Carlos Santana is making the news rounds today, following comments regarding Adele‘s victory at the 59th Grammy Awards this week. Santana told AAP that he thought that Adele won “because she can sing, sing.” He continued, saying “with all respect to our sister Beyoncé, Beyoncé is very beautiful to look at, and it’s more like modelling kind of music – music to model a dress – she’s not a singer, singer, with all respect to her.”

You’re reading this on a niche music website, so it’s safe to assume you’re aware that Adele’s 25 beat out Lemonade, as well as albums from Drake, Justin Bieber and Sturgill Simpson for Best Album. People have criticised the Academy for giving the prize to Adele in the same way the criticised the Academy for choosing Taylor Swift over Kendrick Lamar last year; we don’t need to spell it out for you.

During her speech, Adele spoke about her struggles with being an artist and mother, and noted that she felt as if a part of her had returned. She went on to basically lament her own win, though. “I can’t possibly accept this award. And I’m very humbled and I’m very grateful and gracious. But my artist of my life is Beyoncé. And this album to me, the Lemonade album, is just so monumental. Beyoncé, it’s so monumental. And so well thought out, and so beautiful and soul-baring and we all got to see another side to you that you don’t always let us see. And we appreciate that. And all us artists here adore you. You are our light.”

https://twitter.com/barkerrant/status/831011289048584192?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Her comments were part of what became an inevitable debate over whether Adele “deserved to win” over Beyoncé, with many noting that, while her album sold a helluva lot more albums than Beyoncé, it didn’t hold the same cultural, political or even artistic relevance and ferocity that made Lemonade so great. 25 didn’t really top many critic polls, while Lemonade topped, or near-topped most. Many celebrities chimed in too, as they did when Kendrick lost to Swift (and when he lost to Daft Punk in 2014). Many points were brought up on both sides of the argument, from sales-based reasons to the more sinister race-based ones. The more radical Beyhive members went so far as to slam Adele for being untalented. And so on.

In some ways, Santana’s comments were correct. While not expressed terribly well, the core idea that Adele is primarily a singer and Beyoncé is primarily a performer makes sense in that Beyoncé’s shtick travels far, far further than simply singing; her output focuses as heavily on the visual aspect, including the full-length Lemonade visual album, her monumental live performances, outfits and so on. Adele, meanwhile, is fairly bells-and-whistles free, on stage and on record. Santana praises both artists, but he also wildly misses the point.

Santana’s argument implied that the Grammy voters viewed Beyoncé is less naturally talented than Adele, because she incorporates the “model”-like bells and whistles. He implies that Adele’s victory was solely because she is a fantastic singer. But this sets up a double standard. Everyone was quick to clamour that artistry matters more than commercial success when Beck beat out Beyoncé for Album of the Year in 2015, but when Taylor Swift won with 1989 over To Pimp A Butterfly? Crickets.

To say that it’s just talent is both blind and naive. While it’s easy to take each award as it comes, a quick look at past winners highlights some worrying trends. A black woman hasn’t won Album of the Year since 1999, and a black artist – of which there have only ever been ten winners – hasn’t won since 2008 (and it was a Joni Mitchell cover album). Paul McCartney has more Album of the Year Grammys than every woman of colour combined. I could go on.

This whole affair smells strongly with the #OscarsSoWhite controversy, albeit with a lot less insufferable thinkpieces being written about them (and yes I am aware of the irony of stating this in my own insufferable thinkpiece). Both major academy awards appear to have a problem with diversity. The Grammys have been whiter than the Republican Party in a snowstorm for ever, and it’s only been in the last few years that people have begun to notice.

But as the debate barges its way to the forefront of the popular consciousness for another year, we need to be wary not to turn it into #GrammysSoWhite. Not that the campaign was a bad cause or anything, just that it, along with Santana’s comments, kind of missed the point. As Vince Mancini‘s fantastic article about the #OscarsSoWhite controversy addresses, the issue is not with the awards. It’s with The Academy.

To pinpoint the problem with why racial minorities (particularly black artists) are so under-represented in the awards, you have to look behind the curtain. The Grammy winners aren’t chosen by a mystical and omnipotent being who knows all music and decides on the objectively best one. No, the winners of the awards are chosen by a little organisation called The Recording Academy. And it’s here where the real problems begin to appear. The problem is with the voters.

Well, not the voters individually, but rather the voters as a whole. If we take a literal black and white approach to the situation and group the majority of mainstream music that gets Grammy recognition into “black music” and “white music,” and then apply this to the tastes of many people in positions of power in the music industry… well let’s just say it doesn’t look good for “black music.” This is, of course, ignoring a massive amount of people whose tastes aren’t what you would expect just looking at them (I’m a white guy typing to Migos at the moment, so sue me), but the broad sentiment remains. Not every voter knows about artists who don’t fit in line with their natural music tastes. Side note, does anyone know who Sturgill Simpson is? Asking for a friend.

