer, mastering engineer
     
  • HOLLYWOOD'S BLEEDING
    Post Malone
    Louis Bell & Frank Dukes, producers; Louis Bell & Manny Marroquin, engineers/mixers; Louis Bell, Adam Feeney, Austin Post & Billy Walsh, songwriters; Mike Bozzi, mastering engineer
     
  • FOLKLORE
    Taylor Swift
    Jack Antonoff, Aaron Dessner & Taylor Swift, producers; Jack Antonoff, Aaron Dessner, Serban Ghenea, John Hanes, Jonathan Low & Laura Sisk, engineers/mixers; Aaron Dessner & Taylor Swift, songwriters; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer

3. Song Of The Year
A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • BLACK PARADE
    Denisia Andrews, Beyoncé, Stephen Bray, Shawn Carter, Brittany Coney, Derek James Dixie, Akil King, Kim "Kaydence" Krysiuk & Rickie "Caso" Tice, songwriters (Beyoncé)
  • THE BOX
    Larrance Dopson, Samuel Gloade, Rodrick Moore, Adarius Moragne, Eric Sloan & Khirye Anthony Tyler, songwriters (Roddy Ricch)

  • CARDIGAN
    Aaron Dessner & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)

  • CIRCLES
    Louis Bell, Adam Feeney, Kaan Gunesberk, Austin Post & Billy Walsh, songwriters (Post Malone)
     
  • DON'T START NOW
    Caroline Ailin, Ian Kirkpatrick, Dua Lipa & Emily Warren, songwriters (Dua Lipa)
     
  • EVERYTHING I WANTED
    Billie Eilish O'Connell & Finneas O'Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)
     
  • I CAN'T BREATHE
    Dernst Emile II, H.E.R. & Tiara Thomas, songwriters (H.E.R.)
     
  • IF THE WORLD WAS ENDING
    Julia Michaels & JP Saxe, songwriters (JP Saxe Featuring Julia Michaels)

4. Best New Artist
This category recognizes an artist whose eligibility-year release(s) achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and notably impacted the musical landscape.

  • INGRID ANDRESS
     
  • PHOEBE BRIDGERS
     
  • CHIKA
     
  • NOAH CYRUS
     
  • D SMOKE
     
  • DOJA CAT
     
  • KAYTRANADA
     
  • MEGAN THEE STALLION

Pop

5. Best Pop Solo Performance
For new vocal or instrumental pop recordings. Singles or Tracks only.

  • YUMMY
    Justin Bieber
     
  • SAY SO
    Doja Cat
     
  • EVERYTHING I WANTED
    Billie Eilish
     
  • DON'T START NOW
    Dua Lipa
     
  • WATERMELON SUGAR
    Harry Styles
     
  • CARDIGAN
    Taylor Swift

6. Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
For new vocal or instrumental duo/group or collaborative pop recordings. Singles or Tracks only.

  • UN DIA (ONE DAY)
    J Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny & Tainy
     
  • INTENTIONS
    Justin Bieber Featuring Quavo
     
  • DYNAMITE
    BTS
     
  • RAIN ON ME
    Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande
     
  • EXILE
    Taylor Swift Featuring Bon Iver

7. Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new traditional pop recordings.

  • BLUE UMBRELLA
    (Burt Bacharach &) Daniel Tashian
     
  • TRUE LOVE: A CELEBRATION OF COLE PORTER
    Harry Connick, Jr.
     
  • AMERICAN STANDARD
    James Taylor
     
  • UNFOLLOW THE RULES
    Rufus Wainwright
     
  • JUDY
    Renée Zellweger

8. Best Pop Vocal Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new pop vocal recordings.

  • CHANGES
    Justin Bieber
     
  • CHROMATICA
    Lady Gaga
     
  • FUTURE NOSTALGIA
    Dua Lipa
     
  • FINE LINE
    Harry Styles
     
  • FOLKLORE
    Taylor Swift

Dance/Electronic Music

9. Best Dance Recording
For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances. Vocal or Instrumental. Singles or tracks only.

  • ON MY MIND
    Diplo & SIDEPIECE
    Diplo & SIDEPIECE, producers; Luca Pretolesi, mixer
     
  • MY HIGH
    Disclosure Featuring Aminé & Slowthai
    Guy Lawrence & Howard Lawrence, producers; Guy Lawrence, mixer
     
  • THE DIFFERENCE
    Flume Featuring Toro y Moi
    Flume, producer; Eric J Dubowsky, mixer
     
  • BOTH OF US
    Jayda G
    Fred Again.. & Jayda G, producers; Fred Again.. & Jayda G, mixers
     
  • 10%
    Kaytranada Featuring Kali Uchis
    Kaytranada, producer; Neal H. Pogue, mixer

10. Best Dance/Electronic Album
For vocal or instrumental albums. Albums only.

  • KICK I
    Arca
     
  • PLANET'S MAD
    Baauer
     
  • ENERGY
    Disclosure
     
  • BUBBA
    Kaytranada
     
  • GOOD FAITH
    Madeon

Contemporary Instrumental Music

11. Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
For albums containing approximately 51% or more playing time of instrumental material. For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new recordings.

  • AXIOM
    Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah

    CHRONOLOGY OF A DREAM: LIVE AT THE VILLAGE VANGUARD
    Jon Batiste

  • TAKE THE STAIRS
    Black Violin
     
  • AMERICANA
    Grégoire Maret, Romain Collin & Bill Frisell
     
  • LIVE AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL
    Snarky Puppy

Rock

12. Best Rock Performance
For new vocal or instrumental solo, duo/group or collaborative rock recordings.

  • SHAMEIKA
    Fiona Apple
     
  • NOT
    Big Thief
     
  • KYOTO
    Phoebe Bridgers
     
  • THE STEPS
    HAIM
     
  • STAY HIGH
    Brittany Howard
     
  • DAYLIGHT
    Grace Potter

13. Best Metal Performance
For new vocal or instrumental solo, duo/group or collaborative metal recordings.

  • BUM-RUSH
    Body Count
     
  • UNDERNEATH
    Code Orange
     
  • THE IN-BETWEEN
    In This Moment
     
  • BLOODMONEY
    Poppy
     
  • EXECUTIONER'S TAX (SWING OF THE AXE) – LIVE
    Power Trip

14. Best Rock Song
A Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Rock, Hard Rock and Metal songs. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • KYOTO
    Phoebe Bridgers, Morgan Nagler & Marshall Vore, songwriters (Phoebe Bridgers)
     
  • LOST IN YESTERDAY
    Kevin Parker, songwriter (Tame Impala)
     
  • NOT
    Adrianne Lenker, songwriter (Big Thief)
     
  • SHAMEIKA
    Fiona Apple, songwriter (Fiona Apple)
     
  • STAY HIGH
    Brittany Howard, songwriter (Brittany Howard)

15. Best Rock Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new rock, hard rock or metal recordings.

  • A HERO'S DEATH
    Fontaines D.C.
     
