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Here Are the 2021 Grammy Nominees. Does Anyone Care?


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I'm not dissing them, not saying they're bad or anything, just that I really can't seem to bring myself to care.

 

Is anyone else in the same position? Have I just gotten less interested in listening to music than making my own?

 

I haven't heard the music of several of the nominees...am I missing anything incredible?

 

Or is it just that there are more important things to do with one's life than wonder who's going win a Grammy?

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I haven't cared about the Grammies in a LONG time. Of course, I haven't owned a television in decades and rarely watch it at other places.

Exception being last year when Billie and Finneas Eilish walked off with a nice stack of Grammies from a more or less home-made album.

 

That was cool. I didn't see it but I listened to probably 3 or 4 Billie Eilish songs in a month and a half. That's a LOT for me.

 

Honestly, even now, without any gigs lined up - I rarely think of listening to other people's music on purpose. I play guitar often, sing a song or two here and there - my own and covers.

Recently a good friend called me up and asked me to join her in our second annual Christmas song "gift" YouTube posting.

 

Last year she wanted to make a video of Hallelujah, this year it's River by Joni Mitchell - which darkly mocks Jingle Bells in the intro.

I enjoy seeing how much she gets using so little. She's chosen a nice backdrop, good natural lighting (i"m a photographer so I know it when I see it), and we used a cellphone to record.

Acoustic guitars, and vocals. She added a mic, off a ways - plugged into a small Yamaha PA with the reverb cranked and one speaker aimed at the back wall. It was subtle and added a nice fullness.

 

So I guess I am going to learn that song. Fortunately, I LOVE Joni Mitchell and that's a great choice. She's just pushing 30 and recently started full immersion into Joni's Blue album.

 

That said, there is almost always some sort of music playing away in my skull. Often I suddenly have a song idea and must sing it over and over again and write down what I can.

I need to get to the point with my studio where it's hit the switches, press the go button and lay it down then and there. Streamlining the workflow has been a goal for a long time and I've made big improvements.

Helps to have my own space where I can leave things set up.

 

What is perhaps a bit odd about all this is that I used to listen to music obsessively and constantly. I played all the time then too, just like now.

Perhaps my tiny brain is full?

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Yes! A friend of mine is nominated for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2021. He just won Best Latin Jazz arrangement, and now the album is up for album of the year. I'm super pumped for him. It is his first album, he is a monster musician and has poured heart and soul into the music of his native Peru. He is crossing Afro-Peruvian ideas with jazz big-band horn arrangements. Lorenzo Ferrero is his name, and the album is called "Tradiciones". He just won a Grammy for his arrangement of the track "La Flor De La Canela" on this album. His band is called the "Afro-Peruvian Jazz Orchestra". He put the band together and the arrangements. He is a monster saxophone player. I am over the moon happy for him. He has done the work, and such a treat to see him acknowledged.

 

Is it a big deal? Well the government of Peru hailed him in a press release from one of their ministries. Think about what it means to spend your whole life chasing playing jazz on a saxophone, moving to another country (here) to go to school and chase the dream, do a passion project that involved putting things together that no one ever thought to put together, with no support, and then winning a Grammy on your first album and being recognized by your government and musicians all over a continent worth of South American musicians. Its beyond a big deal for some people and some genres. He's in his late 20's - it will elevate his standing and career hugely, regardless of what happens in the "Best Pop Song" category.

 

Grammys definitely matter "down ballot" for the acoustic genres like classical and jazz, the engineers, the producers. I mean, would anyone here turn one down?

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Yes! A friend of mine is nominated for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2021. He just won Best Latin Jazz arrangement, and now the album is up for album of the year. I'm super pumped for him. It is his first album, he is a monster musician and has poured heart and soul into the music of his native Peru. He is crossing Afro-Peruvian ideas with jazz big-band horn arrangements. Lorenzo Ferrero is his name, and the album is called "Tradiciones". He just won a Grammy for his arrangement of the track "La Flor De La Canela" on this album. His band is called the "Afro-Peruvian Jazz Orchestra". He put the band together and the arrangements. He is a monster saxophone player. I am over the moon happy for him. He has done the work, and such a treat to see him acknowledged.

 

Is it a big deal? Well the government of Peru hailed him in a press release from one of their ministries. Think about what it means to spend your whole life chasing playing jazz on a saxophone, moving to another country (here) to go to school and chase the dream, do a passion project that involved putting things together that no one ever thought to put together, with no support, and then winning a Grammy on your first album and being recognized by your government and musicians all over a continent worth of South American musicians. Its beyond a big deal for some people and some genres. He's in his late 20's - it will elevate his standing and career hugely, regardless of what happens in the "Best Pop Song" category.