The Recording Academy has never publicly released the statistics for the demographics of their members, but they do allow anyone with 12 credits on digital tracks or six credits on physical tracks to join their ranks (and subsequently vote). And as with many power structures (especially in the arts scene), there is a massive block of ageing white baby-boomers. Why is the voting block going to be filled with massive amounts of old white guys? Because most people who are 1) interested in being a part of The Academy and 2) have that many credits are generally from the artists from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s, when black culture wasn’t exactly as mainstream in the media as it is today. Hopefully The Recording Academy isn’t as lily-white as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (the people who run the Oscars), who are sitting pretty with 94% white voting members. However, it’s unlikely that such results would occur and so many black artists would be snubbed if The Recording Academy did not echo – at least in part – the demographics of Oscars’ voting panel.

But does all of this actually mean that The Recording Academy – and subsequently, The Grammys – are racist? Not necessarily. In an article penned in 2014, Rob Kenner explained what it was like being a voter for The Grammys. For starters, he notes that not every voter knows every artist (although you’d have to be living under a rock to have never heard of Beyoncé). Voters are only supposed to vote in their fields of expertise, but everyone can cast a maximum of nine ballots for nominations. In addition, every member receives a vote each for Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist. Kenner gets to the bottom line: most of the nominations are chosen by people who have very little experience or knowledge in the field. The actual voting is worse, with members being able to vote in up to 20 categories, plus the general four.

Secondly, and where the root of the problem most likely is (especially in regard to the general four categories), is that the demographics – and subsequently the tastes – of the voters aren’t representative of the wider population. Beyoncé didn’t win for a myriad of different reasons, but the baseline issue is this: she didn’t get enough votes. Duh, I hear you say, but she didn’t get enough votes because the most of the voters prefer Adele’s music over hers, and that is because Adele’s music is (to return to a previous grouping) “white music” and Beyoncé’s is “black music.”

So the system is a mess, that much is clear. But is it racist? Or at least, as racist as people are quick to claim? Well, kinda. Does not liking or being familiar with the music of an artist who has been nominated make a voter racist? No. As Vince puts it, being unaware of a particular artist doesn’t make someone racist. But is stacking the room in with primarily people who know and like “white music” over “black music” racist? Yep. The reason many voters are either unaware of or don’t like a black artist is more likely to be that the industry is, or at least used to be, fundamentally white-leaning.

Commercially successful albums are by and large less confronting and more accessible than those which might really say something, cause controversy, or at least comment on the world. This is why Macklemore and Ryan Lewis beat out Kendrick to win Best Rap Album, and why To Pimp A Butterfly, which has categorically been considered one of the most important albums in decades, lost out to 1989. Is it a race issue? Yes, but the problem doesn’t lie solely in the hands of the awards. Basically, don’t blame the awards: blame the industry that has historically kept black people under-represented in the circles that decide the winners.

So resist the urge to start tweeting #GrammysSoWhite. Resist the urge to tell people who think that Adele was justified in winning Album of the Year that they’re racist. Saying that the The Recording Academy is the root of the issue may seem like a simple statement, but it’s an important distinction to make. It’s the difference between a racial issue out of malice and a racial issue out of sheer ineptitude.

Image: Women’s Health

The nominations for the 2017 Grammy Awards are here, and as you might expect following such an incredible year of music, the list is pretty amazing.

The Grammys have been hotly contested for many reasons throughout 2016. Most notably, Chance the Rapper – who is nominated for seven awards – led the fight to change Grammy rules to allow free, streamed releases to be eligible alongside albums released traditionally. The petition set up was a great success, and hip-hop made history forever. The Awards were also the subject of Frank Ocean‘s  wrath, with the elusive artist choosing to not submit neither Blonde or Endless for consideration, despite the fact that he probably would have won several.

20-time Grammy winner Beyoncé has made history by being the very first artist to ever be nominated in the rock, pop, rap and R&B categories. With nine nominations overall, she has been nominated more than any other artist this year. Apart from song and album of the year, she has also been nominated for her Jack White collab Don’t Hurt Yourself, her Kendrick Lamar collab Freedom and Hold Up. Beyoncé is the most nominated woman in Grammy history, with a total of 62.

Hip-hop and R&B are coming in at a heavy second, with Kanye West, Rihanna and Drake all following closely with eight nominations.

Chance the Rapper has walked away from seven nominations, while Anderson Paak has taken home two, for best new artist and best urban contemporary album. BJ The Chicago Kid, D.R.A.M, Maxwell and Solange are among the nominees in urban categories as well. Amazingly, Kanye is up for not one, but two best songs, for Famous and Ultralight Beam. He is joined by Chance, Fat Joe and Remy Ma, and Drake for – you guessed it – Hotline Bling. The nominations for best rap album are… okay. To see ScHoolboy Q nominated is phenomenal, the inclusion of Drake and Kanye were expected, but DJ Khaled? Really?