  • KIWANUKA
    Michael Kiwanuka
     
  • DAYLIGHT
    Grace Potter
     
  • SOUND & FURY
    Sturgill Simpson
     
  • THE NEW ABNORMAL
    The Strokes

Alternative

16. Best Alternative Music Album
Vocal or Instrumental.

  • FETCH THE BOLT CUTTERS
    Fiona Apple
     
  • HYPERSPACE
    Beck
     
  • PUNISHER
    Phoebe Bridgers
     
  • JAIME
    Brittany Howard
     
  • THE SLOW RUSH
    Tame Impala

R&B

17. Best R&B Performance
For new vocal or instrumental R&B recordings.

  • LIGHTNING & THUNDER
    Jhené Aiko Featuring John Legend
     
  • BLACK PARADE
    Beyoncé
     
  • ALL I NEED
    Jacob Collier Featuring Mahalia & Ty Dolla $ign
     
  • GOAT HEAD
    Brittany Howard
     
  • SEE ME
    Emily King

18. Best Traditional R&B Performance
For new vocal or instrumental traditional R&B recordings.

  • SIT ON DOWN
    The Baylor Project Featuring Jean Baylor & Marcus Baylor
     
  • WONDER WHAT SHE THINKS OF ME
    Chloe X Halle
     
  • LET ME GO
    Mykal Kilgore
     
  • ANYTHING FOR YOU
    Ledisi
     
  • DISTANCE
    Yebba

19. Best R&B Song
A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • BETTER THAN I IMAGINED
    Robert Glasper, Meshell Ndegeocello & Gabriella Wilson, songwriters (Robert Glasper Featuring H.E.R. & Meshell Ndegeocello)

  • BLACK PARADE
    Denisia Andrews, Beyoncé, Stephen Bray, Shawn Carter, Brittany Coney, Derek James Dixie, Akil King, Kim "Kaydence" Krysiuk & Rickie "Caso" Tice, songwriters (Beyoncé)
     
  • COLLIDE
    Sam Barsh, Stacey Barthe, Sonyae Elise, Olu Fann, Akil King, Josh Lopez, Kaveh Rastegar & Benedetto Rotondi, songwriters (Tiana Major9 & EARTHGANG)
     
  • DO IT
    Chloe Bailey, Halle Bailey, Anton Kuhl, Victoria Monét, Scott Storch & Vincent Van Den Ende, songwriters (Chloe X Halle)
     
  • SLOW DOWN
    Nasri Atweh, Badriia Bourelly, Skip Marley, Ryan Williamson & Gabriella Wilson, songwriters (Skip Marley & H.E.R.)

20. Best Progressive R&B Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded progressive vocal tracks derivative of R&B.

  • CHILOMBO
    Jhené Aiko
     
  • UNGODLY HOUR
    Chloe X Halle
     
  • FREE NATIONALS
    Free Nationals
     
  • F*** YO FEELINGS
    Robert Glasper
     
  • IT IS WHAT IT IS
    Thundercat

21. Best R&B Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new R&B recordings.

  • HAPPY 2 BE HERE
    Ant Clemons
     
  • TAKE TIME
    Giveon
     
  • TO FEEL LOVE/D
    Luke James
     
  • BIGGER LOVE
    John Legend
     
  • ALL RISE
    Gregory Porter

Rap

22. Best Rap Performance
For a Rap performance. Singles or Tracks only.

  • DEEP REVERENCE
    Big Sean Featuring Nipsey Hussle
     
  • BOP
    DaBaby
  • WHATS POPPIN
    Jack Harlow

  • THE BIGGER PICTURE
    Lil Baby
     
  • SAVAGE
    Megan Thee Stallion Featuring Beyoncé
     
  • DIOR
    Pop Smoke

23. Best Melodic Rap Performance
For a solo or collaborative performance containing both elements of R&B melodies and Rap.

  • ROCKSTAR
    DaBaby Featuring Roddy Ricch
     
  • LAUGH NOW CRY LATER
    Drake Featuring Lil Durk
     
  • LOCKDOWN
    Anderson .Paak
     
  • THE BOX
    Roddy Ricch
     
  • HIGHEST IN THE ROOM
    Travis Scott

24. Best Rap Song
A Songwriter(s) Award.  A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only..

  • THE BIGGER PICTURE
    Dominique Jones, Noah Pettigrew & Rai'shaun Williams, songwriters (Lil Baby)
  • THE BOX
    Larrance Dopson, Samuel Gloade, Rodrick Moore, Adarius Moragne, Eric Sloan & Khirye Anthony Tyler, songwriters (Roddy Ricch)

  • LAUGH NOW CRY LATER
    Durk Banks, Rogét Chahayed, Aubrey Graham, Daveon Jackson, Ron LaTour & Ryan Martinez, songwriters (Drake Featuring Lil Durk)
     
  • ROCKSTAR
    Jonathan Lyndale Kirk, Ross Joseph Portaro IV & Rodrick Moore, songwriters (DaBaby Featuring Roddy Ricch)
     
  • SAVAGE
    Beyoncé, Shawn Carter, Brittany Hazzard, Derrick Milano, Terius Nash, Megan Pete, Bobby Session Jr., Jordan Kyle Lanier Thorpe & Anthony White, songwriters (Megan Thee Stallion Featuring Beyoncé)

25. Best Rap Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new rap recordings.

  • BLACK HABITS
    D SMOKE
     
  • ALFREDO
    Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist
     
  • A WRITTEN TESTIMONY
    Jay Electronica
     
  • KING'S DISEASE
    Nas
  • THE ALLEGORY
    Royce 5’9"

Country

26. Best Country Solo Performance
For new vocal or instrumental solo country recordings.

  • Stick That In Your Country Song
    Eric Church
     
  • WHO YOU THOUGHT I WAS
    Brandy Clark
     
  • WHEN MY AMY PRAYS
    Vince Gill
     
  • BLACK LIKE ME
    Mickey Guyton
     
  • BLUEBIRD
    Miranda Lambert

27. Best Country Duo/Group Performance
For new vocal or instrumental duo/group or collaborative country recordings.

  • ALL NIGHT
    Brothers Osborne
     
  • 10,000 HOURS
    Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber
     
  • OCEAN
    Lady A
     
  • SUGAR COAT
    Little Big Town
     
  • SOME PEOPLE DO
    Old Dominion

28. Best Country Song
A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • BLUEBIRD
    Luke Dick, Natalie Hemby & Miranda Lambert, songwriters (Miranda Lambert)
     
  • THE BONES
    Maren Morris, Jimmy Robbins & Laura Veltz, songwriters (Maren Morris)
     
  • CROWDED TABLE
    Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby & Lori McKenna, songwriters (The Highwomen)
     
  • MORE HEARTS THAN MINE
    Ingrid Andress, Sam Ellis & Derrick Southerland, songwriters (Ingrid Andress)
     
  • SOME PEOPLE DO
    Jesse Frasure, Shane McAnally, Matthew Ramsey & Thomas Rhett, songwriters (Old Dominion)

29. Best Country Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new country recordings.

  • LADY LIKE
    Ingrid Andress
     
  • YOUR LIFE IS A RECORD
    Brandy Clark
     
  • WILDCARD
    Miranda Lambert
     
  • NIGHTFALL
    Little Big Town
     
  • NEVER WILL
    Ashley McBryde

New Age

30. Best New Age Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental new age recordings.

  • SONGS FROM THE BARDO
    Laurie Anderson, Tenzin Choegyal & Jesse Paris Smith
     
  • PERIPHERY
    Priya Darshini
     
  • FORM//LESS
    Superposition
     
  • MORE GUITAR STORIES
    Jim "Kimo" West
     
  • MEDITATIONS
    Cory Wong & Jon Batiste

Jazz

31. Best Improvised Jazz Solo
For an instrumental jazz solo performance. Two equal performers on one recording may be eligible as one entry. If the soloist listed appears on a recording billed to another artist, the latter's name is in parenthesis for identification. Singles or Tracks only.

