After 14 years of being in Los Angeles, the 60th annual Grammy Awards are back in their home of New York City 6:30 p.m. CST Jan. 28.
This year’s awards will be hosted by “The Late Late Show’s” James Corden, creator of the popular sketch “Carpool Karaoke,” where Corden has joined many of this year’s nominees in singing.
According to Kanye West, the voting panel has been “completely out of touch” in regard to what is current in the music world. This may come as a surprise since the Grammy’s have been around since the 1950s with their sole focus to highlight the greatest of the music industry. But in past years, many have been disappointed with the outcome of Album of the Year.
The world has not forgotten when Lionel Richie surpassed Prince’s iconic “Purple Rain” for Album of the Year, and The Recording Academy has listened.
Changes have been made to the current voting system. This year will be the first year where voting will not be done on paper ballots, but rather online as to avoid any fraudulent or incorrect voting.
Alongside the new voting system, more review committees have been added to further dissect the nominations. In the past, artists such as Drake and Frank Ocean have declined submitting their work knowing it wouldn’t be considered due to the lack of recognition for hip-hop, even though it has become one of the most powerful genres today.
After 60 years, the Academy has finally changed their ways, making room for emerging and independent artists and embracing the younger generations.
The 60th annual Grammy’s are a year of firsts for the ceremony. This year marks a big one. This is the first year in The Recording Academy’s history that a white man has not been nominated for Album of the Year.
Hip-hop is at the forefront of those nominated for Album of the Year. Jay-Z’s “4:44,” Childish Gambino’s “Awaken, My Love!,” Kendrick Lamar’s “DAMN.,” Bruno Mars’s “24K Magic” and Lorde’s “Melodrama” are in the running for the coveted title.
One of hip-hop’s greatest icons, Jay-Z, has the most nominations this year with a total of eight. Along with Album of the Year, Jay-Z has been nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Following close behind are Kendrick Lamar with seven nominations and Bruno Mars with six.
Performing this Saturday will be several stars in the big leagues. We can expect to hear the ever-evolving voice of Lady Gaga, Album of the Year nominee Childish Gambino, Rihanna alongside DJ Khaled and Bryson Tiller and Kesha, who has been missed in the music scene.
Headliners of the Route 91 Harvest Festival of last year, Eric Church, Maren Morris and Brothers Osbourne will pay tribute to the tragedy that occurred last October to remember all who lost their lives.
At this year’s Grammy Awards you can expect to see many changes to the industry that we all love while celebrating the greatest music has to offer.