 

Grammys definitely matter "down ballot" for the acoustic genres like classical and jazz, the engineers, the producers. I mean, would anyone here turn one down?

 

Now that is super cool!!! I hope he wins.

 

And no, I would never turn down a Grammy.

I really don't watch television and the Grammys are no exception.

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Agreed that's super cool about your friend, and no, I wouldn't turn down a Grammy! But I wouldn't chase it, either. I got an award for mastering an album, and it sits on a shelf. Which is fine, but ultimately, it doesn't impact my life.
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In a word. "Meh".

 

I've lost interest in all award shows years ago. I don't see the arts as a contest, I know what I like, and that's what I enjoy.

 

On the other hand, I'm happy for the winners and wish them all well.

 

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A lot of the cool Grammys (IMO, anyway) are the ones that aren't on the big broadcast. Best Contemporary Blues, Best Traditional Blues, Best of various jazz, etc. I use the Grammys like I use the Oscars, to find out about albums and artists that I missed.

"I'm so crazy, I don't know this is impossible! Hoo hoo!" - Daffy Duck

 

"The good news is that once you start piano you never have to worry about getting laid again. More time to practice!" - MOI

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The Record of the Year is the normal mish-mash of popular artists, and from what little I know of the regular posters here, I would say that none of it is likely to be your demographic or anything you would find compelling. I know Billie Eilish and Post Malone are somewhat polarizing here, but they put out solid albums in terms of technical execution and content, IN MY OPINION. In fact, I thought any of the nominees would be worthy of a Grammy (whatever that means), although a few, like Meghan Thee Stallion, may be flashes in the pan, but again, it's not like Grammys have always gone to tried and true artists, especially in this category of a single song.

 

In terms of Album of the Year, Haim was the only one I was aware of being nominated before I looked them up, and I find them to be excellent musicians and songwriters...a group of sisters that played with their mom and dad, slogging through cover band gigs until they found their own thing. Apart from my personal bias against Coldplay, I think the list here is solid, with even a nomination for Jacob Collier.

 

Song of the Year seems like the most ridiculous category to me. Talk about Apple to Oranges. Still, it's nice that writers get some recognition.

 

Two of the 8 New Artist nominees are on heavy rotation in my house (I have two teen daughters). I really have not heard of most of them...I'll have to remedy that soon.

 

The rest of the categories have weird overlaps and what I think any normal listener of music would find to be miscategorizations. The only categories that seem to stay in-genre is Dance/electronica, Country, Jazz, and New Age.

 

I will say that I have been enjoying awards shows lately because they seem to focus on performances, and there is no stupid B-roll of the audience, comprised of other artists, clapping and dancing. It has always been cringey to me even when it's obvious that it's sincere (Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga always seem to really be enjoying performances, but I still don't want to see them throwing horns to Highway to Hell).

"For instance" is not proof.

 

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In terms of Album of the Year, Haim was the only one I was aware of being nominated before I looked them up...

 

That brings up a good point, that having nominees applies at least some degree of "filtering" for those who want to hear new music, but don't want to slog through a zillion releases to find the good stuff. Fortunately for filtering I have a daughter with good taste in music, and she turns me on to what she finds (e.g., Billie Eilish, who I think makes compelling music). In my "spare time" I'll go down the list of nominees, note the ones I don't know about, type into search, and see what comes up.

 

I will say that I have been enjoying awards shows lately because they seem to focus on performances

 

If that's the way things are trending, that's a good sign.

 

FWIW I'm on the board of the TEC Awards and of course, that's been thrown a major curve because there won't be a physical NAMM. But everyone involved wanted to stretch the format into something more meaningful and innovative, with one of the primary goals being to connect the music industry veterans with the up-and-coming new artists, as well as celebrate the technology. I think a lot of the people behind awards shows have seen the steady decline in ratings, and are trying to figure out how to re-invent the genre.

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FWIW I'm on the board of the TEC Awards and of course, that's been thrown a major curve because there won't be a physical NAMM. But everyone involved wanted to stretch the format into something more meaningful and innovative, with one of the primary goals being to connect the music industry veterans with the up-and-coming new artists, as well as celebrate the technology.

 

Interesting, if off-topic here. I think I voted for TEC awards already (or maybe that was last year's) but I didn't see anything that suggested that goal. Can you give me an example of what they have in mind? Well, there's the Les Paul award. Maybe some well known engineers and producers like George Massenberg and Craig Anderton who have been working, in addition with money-makers, smaller artists who just want a great sounding record and don't have being the next Taylor Swift in mind.