  • GUINNEVERE
    Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, soloist
    Track from: Axiom
     
  • PACHAMAMA
    Regina Carter, soloist
    Track from: Ona (Thana Alexa)
     
  • CELIA
    Gerald Clayton, soloist
     
  • ALL BLUES
    Chick Corea, soloist
    Track from: Trilogy 2 (Chick Corea, Christian McBride & Brian Blade)
     
  • MOE HONK
    Joshua Redman, soloist
    Track from: RoundAgain (Redman Mehldau McBride Blade)

32. Best Jazz Vocal Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal jazz recordings.

  • ONA
    Thana Alexa
     
  • SECRETS ARE THE BEST STORIES
    Kurt Elling Featuring Danilo Pérez
     
  • MODERN ANCESTORS
    Carmen Lundy
  • HOLY ROOM: LIVE AT ALTE OPER
    Somi With Frankfurt Radio Big Band Conducted By John Beasley

  • WHAT'S THE HURRY
    Kenny Washington

33. Best Jazz Instrumental Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new instrumental jazz recordings.

  • ON THE TENDER SPOT OF EVERY CALLOUSED MOMENT
    Ambrose Akinmusire
     
  • WAITING GAME
    Terri Lyne Carrington And Social Science
     
  • HAPPENING: LIVE AT THE VILLAGE VANGUARD
    Gerald Clayton
     
  • TRILOGY 2
    Chick Corea, Christian McBride & Brian Blade
     
  • ROUNDAGAIN
    Redman Mehldau McBride Blade

34. Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new ensemble jazz recordings.

  • DIALOGUES ON RACE
    Gregg August
  • MONK'ESTRA PLAYS JOHN BEASLEY
    John Beasley’s MONK’estra

  • THE INTANGIBLE BETWEEN
    Orrin Evans And The Captain Black Big Band
     
  • SONGS YOU LIKE A LOT
    John Hollenbeck With Theo Bleckmann, Kate McGarry, Gary Versace And The Frankfurt Radio Big Band
     
  • DATA LORDS
    Maria Schneider Orchestra

35. Best Latin Jazz Album
For vocal or instrumental albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded material. The intent of this category is to recognize recordings that represent the blending of jazz with Latin, Iberian-American, Brazilian, and Argentinian tango music.

  • TRADICIONES
    Afro-Peruvian Jazz Orchestra
     
  • FOUR QUESTIONS
    Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
     
  • CITY OF DREAMS
    Chico Pinheiro
     
  • VIENTO Y TIEMPO - LIVE AT BLUE NOTE TOKYO
    Gonzalo Rubalcaba & Aymée Nuviola
     
  • TRANE'S DELIGHT
    Poncho Sanchez

Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music

36. Best Gospel Performance/Song
This award is given to the artist(s) and songwriter(s) (for new compositions) for the best traditional Christian, roots gospel or contemporary gospel single or track.

  • WONDERFUL IS YOUR NAME
    Melvin Crispell III
     
  • RELEASE (LIVE)
    Ricky Dillard Featuring Tiff Joy; David Frazier, songwriter
  • COME TOGETHER
    Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins Present: The Good News; Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins & Jazz Nixon, producers; Lashawn Daniels, Rodney Jerkins, Lecrae Moore & Jazz Nixon, songwriters

  • WON'T LET GO
    Travis Greene; Travis Greene, songwriter
     
  • MOVIN' ON
    Jonathan McReynolds & Mali Music; Darryl L. Howell, Jonathan Caleb McReynolds, Kortney Jamaal Pollard & Terrell Demetrius Wilson, songwriters

37. Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song
This award is given to the artist(s) and songwriter(s) (for new compositions) for the best contemporary Christian music single or track, (including pop, rap/hip-hop, Latin, or rock.

  • THE BLESSING (LIVE)
    Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes & Elevation Worship; Chris Brown, Cody Carnes, Kari Jobe Carnes & Steven Furtick, songwriters
  • SUNDAY MORNING
    Lecrae Featuring Kirk Franklin; Denisia Andrews, Jones Terrence Antonio, Saint Bodhi, Rafael X. Brown, Brittany Coney, Kirk Franklin, Lasanna Harris, Shama Joseph, Stuart Lowery, Lecrae Moore & Nathanael Saint-Fleur, Songwriters

    HOLY WATER
    We The Kingdom; Andrew Bergthold, Ed Cash, Franni Cash, Martin Cash & Scott Cash, songwriters

  • FAMOUS FOR (I BELIEVE)
    Tauren Wells Featuring Jenn Johnson; Chuck Butler, Krissy Nordhoff, Jordan Sapp, Alexis Slifer & Tauren Wells, songwriters
     
  • THERE WAS JESUS
    Zach Williams & Dolly Parton; Casey Beathard, Jonathan Smith & Zach Williams, songwriters

38. Best Gospel Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded, vocal, traditional or contemporary/R&B gospel music recordings.

  • 2ECOND WIND: READY
    Anthony Brown & group therAPy
     
  • MY TRIBUTE
    Myron Butler
     
  • CHOIRMASTER
    Ricky Dillard
     
  • GOSPEL ACCORDING TO PJ
    PJ Morton
     
  • KIERRA
    Kierra Sheard

39. Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded, vocal, contemporary Christian music, including pop, rap/hip hop, Latin, or rock recordings.

  • RUN TO THE FATHER
    Cody Carnes
     
  • ALL OF MY BEST FRIENDS
    Hillsong Young & Free
     
  • HOLY WATER
    We The Kingdom
     
  • CITIZEN OF HEAVEN
    Tauren Wells
     
  • JESUS IS KING
    Kanye West

40. Best Roots Gospel Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of newly recorded, vocal, traditional/roots gospel music, including country, Southern gospel, bluegrass, and Americana recordings.

  • BEAUTIFUL DAY
    Mark Bishop
     
  • 20/20
    The Crabb Family
     
  • WHAT CHRISTMAS REALLY MEANS
    The Erwins
     
  • CELEBRATING FISK! (THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY ALBUM)
    Fisk Jubilee Singers
     
  • SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL
    Ernie Haase & Signature Sound

Latin

41. Best Latin Pop or Urban Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new Latin pop or urban recordings.

  • YHLQMDLG
    Bad Bunny
     
  • POR PRIMERA VEZ
    Camilo
     
  • MESA PARA DOS
    Kany García
     
  • PAUSA
    Ricky Martin
     
  • 3:33
    Debi Nova

42. Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new Latin rock or alternative recordings.

  • AURA
    Bajofondo
     
  • MONSTRUO
    Cami
     
  • SOBREVOLANDO
    Cultura Profética
     
  • LA CONQUISTA DEL ESPACIO
    Fito Paez
     
  • MISS COLOMBIA
    Lido Pimienta

43. Best Regional Mexican Music Album (Including Tejano)
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new regional Mexican (banda, norteño, corridos, gruperos, mariachi, ranchera and Tejano) recordings.