The alternative category is ridiculous, with every act poised to win. Bon Iver, David Bowie, PJ Harvey, Iggy Pop and Radiohead all released incredible albums in 2016. Bowie has received five posthumous nominations for Blackstar, while Bon Iver and Radiohead are both up for two, including for best rock song with Burn The Witch. The best rock albums category is a little less impressive, with Weezer, Blink 182 and Panic! At The Disco heading it up.

We’re so excited to see two Australian names on the list as well. Your boi Flume has been nominated for two awards, for Never Be Like You ft. Kai and for best dance album with Skin. Meanwhile, Sia has been nominated for three awards – one for This Is Acting, one for the Sean Paul featuring Cheap Thrills, and a third for Try Everything, from the Zootopia soundtrack.

The core categories are as follows:

Album Of The Year:

25 — Adele
Lemonade — Beyoncé
Purpose — Justin Bieber
Views — Drake
A Sailor’s Guide To Earth — Sturgill Simpson

Record Of The Year:

“Hello” — Adele
“Formation” — Beyoncé
“7 Years” — Lukas Graham
“Work” — Rihanna Featuring Drake
“Stressed Out” — Twenty One Pilots

Song Of The Year:

“Formation” — Khalif Brown, Asheton Hogan, Beyoncé Knowles & Michael L. Williams II, songwriters (Beyoncé)
“Hello” — Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin, songwriters (Adele)
“I Took A Pill In Ibiza” — Mike Posner, songwriter (Mike Posner)
“Love Yourself” — Justin Bieber, Benjamin Levin & Ed Sheeran, songwriters (Justin Bieber)
“7 Years” — Lukas Forchhammer, Stefan Forrest, Morten Pilegaard & Morten Ristorp, songwriters (Lukas Graham)

Best New Artist:

Kelsea Ballerini
The Chainsmokers
Chance The Rapper
Maren Morris
Anderson .Paak

POP FIELD

Best Pop Vocal Album:

25 — Adele
Purpose — Justin Bieber
Dangerous Woman — Ariana Grande
Confident — Demi Lovato
This Is Acting — Sia

Best Pop Solo Performance:

“Hello” — Adele
“Hold Up” — Beyonce
“Love Yourself” — Justin Bieber
“Piece By Piece (Idol Version)” — Kelly Clarkson
“Dangerous Woman” — Ariana Grande

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:

“Closer” — The Chainsmokers Featuring Halsey
“7 Years” — Lukas Graham
“Work” — Rihanna Featuring Drake
“Cheap Thrills” — Sia Featuring Sean Paul
“Stressed Out” — Twenty One Pilots

 

DANCE/ELECTRONIC MUSIC FIELD

Best Dance Recording:

“Tearing Me Up” — Bob Moses
“Don’t Let Me Down” — The Chainsmokers Featuring Daya
“Never Be Like You” — Flume Featuring Kai
“Rinse & Repeat” — Riton Featuring Kah-Lo
“Drinkee” — Sofi Tukker

Best Dance/Electronic Album:

Skin — Flume
Electronica 1: The Time Machine — Jean-Michel Jarre
Epoch — Tycho
Barbara Barbara, We Face A Shining Future — Underworld
Louie Vega Starring…XXVIII — Louie Vega

 

ROCK FIELD

Best Rock Performance:

“Joe (Live From Austin City Limits)” — Alabama Shakes
“Don’t Hurt Yourself” — Beyoncé Featuring Jack White
“Blackstar” — David Bowie
“The Sound Of Silence” — Disturbed
“Heathens” — Twenty One Pilots

Best Metal Performance:

“Shock Me” — Baroness
“Slivera” — Gojira
“Rotting in Vain” — Korn
“Dystopia” — Megadeth
“The Price Is Wrong” — Periphery

Best Rock Song:

“Blackstar” — David Bowie, songwriter (David Bowie)
“Burn the Witch”  —Radiohead, songwriters (Radiohead)
“Hardwired” — James Hetfield & Lars Ulrich, songwriters (Metallica
“Heathens” — Tyler Joseph, songwriter (Twenty One Pilots)
“My Name Is Human” — Rich Meyer, Ryan Meyer & Johnny Stevens, songwriters (Highly Suspect)

Best Rock Album:

California — Blink-182
Tell Me I’m Pretty — Cage The Elephant
Magma — Gojira
Death Of A Bachelor — Panic! At The Disco
Weezer — Weezer

ALTERNATIVE FIELD

Best Alternative Music Album:

