The goal in each category is to take the 20 nominations that the members send forth and get the list down to a consensus of the seven or eight that we feel are the [best]. When we get that consensus, we stop. Each member of the committee then fills out a ballot, which isn't tabulated that day. So when we leave the room, no one — including Mike Greene — knows the results. The only ones who know are the accountants when they tabulate it later. Notably, this manipulation goes completely unnoted on the Grammy website.
Artists in all genres are eligible for all four. The pop categories usually end up being defined by Top 40 hits, and without a major production company or label behind you, it might be a tall order to get a Grammy nomination. But if your passion isn't being a pop star but rather the heady beauty of "regional roots music," you, too, could be a Grammy winner.
There's a catch here, however. If you're going to compete in a specific genre, you have to make sure your album is really in that genre. A screening committee decides which albums will be on the initial ballot that voters use to pick the five nominees in each category.
Members of the screening committee are not necessarily voting members but instead are "industry experts. A group representing each of the 30 Grammy genres see a list here meets at Grammy headquarters in Santa Monica. The rules state that an album has to be 51 percent genre to be nominated in a category.
As Kenner wrote in Complex, "Some albums were easy to categorize while others posed more of a challenge. Where, for instance, was the line between dancehall and electronica or rap or alternative? Thus, the closer your album is to the mainstream of music meaning, sadly, the more diluted your genre music is , the better chance you'll have of sneaking into several genres.
Name recognition and chart position help. Because the voting base is large and semi-unregulated, the absolute best way to win a Grammy is to gain enough name recognition that the voters will know you by reputation and check off your name.
Maybe Twitter fame can get you there? Maybe a scandal? But a genuinely great, deep genre album will struggle to win on quality alone, because so many of the people voting in your category won't have a deep knowledge of your genre.
Your best bet for winning a Grammy, really, is to make a good album. But once you're done with that, consider stirring up some controversy. He actually won Album of the Year.
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Kanye with a bunch of Grammys. This could be you! The record of the year award recognizes one specific track or commercially released single, and the album of the year award recognizes an entire album.
Song of the year is a songwriter's award. The song's performer s and producer s are recognized via record of the year. Despite having six nominations, Ol' Blue Eyes walked away with only the award for best art director for his "Only the Lonely" album cover. Thus, began a rich history of the Grammys giving awards to artists who would eventually be far outpaced by their category competitors.
To be fair, the latter did go on to become fairly influential, but are considered by many to be a mere shadow of Led Zeppelin. More damaging, the rap-pop duo Milli Vanilli's best new artist award was vacated when everyone found out that neither group member actually sang on their album — other uncredited folks did the heavy lifting [source: Los Angeles Times staff ].
This was a real head-scratcher that metalheads found downright insulting [source: TIME ]. As fired up as these missteps made some viewers, they also kept them watching, talking and nowadays, tweeting. The rap music genre was also a big source of Grammy-associated controversy. It wasn't until that the Grammys finally saw the addition of a rap category to the mix, bringing great joy and validation to the artists who'd worked tirelessly to establish it.
But the slap in the face came later when the nominees found out that the relevant award s wouldn't be televised, and instead would be presented as part of the ceremony earlier in the day. As a result, major names in rap, like Russell Simmons, Will Smith then known as The Fresh Prince and Public Enemy boycotted the ceremony outright, choosing instead to hold a press conference calling out the organization.
The powers that be paid attention, and rap got its due the next year, when the award was televised [source: Coscarelli ]. Fast-forward a bit, and although the Grammys have wised up to the staying-power and influence of rap, the category continues to generate some unpleasant buzz. The outcry following this major snub was swift and real, and Lamar was awarded two trophies the next year.
But recognition was truly to be his two years later, when his album "To Pimp a Butterfly" was nominated for a record-breaking 11 awards.
Although he didn't win either of the two major general categories he was nominated for, he did take all four rap trophies [source: Rys ].
There's a rumor out there that winning the Grammy for best new artist is the surest way to kill your career. After all, past winners like Debby Boone, Paula Cole, Bobbie Gentry and Men at Work never were able to duplicate the chart success they enjoyed at the time they received the trophy.
Men at Work's Colin Hay once referred to it as the "kiss of death award. It isn't all nitpicking and complaining, fortunately. The Grammys have also seen some pretty cool, moving and socially relevant moments.
Here's just a small sampling:. He brought along "dates" Brooke Shields and pint-sized Emmanuel Lewis, and collected a record eight separate Grammys for his monster album "Thriller," including record of the year and album of the year. Eric Clapton won three major awards at the Grammys for his song "Tears in Heaven," written after his young son died tragically in an accident. His performance of the single left nary a dry eye in the house, effectively transforming him from '70s rocker to living legend [source: Jang and Haar ].
In Jennifer Lopez showed up in a dress so hot that she actually inspired web giant Google to develop an "image search" function, since demand for photos online the next day was so great. Rapper Eminem spent being heavily criticized for lyrics that some considered homophobic on his hit album "The Marshall Mathers LP. The two maintained a friendship, and the rapper even credits John with helping him through his drug addiction [sources: Jang and Haar ; Silverman ]. Wearing a barely there body suit, Pink sang upside down while performing a trapeze act at the Grammys.
The performance was so stunning she went on to do other aerial acts, while singing live, at later Grammy shows.
Macklemore and Ryan Lewis used their positions as societal influencers to promote love and marriage equality during the Awards ceremony. Thirty-three gay and straight couples were married on live television by no other than Queen Latifah while the duo performed their anthem, "Same Love.
He called the freeze-out " an attack. The Recording Academy's former president Deborah Dugan , who held the position for less than one year, charged that the secret committees were fertile ground for corruption. He also said the vote to make the change won "in a landslide.
The nitty gritty of Grammy voting still remains a little complex. While this means everyone have a chance to make selections for the "big four" album, record, song, and new artist members will now only be allowed to vote in 10 categories as opposed to a previous 15, in order to keep members in their areas of expertise.
Additionally, those votes must stay in three fields.
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