  • HECHO EN MÉXICO
    Alejandro Fernández
     
  • LA SERENATA
    Lupita Infante
     
  • UN CANTO POR MÉXICO, VOL. 1
    Natalia Lafourcade
     
  • BAILANDO SONES Y HUAPANGOS CON MARIACHI SOL DE MEXICO DE JOSE HERNANDEZ
    Mariachi Sol De Mexico De Jose Hernandez
     
  • AYAYAY!
    Christian Nodal

44. Best Tropical Latin Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new tropical Latin recordings.

  • MI TUMBAO
    José Alberto "El Ruiseñor"
     
  • INFINITO
    Edwin Bonilla
     
  • SIGO CANTANDO AL AMOR (DELUXE)
    Jorge Celedon & Sergio Luis
     
  • 40
    Grupo Niche
     
  • MEMORIAS DE NAVIDAD
    Víctor Manuelle

American Roots Music

45. Best American Roots Performance
For new vocal or instrumental American Roots recordings.  This is for performances in the style of any of the subgenres encompassed in the American Roots Music field including Americana, bluegrass, blues, folk or regional roots. Award to the artist(s).

  • COLORS
    Black Pumas
     
  • DEEP IN LOVE
    Bonny Light Horseman
     
  • SHORT AND SWEET
    Brittany Howard
     
  • I'LL BE GONE
    Norah Jones & Mavis Staples
     
  • I REMEMBER EVERYTHING
    John Prine

46. Best American Roots Song
A Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Americana, bluegrass, traditional blues, contemporary blues, folk or regional roots songs. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • CABIN
    Laura Rogers & Lydia Rogers, songwriters (The Secret Sisters)
     
  • CEILING TO THE FLOOR
    Sierra Hull & Kai Welch, songwriters (Sierra Hull)
     
  • HOMETOWN
    Sarah Jarosz, songwriter (Sarah Jarosz)
     
  • I REMEMBER EVERYTHING
    Pat McLaughlin & John Prine, songwriters (John Prine)
     
  • MAN WITHOUT A SOUL
    Tom Overby & Lucinda Williams, songwriters (Lucinda Williams)

47. Best Americana Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental Americana recordings.

  • OLD FLOWERS
    Courtney Marie Andrews
     
  • TERMS OF SURRENDER
    Hiss Golden Messenger
     
  • WORLD ON THE GROUND
    Sarah Jarosz
     
  • EL DORADO
    Marcus King
     
  • GOOD SOULS BETTER ANGELS
    Lucinda Williams

48. Best Bluegrass Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental bluegrass recordings.

  • MAN ON FIRE
    Danny Barnes
     
  • TO LIVE IN TWO WORLDS, VOL. 1
    Thomm Jutz
     
  • NORTH CAROLINA SONGBOOK
    Steep Canyon Rangers
     
  • HOME
    Billy Strings
     
  • THE JOHN HARTFORD FIDDLE TUNE PROJECT, VOL. 1
    (Various Artists)
    Matt Combs & Katie Harford Hogue, producers

49. Best Traditional Blues Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental traditional blues recordings.

  • ALL MY DUES ARE PAID
    Frank Bey
     
  • YOU MAKE ME FEEL
    Don Bryant
     
  • THAT'S WHAT I HEARD
    Robert Cray Band
     
  • CYPRESS GROVE
    Jimmy "Duck" Holmes
     
  • RAWER THAN RAW
    Bobby Rush

50. Best Contemporary Blues Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental contemporary blues recordings.

  • HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND YET?
    Fantastic Negrito
     
  • LIVE AT THE PARAMOUNT
    Ruthie Foster Big Band
     
  • THE JUICE
    G. Love
     
  • BLACKBIRDS
    Bettye LaVette
     
  • UP AND ROLLING
    North Mississippi Allstars

51. Best Folk Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental folk recordings.

  • BONNY LIGHT HORSEMAN
    Bonny Light Horseman
     
  • THANKS FOR THE DANCE
    Leonard Cohen
     
  • SONG FOR OUR DAUGHTER
    Laura Marling
     
  • SATURN RETURN
    The Secret Sisters
     
  • ALL THE GOOD TIMES
    Gillian Welch & David Rawlings

52. Best Regional Roots Music Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental regional roots music recordings.

  • MY RELATIVES "NIKSO KOWAIKS"
    Black Lodge Singers
     
  • CAMERON DUPUY AND THE CAJUN TROUBADOURS
    Cameron Dupuy And The Cajun Troubadours
     
  • LOVELY SUNRISE
    Nā Wai ʽEhā
     
  • ATMOSPHERE
    New Orleans Nightcrawlers
     
  • A TRIBUTE TO AL BERARD
    Sweet Cecilia

Reggae

53. Best Reggae Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new reggae recordings.

  • UPSIDE DOWN 2020
    Buju Banton
     
  • HIGHER PLACE
    Skip Marley
     
  • IT ALL COMES BACK TO LOVE
    Maxi Priest
     
  • GOT TO BE TOUGH
    Toots & The Maytals
     
  • ONE WORLD
    The Wailers

Global Music

54. Best Global Music Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental Global Music recordings.

  • FU CHRONICLES
    Antibalas
     
  • TWICE AS TALL
    Burna Boy
     
  • AGORA
    Bebel Gilberto
     
  • LOVE LETTERS
    Anoushka Shankar
     
  • AMADJAR
    Tinariwen

Children's

55. Best Children's Music Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new musical or spoken word recordings that are created and intended specifically for children.

  • ALL THE LADIES
    Joanie Leeds
     
  • WILD LIFE
    Justin Roberts

Spoken Word

56. Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling)

  • ACID FOR THE CHILDREN: A MEMOIR
    Flea
     
  • ALEX TREBEK - THE ANSWER IS...
    Ken Jennings
     
  • BLOWOUT: CORRUPTED DEMOCRACY, ROGUE STATE RUSSIA, AND THE RICHEST, MOST DESTRUCTIVE INDUSTRY ON EARTH
    Rachel Maddow
     
  • CATCH AND KILL
    Ronan Farrow
     
  • CHARLOTTE'S WEB (E.B. WHITE)
    Meryl Streep (& Full cast)

Comedy

57. Best Comedy Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new recordings.

  • BLACK MITZVAH
    Tiffany Haddish
     
  • I LOVE EVERYTHING
    Patton Oswalt
     
  • THE PALE TOURIST
    Jim Gaffigan
     
  • PAPER TIGER
    Bill Burr
     
  • 23 HOURS TO KILL
    Jerry Seinfeld

Musical Theater

58. Best Musical Theater Album
For albums containing at least 51% playing time of new recordings. Award to the principle vocalist(s) and the album producer(s) of 51% or more playing time of the album. The lyricist(s) and composer(s) of a new score are eligible for an Award if they have written and/or composed a new score which comprises 51% or more playing time of the album.

