Taylor Swift

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Taylor Swift, '1989': For The Record

Revisit T-Swift's 2014 pop masterpiece that led to her history-making GRAMMY moment

GRAMMYs

Jan 18, 2018 - 1:40 pm

Not only did Taylor Swift's fifth studio album, 1989, establish her as a fully emerged pop powerhouse, her unforgettable Album Of The Year GRAMMY acceptance speech proved she is a force to be reckoned with.

For The Record: Taylor Swift's '1989'

Swift also made history by becoming the first woman to win the GRAMMY for Album Of The Year twice for her solo recordings.

In all, 1989 yielded a total ten GRAMMY nominations (including three nods for the album's first single, "Shake It Off" for the 57th GRAMMY Awards) and three wins for the 58th GRAMMY Awards including Album Of The Year, Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Music Video for "Bad Blood." The album also hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and spent its entire first year in the Top 10, only the fifth album to ever accomplish this feat.

But the significance of 1989 was far greater than its accolades and chart success. The album punctuated Swift's bold transition from endearing country singer/songwriter to pop powerhouse with a resounding exclamation point. Swift not only co-produced and co-executive produced 1989, but also stood up to the pressures of traditionalist music industry executives, judgmental critics and closed-minded fans, among others, ultimately proving herself as one of her generation's strongest artistic and cultural voices and experiencing "the greatest feeling in the world" with her night's big wins.

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David Bowie

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David Bowie's '…Ziggy Stardust…' | For The Record

Return to the time when one of a generation's greatest artists introduced one of his most memorable characters

Nate Hertweck

GRAMMYs

Aug 14, 2018 - 5:02 pm

"Ziggy played guitar…"

Three years after he created the character of Major Tom in his breakout hit, "Space Oddity," and four years before the Thin White Duke arrived on Station To Station, art-rock icon David Bowie introduced the world to a new alter-ego that would immortalize both the character and its creator.

David Bowie's '…Ziggy Stardust…' | For The Record

The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars was released June 16, 1972, Bowie's fifth studio album and perhaps the most widely recognizable and identifiable project of his career. Visually, the character of Ziggy Stardust would become emblazoned in the memory of pop culture history. Musically, he had the rock and roll universe singing along to something entirely new.

Recorded in London's Trident Studios in late 1971 and early 1972, the album was produced by Ken Scott. Even today, over 45 years after its release, …Ziggy Stardust… seems to careen through the universe as something entirely new, encapsulating a spaceman's journey through the cosmos as told by an androgynous storyteller. In an era where concept albums began to take over the art-rock cannon, Bowie and Scott achieved a special blend of conceptual cohesion and sonic and artistic experimentation.

From the album's orchestral space take-off opening track, "Five Years," and the psychedelic trip of "Moonage Daydream" though well-known Bowie classics such as "Starman" and "Ziggy Stardust" to raucous rock anthems such as the "Star" and "Suffragette City," …Ziggy Stardust… dances, soars, rambles, and rocks.

Bowie's vocal range from fragile croon to rebel roar is on full display, and the Mick Ronson-led Spiders From Mars build an adventurous musical backdrop to the album's concepts, making for one of the greatest of many great projects Bowie gave us during his career.

In 1999, The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars was inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame. In 2017, it was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry, being deemed "culturally, historically, or artistically significant" by the Library of Congress.

Just two days after his 69th birthday and the release of what would be his final masterpiece, Blackstar, Bowie died on Jan. 10, 2016. The lasting legacy of …Ziggy Stardust… lives on as a compelling time capsule to be dug up, appreciated and enjoyed by generations of music fans to come.

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Terri Lyne Carrington

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Terri Lyne Carrington's 'The Mosaic Project' | For The Record

Look back at the jazz drumming prodigy's ambitious project that's chock full of stellar collaborations and mind-bending grooves

Nate Hertweck

GRAMMYs

Jun 14, 2018 - 1:20 pm

By 2011, Terri Lyne Carrington had established herself as not just one of her generation's greatest drummers, but one of its most talented and inspired artists. But that year, Carrington applied her unique blend of jazz, R&B, soul, rock, blues, and pop elements to a new collaboration-rich project that would launch her career — and her legacy — to another level.

Terri Lyne Carrington's 'The Mosaic Project'

The Mosaic Project arrived on July 19, 2011. True to its name, the album contained an ambitious amalgam of jazz styles and guest vocalists. Carrington's effortless ability to fuse the accessible with the intellectual tied the larger vision of the project together, making it immediately stand out from anything comparable.

"There's one part of me that's kind of a jazz head who likes complex, thought-provoking melodies and harmonies," said Carrington, when asked about the album. "Then there's another part of me that really likes funk and pop and things that are accessible."