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Yes! A friend of mine is nominated for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2021. He just won Best Latin Jazz arrangement, and now the album is up for album of the year. I'm super pumped for him. It is his first album, he is a monster musician and has poured heart and soul into the music of his native Peru. He is crossing Afro-Peruvian ideas with jazz big-band horn arrangements. Lorenzo Ferrero is his name, and the album is called "Tradiciones". He just won a Grammy for his arrangement of the track "La Flor De La Canela" on this album. His band is called the "Afro-Peruvian Jazz Orchestra". He put the band together and the arrangements. He is a monster saxophone player. I am over the moon happy for him. He has done the work, and such a treat to see him acknowledged.

 

Is it a big deal? Well the government of Peru hailed him in a press release from one of their ministries. Think about what it means to spend your whole life chasing playing jazz on a saxophone, moving to another country (here) to go to school and chase the dream, do a passion project that involved putting things together that no one ever thought to put together, with no support, and then winning a Grammy on your first album and being recognized by your government and musicians all over a continent worth of South American musicians. Its beyond a big deal for some people and some genres. He's in his late 20's - it will elevate his standing and career hugely, regardless of what happens in the "Best Pop Song" category.

 

Grammys definitely matter "down ballot" for the acoustic genres like classical and jazz, the engineers, the producers. I mean, would anyone here turn one down?

 

This is so cool, and I heartily agree. I've seen more than a few nominees, first-time or repeats, be over the moon in the last few days. Awards mean different things to different people, but clearly many still appreciate the recognition. Lives are changed, and not only for them, but for the people around them too. I totally see the side of it where it may not impact your life much if your niche is already carved out and your reputation is made, but especially in a year where we've lost so much, I'm cheering for everyone. :cheers:

 

Also agree with Joe that it's both a way to catch up on things we missed and maybe remind ourselves how much friggin music is out there nowadays. It's overwhelming!

 

I haven't read through the whole list, but I certainly would recommend The Black Pumas, fantastic new soul band from Austin who are up for Album, Record, and American Roots Performance of the Year. And Kaytranada, one of those Best "New" Artists who's been around for a minute, but I guess some people are still discovering him. Genius beatmaker from Montréal.

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FWIW I'm on the board of the TEC Awards and of course, that's been thrown a major curve because there won't be a physical NAMM. But everyone involved wanted to stretch the format into something more meaningful and innovative, with one of the primary goals being to connect the music industry veterans with the up-and-coming new artists, as well as celebrate the technology.

 

Can you give me an example of what they have in mind?

 

Sorry, these are private discussions. Besides, "always in motion is the future" :)

 

But...I guess there's no reason not to mention thoughts I've had, when you bear in mind that the TEC Awards are baked months in advance. So whether anything I suggest will be adopted for 2022 or 2023, or be considered genius or super-dumb...who knows.

 

One idea was no categories. If 3 mind-blowing, amazing mics come out and there's nothing new in mic pres, then those three mics should get an award - it shouldn't just be limited to one mic so there's room for a mic pre award.

 

I'd also like to see the Les Paul Award skew more toward technology (people just think of him and guitars, but he was pretty much the father of home recording, too). Even discounting any possible bias, MIDI deserves an award. It was amazing that a bunch of competitors got together and created a standard that has had a profound influence on music for 37 years. Steinberg deserves an award for coming up with VST and ASIO! I mean c'mon, those have been crucial to this industry. If they're going to be the *TEC* Awards, I'd love to see awards for technological firsts and/or standards, and the people behind them. Ikutaro Kakehashi got a technical Grammy, but not a TEC award. Whoever came up with the first representation of MIDI as a piano roll deserves props, too - try to think of a DAW that doesn't represent MIDI that way.

 

For the presenters, I'd like to see more diversity in pairing. I mean, sure, have Dave Pensado up there but amongst all the B.S. "pro tips" on YouTube, there are some younger people who really know their stuff. It would be great to single them out as "rising stars" to give their careers a boost. The TEC Awards have already gone in that direction, it's not just old white men any more, and I think that has been a step forward.

 

Those aren't ground-breaking ideas, to be sure, but believe me, I'm not the only person trying to think outside the box and come up with ideas for a "next-gen" TEC Awards. It gets tweaked every year, sometimes in minor and sometimes major ways, and there are some really smart people who are on the case.

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I have to say, some categories are actually really competitive and reflect reality (Contemporary Instrumental, Large Jazz Ensemble, Latin Jazz). I'm thrilled to see our hometown hero Kaytranada nominated for three Grammys (including Best New Artist when he's not a new artist at all...) as well as other up & coming artists like Chloe x Halle. I am impressed with the amount of female nominees as well. I am surprised that The Weeknd was shut out, with one of the biggest pop/dance/R&B songs of the year.

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Grammy Awards (or just about all Hollywood awards) Do I care?

Simple answer. no.

Totally irrelevant to the real world abilities.

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