  • AMÉLIE
    Audrey Brisson, Chris Jared, Caolan McCarthy & Jez Unwin, principal soloists; Michael Fentiman, Sean Patrick Flahaven, Barnaby Race & Nathan Tysen, producers; Nathan Tysen, lyricist; Daniel Messe, composer & lyricist (Original London Cast)
  • AMERICAN UTOPIA ON BROADWAY
    David Byrne, producer (David Byrne, composer & lyricist) (Original Cast)

  • JAGGED LITTLE PILL
    Kathryn Gallagher, Celia Rose Gooding, Lauren Patten & Elizabeth Stanley, principal soloists; Neal Avron, Pete Ganbarg, Tom Kitt, Michael Parker, Craig Rosen & Vivek J. Tiwary, producers (Glen Ballard, composer; Alanis Morissette, composer & lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast)
     
  • LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS
    Tammy Blanchard, Jonathan Groff & Tom Alan Robbins, principal soloists; Will Van Dyke, Michael Mayer, Alan Menken & Frank Wolf, producers (Alan Menken, composer; Howard Ashman, lyricist) (The New Off-Broadway Cast)
     
  • THE PRINCE OF EGYPT
    Christine Allado, Luke Brady, Alexia Khadime & Liam Tamne, principal soloists; Dominick Amendum & Stephen Schwartz, producers; Stephen Schwartz, composer & lyricist (Original Cast)
     
  • SOFT POWER
    Francis Jue, Austin Ku, Alyse Alan Louis & Conrad Ricamora, principal soloists; Matt Stine, producer; David Henry Hwang, lyricist; Jeanine Tesori, composer & lyricist (Original Cast)

Music for Visual Media

59. Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media
Award to the artist(s) and/or ‘in studio’ producer(s) of a majority of the tracks on the album.  In the absence of both, award to the one or two individuals proactively responsible for the concept and musical direction of the album and for the selection of artists, songs and producers, as applicable. Award also goes to appropriately credited music supervisor(s).

  • A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
    (Various Artists)
    Nate Heller, compilation producer; Howard Paar, Music Supervisor

  • BILL & TED FACE THE MUSIC
    (Various Artists)
    Jonathan Leahy, compilation producer

  • EUROVISION SONG CONTEST: THE STORY OF FIRE SAGA
    (Various Artists)
    Savan Kotecha, compilation producer; Becky Bentham, music supervisor

  • FROZEN 2
    (Various Artists)
    Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert Lopez, Tom MacDougall & Dave Metzger, compilation producers

  • JOJO RABBIT
    (Various Artists)
    Taika Waititi, compilation producer

60. Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media
Award to Composer(s) for an original score created specifically for, or as a companion to, a current legitimate motion picture, television show or series, video games or other visual media.

  • AD ASTRA
    Max Richter, composer
     
  • BECOMING
    Kamasi Washington, composer
     
  • JOKER
    Hildur Guðnadóttir, composer
     
  • 1917
    Thomas Newman, composer
     
  • STAR WARS: THE RISE OF SKYWALKER
    John Williams, composer

61. Best Song Written For Visual Media
A Songwriter(s) award. For a song (melody & lyrics) written specifically for a motion picture, television, video games or other visual media, and released for the first time during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • BEAUTIFUL GHOSTS [FROM CATS]
    Andrew Lloyd Webber & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)
     
  • CARRIED ME WITH YOU [FROM ONWARD]
    Brandi Carlile, Phil Hanseroth & Tim Hanseroth, songwriters (Brandi Carlile)
     
  • INTO THE UNKNOWN [FROM FROZEN 2]
    Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez, songwriters (Idina Menzel & AURORA)
     
  • NO TIME TO DIE [FROM NO TIME TO DIE]
    Billie Eilish O'Connell & Finneas Baird O'Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)
     
  • STAND UP [FROM HARRIET]
    Joshuah Brian Campbell & Cynthia Erivo, songwriters (Cynthia Erivo)

Composing/Arranging

62. Best Instrumental Composition
A Composer's Award for an original composition (not an adaptation) first released during the Eligibility Year. Singles or Tracks only.

  • BABY JACK
    Arturo O'Farrill, composer (Arturo O'Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra)
     
  • BE WATER II
    Christian Sands, composer (Christian Sands)
     
  • PLUMFIELD
    Alexandre Desplat, composer (Alexandre Desplat)
     
  • SPUTNIK
    Maria Schneider, composer (Maria Schneider)
     
  • STRATA
    Remy Le Boeuf, composer (Remy Le Boeuf's Assembly Of Shadows Featuring Anna Webber & Eric Miller)

63. Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
An Arranger's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • BATHROOM DANCE
    Hildur Guðnadóttir, arranger (Hildur Guðnadóttir)
     
  • DONNA LEE
    John Beasley, arranger (John Beasley)
     
  • HONEYMOONERS
    Remy Le Boeuf, arranger (Remy Le Boeuf's Assembly Of Shadows)
     
  • LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING
    Alvin Chea & Jarrett Johnson, arrangers (Jarrett Johnson Featuring Alvin Chea)
     
  • URANUS: THE MAGICIAN
    Jeremy Levy, arranger (Jeremy Levy Jazz Orchestra)

64. Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals
An Arranger's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • ASAS FECHADAS
    John Beasley & Maria Mendes, arrangers (Maria Mendes Featuring John Beasley & Orkest Metropole)
     
  • DESERT SONG
    Erin Bentlage, Sara Gazarek, Johnaye Kendrick & Amanda Taylor, arrangers (Säje)
     
  • FROM THIS PLACE
    Alan Broadbent & Pat Metheny, arrangers (Pat Metheny Featuring Meshell Ndegeocello)
     
  • HE WON'T HOLD YOU
    Jacob Collier, arranger (Jacob Collier Featuring Rapsody)
     
  • SLOW BURN
    Talia Billig, Nic Hard & Becca Stevens, arrangers (Becca Stevens Featuring Jacob Collier, Mark Lettieri, Justin Stanton, Jordan Perlson, Nic Hard, Keita Ogawa, Marcelo Woloski & Nate Werth)

Package

65. Best Recording Package

  • EVERYDAY LIFE
    Pilar Zeta, art director (Coldplay)
     
  • FUNERAL
    Kyle Goen & Alex Kalatschinow, art directors (Lil Wayne)
     
  • HEALER
    Julian Gross & Hannah Hooper, art directors (Grouplove)
     
  • ON CIRCLES
    Jordan Butcher, art director (Caspian)
     
  • VOLS. 11 & 12
    Doug Cunningham & Jason Noto, art directors (Desert Sessions)

66. Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package

  • FLAMING PIE (COLLECTOR'S EDITION)
    Linn Wie Andersen, Simon Earith, Paul McCartney & James Musgrave, art directors (Paul McCartney)
     
  • GIANTS STADIUM 1987, 1989, 1991
    Lisa Glines & Doran Tyson, art directors (Grateful Dead)
  • MODE
    Jeff Schulz & Paul A. Taylor, art directors (Depeche Mode)

  • ODE TO JOY
    Lawrence Azerrad & Jeff Tweedy, art directors (Wilco)

  • THE STORY OF GHOSTLY INTERNATIONAL
    Michael Cina & Molly Smith, art directors (Various Artists)

Notes

67. Best Album Notes

  • AT THE MINSTREL SHOW: MINSTREL ROUTINES FROM THE STUDIO, 1894-1926
    Tim Brooks, album notes writer (Various Artists)
     