From the daring rendition of the Beatles' "Michelle" to romantic seduction on her take on Al Green's "Simply Beautiful" to the to the powerful social statement of "Echo," The Mosaic Project covers a ton of musical and lyrical ground. Stepping in to deliver the melody across the album, several vocal greats joined Carrington, including GRAMMY winners Dee Dee Bridgewater, Esperanza Spalding, Dianne Reeves, Cassandra Wilson, and more.

Carrington eared her first career GRAMMY Award for The Mosaic Project. The album was named Best Jazz Vocal Album at the 54th GRAMMY Awards, a testament to the strength of its many singing contributors. But the thread of deep groove, inventive rhythms and conversational musical interplay between Carrington and all the project's musicians is where her genius shines brightest on the album.

Carrington would go on to win additional GRAMMYs, taking home Best Jazz Instrumental album two years later for Money Jungle: Provocation In Blue at the 56th GRAMMY Awards and Best Jazz Vocal Album again for Beautiful Life at the 57th GRAMMY Awards. However, it was The Mosaic Project that set a new jazz standard for just how much a single album can contain and achieve — and catapulted Carrington into the ranks of the jazz elite.

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

Sugarland

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Watch: Sugarland's Latest Video "Babe" Featuring Taylor Swift

See Swift as a redheaded vixen in the "Mad Men" inspired video chronicling an ill-fated love triangle

Nate Hertweck

GRAMMYs

Jun 12, 2018 - 8:30 am

Travel back in time to the early 1960s for a classic story of love and betrayal in Sugarland's latest video for "Babe," featuring none other than Taylor Swift.

The video traces the tale of a man having affair with a co-worker, played by a redheaded Swift. But when his wife, played by Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles, catches on, she shuts him out for good. The other half of the Sugarland duo, Kristian Bush, also makes a series of cameos from nosy neighbor to weatherman on a fuzzy black-and-white television in the "Mad Men" inspired clip.

As it turns out, Swift not only co-wrote the song with the band, she also wrote the treatment for the video.

"She actually reached out to us and said, 'I've got a great idea for the video,' and she wrote the treatment," Nettles told People. "She loves this song. ... She loves our recording of it. She's been such a champion of ours, not only for many, many years, but also where this project is concerned. She's just super excited that we're doing it."

The "Babe" video arrived just one day after Sugarland's sixth studio album, Bigger, which marks the band's first new release since 2010's The Incredible Machine. The band is currently on tour across North America through Sept. 9, where they wrap up in Philadelphia at The Mann Center.

Swift is also on the road, in the middle of her Reputation Tour, which kicked off May 8 in Glendale, Ariz, and continues through North America and Europe, wrapping up Oct. 6 in Arlington, Texas.

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

Carrie Underwood

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Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton Win Big At The 2018 CMT Awards In Nashville

Little Big Town, Florida Georgia Line and Backstreet Boys also take home awards as Kelly Clarkson, Chris Stapleton, and more deliver memorable performances in Music City

Nate Hertweck

GRAMMYs

Jun 7, 2018 - 8:49 am

Nashville, Tenn., was the place to be on June 6 as the 2018 CMT Awards took over Music City, bringing the brightest stars in country music together under one roof. The evening's big winners included Blake Shelton, who took home two awards, and Carrie Underwood, who held court as the all-time leader by winning her 18th CMT Award with her win for Female Video Of The Year for "The Champion" featuring Ludacris.

Shelton's pair of awards came for his video for "I'll Name The Dogs," which earned him both Male Video Of The Year and the coveted Video Of Year honors. The singer also regaled the Nashville crowd with a performance of "Turn Me On" early in the night, just after a dazzling opening number by Little Big Town.

Speaking of Little Big Town, the group pulled double-duty as hosts of the show and performers, opening the evening with a confetti-drenched rendition of "Summer Fever," marking the first time the GRAMMY winners had performed their new single live.

In another memorable moment, Florida Georgia Line debuted their song "Simple" in an aptly stripped-down backyard set. The duo also won the award for CMT Performance Of The Year for their "CMT Crossroads" delivery of "Everybody" with the Backstreet Boys, who added some pop flair to the night by singing their new song "Don't Go Breaking My Heart."

Sam Hunt, Chris Stapleton, Kelsea Ballerini, and Kelly Clarkson also performed, and Sugarland took advantage of a commercial break to tease their new video for "Babe" featuring a redheaded Taylor Swift. The video drops June 9.

Landing other notable wins, rising star Carly Pearce took home the award for Breakthrough Video Of The Year for her debut single, "Every Little Thing," while Dan + Shay scored Duo Video Of The Year honors for "Tequila," the lead single from their upcoming self-titled sophomore album, due out June 22.

The evening closed with a special "troublemakers" sing-along with Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, Charles Kelly, and Darius Rucker, performing their version of the raucous Drivin N Cryin song "Straight To Hell."

For a full list of winners from the 2018 CMT Awards, head to the network's website.

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