Grammy Awards get a major overhaul, including revamped categories, changes in voting procedures
The Grammys are getting a major face lift. The Recording Academy held a news conference Wednesday morning at its Santa Monica headquarters to announce a complete revamp of its musical categories,– reducing the number of categories from 109 at the last awards show to 78.
It is also changing the way academy members vote for nominees and reworking the way categories are added and eliminated from the ceremony. “All categories wil remain, they’ll just be found in different genres” said President and Chief Executive Neil Portnow. “The message isn’t about cutting, it’s about changing the way we present the awards. We welcome all artists who make music in the Grammy process, it’s just going to look a little different.”
The number of categories has expanded over the years from an original 28 in 1959, evolving one category at a time on a piecemeal basis and “without an overall vision” said Portnow. The result has been more of a “collage,” he said. To give the Grammys a more cohesive structure that better matches the current musical landscape, in 2009 the organization initiated a sweeping, comprehensive evaluation of both the award categories and voting process.
The result of that process is the reworking announced Wednesday morning. The awards and nominations committee spent more than a year reviewing the process, said five-time Grammy Award winner and songwriter/record producer Jimmy Jam. It then submitted its recommendations to the Recording Academy’s board of trustees “with the greater purpose of promoting unity in our music community,” Jam said. The results were approved by the board, which directs the vision of the organization.
Over time, the number of categories and genre distinctions had resulted in curious and at times confusing nominations. In 2009, comedy rap group Lonely Island received a nomination in the best rap song category, when the original version was a "Saturday Night Live" clip. That same year, Hall & Oates was nominated for best pop performance by a group or duo with vocals for a live version of a song that was a hit nearly 30 years earlier. And in one of the most notable instances of genre confusion, in 1989 progressive rock group Jethro Tull won the award for best heavy metal album. The restructuring of the voting process is intended to address these frustrations.
The official Grammy site has posted a "Category Mapper" with full category comparisons.
Check back with Awards Tracker for updates and more detailed information throughout the day.
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Photo: Mick Jagger and Raphael Saadiq perform during this year's Grammy Awards at Staples Center. Credit: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times
The awards are less about lyrically-strong songs and more about one's popularity. While artists like Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Kanye, and Jay-Z are all talented in their own right, none of their music is comparable to Lauryn Hill's "Miseducation" CD and others that came before and after it. Hill actually deserved 6 awards in one night.
Posted by: Lena | April 06, 2011 at 09:16 PM
Good move, since everyone is saying the Grammys this year were snooze-inducing. At least their credibility has improved a little, since they've recognized at least a few new artists, instead of the same ones over and over again.
http://doradomagazine.com/?p=561
Posted by: Queen | April 06, 2011 at 03:10 PM
Is this because the public has A.D.D. with the music industry????
Posted by: Jerry Lewis | April 06, 2011 at 03:02 PM
All overhauls are major.
Posted by: Pete Morris | April 06, 2011 at 01:48 PM
They probably have to make sure an indie label band doesn't win a major award ever again. This needs to be a showcase for the corporate labels.
Posted by: Tom Todaro | April 06, 2011 at 12:53 PM
Despite the changes, the fact remains that the grammy's are facing declining rating (as is the music industry as a whole). It is time for grammy to embrace social media and online formats. Bring the show online. All these little changes won't help bring back viewers.
Posted by: Matias Cavallin | April 06, 2011 at 12:49 PM
Mr. Portnow can try to sugar-coat the "new changes" the Academy has made, but I won't bother to watch the 2012 show if it's anything like this years snorefest! I watch awards shows to see awards given out and some performances-not 3 hours of performances and a few scripted moments! Either call it Grammy Performances or go back to what I and most fans want-awards given out to our favorite artists!
Posted by: jtbwriter | April 06, 2011 at 12:35 PM
Why do the Latin Grammies get their own awards show again? How is that not inherently racist and un-American?
Posted by: Jon K. | April 06, 2011 at 11:58 AM
Eliminate country and rap music completely from the ceremony. Problem solved.
Posted by: Brett | April 06, 2011 at 11:48 AM
Who cares, nobody watches it anyway.
Posted by: Matt | April 06, 2011 at 11:43 AM
WHAT? Reducing the prizes in EVERY box of 'cracker jack'????? What next? JD Power limiting it's 'prizes' from 100 to EACH manufacturer, to 'only' 50 per car label??? Truly, THE SKY IS FALLING....the sky.....
Posted by: Robert NO longer in LA | April 06, 2011 at 11:37 AM
78 categories is still too many.
Posted by: kyarukirai | April 06, 2011 at 11:31 AM