  • THE BAKERSFIELD SOUND: COUNTRY MUSIC CAPITAL OF THE WEST, 1940-1974
    Scott B. Bomar, album notes writer (Various Artists)
     
  • DEAD MAN'S POP
    Bob Mehr, album notes writer (The Replacements)
     
  • THE MISSING LINK: HOW GUS HAENSCHEN GOT US FROM JOPLIN TO JAZZ AND SHAPED THE MUSIC BUSINESS
    Colin Hancock, album notes writer (Various Artists)
     
  • OUT OF A CLEAR BLUE SKY
    David Sager, album notes writer (Nat Brusiloff)

Historical

68. Best Historical Album

  • CELEBRATED, 1895-1896
    Meagan Hennessey & Richard Martin, compilation producers; Richard Martin, mastering engineer (Unique Quartette)
     
  • HITTIN' THE RAMP: THE EARLY YEARS (1936 - 1943)
    Zev Feldman, Will Friedwald & George Klabin, compilation producers; Matthew Lutthans, mastering engineer (Nat King Cole)
     
  • IT'S SUCH A GOOD FEELING: THE BEST OF MISTER ROGERS
    Lee Lodyga & Cheryl Pawelski, compilation producers; Michael Graves, mastering engineer (Mister Rogers)
     
  • 1999 SUPER DELUXE EDITION
    Trevor Guy, Michael Howe & Kirk Johnson, compilation producers; Bernie Grundman, mastering engineer (Prince)

  • SOUVENIR
    Carolyn Agger, compilation producer; Miles Showell, mastering engineer (Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark)
     
  • THROW DOWN YOUR HEART: THE COMPLETE AFRICA SESSIONS
    Béla Fleck, compilation producer; Richard Dodd, mastering engineer (Béla Fleck)

Production, Non-Classical

69. Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
An Engineer's Award. (Artists names appear in parentheses.)

  • BLACK HOLE RAINBOW
    Shawn Everett & Ivan Wayman, engineers; Bob Ludwig, mastering engineer (Devon Gilfillian)
     
  • EXPECTATIONS
    Gary Paczosa & Mike Robinson, engineers; Paul Blakemore, mastering engineer (Katie Pruitt)
  • HYPERSPACE
    Drew Brown, Julian Burg, Andrew Coleman, Paul Epworth, Shawn Everett, Serban Ghenea, David Greenbaum, John Hanes, Beck Hansen, Jaycen Joshua, Greg Kurstin, Mike Larson, Cole M.G.N., Alex Pasco & Matt Wiggins, engineers; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer (Beck)

  • JAIME
    Shawn Everett, engineer; Shawn Everett, mastering engineer (Brittany Howard)
     
  • 25 TRIPS
    Shani Gandhi & Gary Paczosa, engineers; Adam Grover, mastering engineer (Sierra Hull)

70. Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical​

  • JACK ANTONOFF

• August (Taylor Swift) (T)
• Gaslighter (The Chicks) (A)
• Holy Terrain (FKA Twigs Featuring Future) (T)
• Mirrorball (Taylor Swift) (T)
• This Is Me Trying (Taylor Swift) (T)
• Together (Sia) (S)

  • DAN AUERBACH

• Cypress Grove (Jimmy "Duck" Holmes) (A)
• El Dorado (Marcus King) (A)
• Is Thomas Callaway (CeeLo Green) (A)
• Singing For My Supper (Early James) (A)
• Solid Gold Sounds (Kendell Marvel) (A)
• Years (John Anderson) (A

  • DAVE COBB

• Backbone (Kaleo) (S)
• The Balladeer (Lori McKenna) (A)
• Boneshaker (Airbourne) (A)
• Down Home Christmas (Oak Ridge Boys) (A)
• The Highwomen (The Highwomen) (A)
• I Remember Everything (John Prine) (S)
• Reunions (Jason Isbell And The 400 Unit) (A)
• The Spark (William Prince) (S)
• You're Still The One (Teddy Swims) (S)

  • FLYING LOTUS

• It Is What It Is (Thundercat) (A)

  • ANDREW WATT

• Break My Heart (Dua Lipa) (T)
• Me And My Guitar (A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie) (T)
• Midnight Sky (Miley Cyrus) (S)
• Old Me (5 Seconds Of Summer) (T)
• Ordinary Man (Ozzy Osbourne Featuring Elton John) (T)
• Take What You Want (Post Malone Featuring Ozzy Osbourne & Travis Scott) (T)
• Under The Graveyard (Ozzy Osbourne) (T)

71. Best Remixed Recording
A Remixer's Award. (Artists names appear in parentheses for identification.) Singles or Tracks only.

  • DO YOU EVER (RAC MIX)
    RAC, remixer (Phil Good)
     
  • IMAGINARY FRIENDS (MORGAN PAGE REMIX)
    Morgan Page, remixer (Deadmau5)
     
  • PRAYING FOR YOU (LOUIE VEGA MAIN REMIX)
    Louie Vega, remixer (Jasper Street Co.)
     
  • ROSES (IMANBEK REMIX)
    Imanbek Zeikenov, remixer (SAINt JHN)
     
  • YOUNG & ALIVE (BAZZI VS. HAYWYRE REMIX)
    Haywyre, remixer (Bazzi)

Production, Immersive Audio

72. Best Immersive Audio Album
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Best Immersive Audio Album Craft Committee was unable to meet. The judging of the entries in this category has been postponed until such time that we are able to meet in a way that is appropriate to judge the many formats and configurations of the entries and is safe for the committee members. The nominations for the 63rd GRAMMYs will be announced next year in addition to (and separately from) the 64th GRAMMY nominations in the category

Production, Classical

73. Best Engineered Album, Classical
An Engineer's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.)

  • DANIELPOUR: THE PASSION OF YESHUA
    Bernd Gottinger, engineer (JoAnn Falletta, James K. Bass, Adam Luebke, UCLA Chamber Singers, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra & Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus)
     
  • GERSHWIN: PORGY AND BESS
    David Frost & John Kerswell, engineers; Silas Brown, mastering engineer (David Robertson, Frederick Ballentine, Angel Blue, Denyce Graves, Latonia Moore, Eric Owens, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus)
     
  • HYNES: FIELDS
    Kyle Pyke, engineer; Jesse Lewis & Kyle Pyke, mastering engineers (Devonté Hynes & Third Coast Percussion)
     
  • IVES: COMPLETE SYMPHONIES
    Alexander Lipay & Dmitriy Lipay, engineers; Alexander Lipay & Dmitriy Lipay, mastering engineers (Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic)
     
  • SHOSTAKOVICH: SYMPHONY NO. 13, 'BABI YAR'
    David Frost & Charlie Post, engineers; Silas Brown, mastering engineer (Riccardo Muti & Chicago Symphony Orchestra)

74. Producer Of The Year, Classical
A Producer's Award. (Artist names appear in parentheses.)

  • BLANTON ALSPAUGH

• Aspects Of America - Pulitzer Edition (Carlos Kalmar & Oregon Symphony)
• Blessed Art Thou Among Women (Peter Jermihov, Katya Lukianov & PaTRAM Institute Singers)
• Dvořák: Symphony No. 9; Copland: Billy The Kid (Gianandrea Noseda & National Symphony Orchestra)
• Glass: The Fall Of The House Of Usher (Joseph Li, Nicholas Nestorak, Madison Leonard, Jonas Hacker, Ben Edquist, Matthew Adam Fleisher & Wolf Trap Opera)
• Kahane: Emergency Shelter Intake Form (Alicia Hall Moran, Gabriel Kahane, Carlos Kalmar & Oregon Symphony)
• Kastalsky: Requiem (Leonard Slatkin, Steven Fox, Benedict Sheehan, Charles Bruffy, Cathedral Choral Society, The Clarion Choir, The Saint Tikhon Choir, Kansas City Chorale & Orchestra Of St. Luke's)
• Massenet: Thaïs (Andrew Davis, Joshua Hopkins, Andrew Staples, Erin Wall, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir & Toronto Symphony Orchestra)
• Smyth: The Prison (Sarah Brailey, Dashon Burton, James Blachly & Experiential Orchestra)
• Woolf, L.P.: Fire And Flood (Julian Wachner, Matt Haimovitz & Choir Of Trinity Wall Street)

  • DAVID FROST

• Beethoven: Piano Sonatas, Vol. 9 (Jonathan Biss)
• Gershwin: Porgy And Bess (David Robertson, Frederick Ballentine, Angel Blue, Denyce Graves, Latonia Moore, Eric Owens, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus)
• Gluck: Orphée & Eurydice (Harry Bicket, Dmitry Korchak, Andriana Chuchman, Lauren Snouffer, Lyric Opera Of Chicago Orchestra & Chorus)
• Holst: The Planets; The Perfect Fool (Michael Stern & Kansas City Symphony)
• Muhly: Marnie (Robert Spano, Isabel Leonard, Christopher Maltman, Denyce Graves, Iestyn Davies, Janis Kelly, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus)
• Schubert: Piano Sonatas, D. 845, D. 894, D. 958, D. 960 (Shai Wosner)
• Shostakovich: Symphony No. 13, 'Babi Yar' (Riccardo Muti, Alexey Tikhomirov, Chicago Symphony Orchestra & Chorus)

  • JESSE LEWIS

• Gunn: The Ascendant (Roomful Of Teeth)
• Harrison, M.: Just Constellations (Roomful Of Teeth)
• Her Own Wings (Willamette Valley Chamber Music Festival)
• Hynes: Fields (Devonté Hynes & Third Coast Percussion)
• Lang, D.: Love Fail (Beth Willer & Lorelei Ensemble)
• Mazzoli: Proving Up (Christopher Rountree, Opera Omaha & International Contemporary Ensemble)
• Sharlat: Spare The Rod! (NOW Ensemble)
• Soul House (Hub New Music)
• Wherein Lies The Good (The Westerlies)

  • DMITRIY LIPAY

• Adams, J.: Must The Devil Have All The Good Tunes? (Yuja Wang, Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic)
• Cipullo: The Parting (Alastair Willis, Laura Strickling, Catherine Cook, Michael Mayes & Music Of Remembrance)
• Ives: Complete Symphonies (Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic)
• LA Phil 100 - The Los Angeles Philharmonic Centennial Birthday Gala (Gustavo Dudamel & Los Angeles Philharmonic)
• Langgaard: Prelude To Antichrist; Strauss: An Alpine Symphony (Thomas Dausgaard & Seattle Symphony Orchestra)
• Nielsen: Symphony No. 1 & Symphony No. 2, 'The Four Temperaments' (Thomas Dausgaard & Seattle Symphony)

  • ELAINE MARTONE

• Bound For The Promised Land (Robert M. Franklin, Steven Darsey, Jessye Norman & Taylor Branch)
• Dawn (Shachar Israel)
• Gandolfi, Prior & Oliverio: Orchestral Works (Robert Spano & Atlanta Symphony Orchestra)
• Singing In The Dead Of Night (Eighth Blackbird)
• Whitacre: The Sacred Veil (Eric Whitacre, Grant Gershon & Los Angeles Master Chorale)

Classical

75. Best Orchestral Performance
Award to the Conductor and to the Orchestra.

  • ASPECTS OF AMERICA - PULITZER EDITION
    Carlos Kalmar, conductor (Oregon Symphony)
     
  • CONCURRENCE
    Daníel Bjarnason, conductor (Iceland Symphony Orchestra)
     
  • COPLAND: SYMPHONY NO. 3
    Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor (San Francisco Symphony)
     
  • IVES: COMPLETE SYMPHONIES
    Gustavo Dudamel, conductor (Los Angeles Philharmonic)
     
  • LUTOSłAWSKI: SYMPHONIES NOS. 2 & 3
    Hannu Lintu, conductor (Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra)

76. Best Opera Recording
Award to the Conductor, Album Producer(s) and Principal Soloists.

  • DELLO JOIO: THE TRIAL AT ROUEN
    Gil Rose, conductor; Heather Buck & Stephen Powell; Gil Rose, producer (Boston Modern Orchestra Project; Odyssey Opera Chorus)
     
  • FLOYD, C.: PRINCE OF PLAYERS
    William Boggs, conductor; Alexander Dobson, Keith Phares & Kate Royal; Blanton Alspaugh, producer (Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra; Florentine Opera Chorus)
     
  • GERSHWIN: PORGY AND BESS
    David Robertson, conductor; Frederick Ballentine, Angel Blue, Denyce Graves, Latonia Moore & Eric Owens; David Frost, producer (The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus)
     
  • HANDEL: AGRIPPINA
    Maxim Emelyanychev, conductor; Elsa Benoit, Joyce DiDonato, Franco Fagioli, Jakub Józef Orliński & Luca Pisaroni; Daniel Zalay, producer (Il Pomo D'Oro)
     
  • ZEMLINSKY: DER ZWERG
    Donald Runnicles, conductor; David Butt Philip & Elena Tsallagova; Peter Ghirardini & Erwin Stürzer, producers (Orchestra Of The Deutsche Oper Berlin; Chorus Of The Deutsche Oper Berlin)

77. Best Choral Performance
Award to the Conductor, and to the Choral Director and/or Chorus Master where applicable and to the Choral Organization/Ensemble.

  • CARTHAGE
    Donald Nally, conductor (The Crossing)
     
  • DANIELPOUR: THE PASSION OF YESHUAH
    JoAnn Falletta, conductor; James K. Bass & Adam Luebke, chorus masters (James K. Bass, J'Nai Bridges, Timothy Fallon, Kenneth Overton, Hila Plitmann & Matthew Worth; Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra; Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus & UCLA Chamber Singers)
     
  • KASTALSKY: REQUIEM
    Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Charles Bruffy, Steven Fox & Benedict Sheehan, chorus masters (Joseph Charles Beutel & Anna Dennis; Orchestra Of St. Luke's; Cathedral Choral Society, The Clarion Choir, Kansas City Chorale & The Saint Tikhon Choir)
     
  • MORAVEC: SANCTUARY ROAD
    Kent Tritle, conductor (Joshua Blue, Raehann Bryce-Davis, Dashon Burton, Malcolm J. Merriweather & Laquita Mitchell; Oratorio Society Of New York Orchestra; Oratorio Society Of New York Chorus)
     
  • ONCE UPON A TIME
    Matthew Guard, conductor (Sarah Walker; Skylark Vocal Ensemble)

78. Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance
For new recordings of works with chamber or small ensemble (twenty-four or fewer members, not including the conductor). One Award to the ensemble and one Award to the conductor, if applicable.

  • CONTEMPORARY VOICES
    Pacifica Quartet
     
  • HEALING MODES
    Brooklyn Rider
  • HEARNE, T.: PLACE
    Ted Hearne, Steven Bradshaw, Sophia Byrd, Josephine Lee, Isaiah Robinson, Sol Ruiz, Ayanna Woods, Diana Wade & Place Orchestra

  • HYNES: FIELDS
    Devonté Hynes & Third Coast Percussion
     
  • THE SCHUMANN QUARTETS
    Dover Quartet

79. Best Classical Instrumental Solo
Award to the Instrumental Soloist(s) and to the Conductor when applicable.

  • ADÈS: CONCERTO FOR PIANO AND ORCHESTRA
    Kirill Gerstein; Thomas Adès, conductor (Boston Symphony Orchestra)
     
  • BEETHOVEN: COMPLETE PIANO SONATAS
    Igor Levit
     
  • BOHEMIAN TALES
    Augustin Hadelich; Jakub Hrůša, conductor (Charles Owen; Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks)
     
  • DESTINATION RACHMANINOV - ARRIVAL
    Daniil Trifonov; Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor (The Philadelphia Orchestra)
     
  • THEOFANIDIS: CONCERTO FOR VIOLA AND CHAMBER ORCHESTRA
    Richard O'Neill; David Alan Miller, conductor (Albany Symphony)

80. Best Classical Solo Vocal Album
Award to: Vocalist(s), Collaborative Artist(s) (Ex: pianists, conductors, chamber groups) Producer(s), Recording Engineers/Mixers with 51% or more playing time of new material.

  • AMERICAN COMPOSERS AT PLAY - WILLIAM BOLCOM, RICKY IAN GORDON, LORI LAITMAN, JOHN MUSTO
    Stephen Powell (Attacca Quartet, William Bolcom, Ricky Ian Gordon, Lori Laitman, John Musto, Charles Neidich & Jason Vieaux)
     
  • CLAIRIÈRES - SONGS BY LILI & NADIA BOULANGER
    Nicholas Phan; Myra Huang, accompanist
     
  • FARINELLI
    Cecilia Bartoli; Giovanni Antonini, conductor (Il Giardino Armonico)
     
  • A LAD'S LOVE
    Brian Giebler; Steven McGhee, accompanist (Katie Hyun, Michael Katz, Jessica Meyer, Reginald Mobley & Ben Russell)
     
  • SMYTH: THE PRISON
    Sarah Brailey & Dashon Burton; James Blachly, conductor (Experiential Chorus; Experiential Orchestra)

81. Best Classical Compendium
Award to the Artist(s) and to the Album Producer(s) and Engineer(s) of over 51% playing time of the album, if other than the artist.

  • ADÈS CONDUCTS ADÈS
    Mark Stone & Christianne Stotijn; Thomas Adès, conductor; Nick Squire, producer
     
  • SAARIAHO: GRAAL THÉÂTRE; CIRCLE MAP; NEIGES; VERS TOI QUI ES SI LOIN
    Clément Mao-Takacs, conductor; Hans Kipfer, producer
     
  • SEREBRIER: SYMPHONIC BACH VARIATIONS; LAMENTS AND HALLELUJAHS; FLUTE CONCERTO
    José Serebrier, conductor; Jens Braun, producer
     
  • THOMAS, M.T.: FROM THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK & MEDITATIONS ON RILKE
    Isabel Leonard; Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor; Jack Vad, producer
     
  • WOOLF, L.P.: FIRE AND FLOOD
    Matt Haimovitz; Julian Wachner, conductor; Blanton Alspaugh, producer

82. Best Contemporary Classical Composition
A Composer's Award. (For a contemporary classical composition composed within the last 25 years, and released for the first time during the Eligibility Year.) Award to the librettist, if applicable.

  • ADÈS: CONCERTO FOR PIANO AND ORCHESTRA
    Thomas Adès, composer (Kirill Gerstein, Thomas Adès & Boston Symphony Orchestra)
     
  • DANIELPOUR: THE PASSION OF YESHUA
    Richard Danielpour, composer (JoAnn Falletta, James K. Bass, Adam Luebke, UCLA Chamber Singers, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra & Buffalo Philharmonic Chorus)
     
  • FLOYD, C.: PRINCE OF PLAYERS
    Carlisle Floyd, composer (William Boggs, Alexander Dobson, Kate Royal, Keith Phares, Florentine Opera Chorus & Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra)
  • HEARNE, T.: PLACE
    Ted Hearne, composer (Ted Hearne, Steven Bradshaw, Sophia Byrd, Josephine Lee, Isaiah Robinson, Sol Ruiz, Ayanna Woods & Place Orchestra)
     
  • ROUSE: SYMPHONY NO. 5
    Christopher Rouse, composer (Giancarlo Guerrero & Nashville Symphony)

Music Video/Film

83. Best Music Video
Award to the artist, video director, and video producer.

  • BROWN SKIN GIRL
    Beyoncé
    Beyoncé Knowles-Carter & Jenn Nkiru, video directors; Astrid Edwards, Aya Kaido, Jean Mougin, Nathan Scherrer & Erinn Williams, video producers

  • LIFE IS GOOD
    Future Featuring Drake
    Julien Christian Lutz, video director; Harv Glazer, video producer

  • LOCKDOWN
    Anderson .Paak
    Dave Meyers, video director; Nathan Scherrer, video producer
     
  • ADORE YOU
    Harry Styles
    Dave Meyers, video director; Nathan Scherrer, video producer
  • GOLIATH
    Woodkid
    Yoann Lemoine, video director; Horace de Gunzbourg, video producer

84. Best Music Film
For concert/performance films or music documentaries. Award to the artist, video director, and video producer.

  • BEASTIE BOYS STORY
    Beastie Boys
    Spike Jonze, video director; Amanda Adelson, Jason Baum & Spike Jonze, video producers
  • BLACK IS KING
    Beyoncé
    Emmanuel Adjei, Blitz Bazawule, Beyonce Knowles Carter & Kwasi Fordjour, video directors; Lauren Baker, Akin Omotoso, Nathan Scherrer, Jeremy Sullivan & Erinn Williams, video producers

  • WE ARE FREESTYLE LOVE SUPREME
    Freestyle Love Supreme
    Andrew Fried, video director; Andrew Fried, Jill Furman, Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Sarina Roma, Jenny Steingart & Jon Steingart, video producers

  • LINDA RONSTADT: THE SOUND OF MY VOICE
    Linda Ronstadt
    Rob Epstein & Jeffrey Friedman, video directors; Michele Farinola & James Keach, video producers
     
  • THAT LITTLE OL' BAND FROM TEXAS
    ZZ Top
    Sam Dunn, video director; Scot McFadyen, video producer

The 63rd GRAMMY Awards: Looking Ahead To The 2021 GRAMMYs

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