22, A Million — Bon Iver
Blackstar — David Bowie
The Hope Six Demolition Project — PJ Harvey
Post Pop Depression — Iggy Pop
A Moon Shaped Pool — Radiohead

R&B FIELD

Best R&B Performance:

“Turnin’ Me Up” — BJ The Chicago Kid
“Permission” — Ro James
“I Do” — Musiq Soulchild
“Needed Me” — Rihanna
“Cranes in the Sky” — Solange

Best Traditional R&B Performance:

“The Three Of Me” — William Bell
“Woman’s World” — BJ The Chicago Kid
“Sleeping With The One I Love” — Fantasia
“Angel” — Lalah Hathaway
“Can’t Wait” — Jill Scott

Best R&B Song:

“Come and See Me” — J. Brathwaite, Aubrey Graham & Noah Shebib, songwriters (PartyNextDoor Featuring Drake)
“Exchange” — Michael Hernandez & Bryson Tiller, songwriters (Bryson Tiller)
“Kiss It Better” — Jeff Bhasker, Robyn Fenty, John-Nathan Glass & Natalia Noemi, songwriters (Rihanna)
“Lake By the Ocean” — Hod David & Musze, songwriters (Maxwell)
“Luv” — Magnus August Høiberg, Benjamin Levin & Daystar Peterson, songwriters (Tory Lanez)

Best Urban Contemporary Album:

Lemonade — Beyoncé
Ology — Gallant
We Are King — KING
Malibu — Anderson .Paak
Anti — Rihanna

Best R&B Album:

In My Mind — BJ The Chicago Kid
Lalah Hathaway Live — Lalah Hathaway
Velvet Portraits — Terrace Martin
Healing Season — Mint Condition
Smoove Jones — Mya

RAP FIELD

Best Rap Performance:

“No Problem” — Chance The Rapper Featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz
“Panda” —Desiigner
“Pop Style” — Drake Featuring The Throne
“All The Way Up” — Fat Joe & Remy Ma Featuring French Montana & Infared
“That Part” — ScHoolboy Q Featuring Kanye West

Best Rap/Sung Performance:

“Freedom” — Beyoncé Featuring Kendrick Lamar
“Hotline Bling” — Drake
“Broccoli” — D.R.A.M. Featuring Lil Yachty
“Ultralight Beam” — Kanye West Featuring Chance The Rapper, Kelly Price, Kirk Franklin & The-Dream
“Famous” — Kanye West Featuring Rihanna

Best Rap Song:

“All The Way Up” — Joseph Cartagena, Edward Davadi, Shandel Green, Karim Kharbouch, Andre Christopher Lyon, Reminisce Mackie & Marcello Valenzano, songwriters (Fat Joe & Remy Ma Featuring French Montana & Infared)
“Famous” — Chancelor Bennett, Ross Birchard, Ernest Brown, Andrew Dawson, Kasseem Dean, Mike Dean, Noah Goldstein, Kejuan Muchita, Patrick Reynolds, Kanye West & Cydel Young, songwriters (Kanye West Featuring Rihanna)
“Hotline Bling” — Aubrey Graham & Paul Jefferies, songwriters (Drake)
“No Problem” — Chancelor Bennett, Dwayne Carter & Tauheed Epps, songwriters (Chance The Rapper Featuring Lil Wayne & 2 Chainz)
“Ultralight Beam” — Chancelor Bennett, Kasseem Dean, Mike Dean, Kirk Franklin, Noah Goldstein, Samuel Griesemer, Terius Nash, Jerome Potter, Kelly Price, Nico “Donnie Trumpet” Segal, Derek Watkins, Kanye West & Cydel Young, songwriters (Kanye West Featuring Chance The Rapper, Kelly Price, Kirk Franklin & The-Dream)

Best Rap Album:
Coloring Book — Chance The Rapper
And the Anonymous Nobody — De La Soul
Major Key — DJ Khaled
Views — Drake
Blank Face LP — ScHoolboy Q
The Life of Pablo — Kanye West

 

MUSIC FOR VISUAL MEDIA FIELD

Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media:

Amy — (Various Artists)
Miles Ahead — Miles Davis & Various Artists)
Straight Outta Compton — (Various Artists)
Suicide Squad (Collector’s Edition) — (Various Artists)
Vinyl: The Essentials Season 1 — (Various Artists)

Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media:

Bridge of Spies — Thomas Newman, composer
Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight — Ennio Morricone, composer
The Revenant — Alva Noto & Ryuichi Sakamoto, composers
Star Wars: The Force Awakens — John Williams, composer
Stranger Things Volume 1 — Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein, composers
Stranger Things Volume 2 — Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein, composers

Best Song Written For Visual Media:

“Can’t Stop The Feeling!” — Max Martin, Shellback & Justin Timberlake, songwriters (Justin Timberlake, Anna Kendrick, Gwen Stefani, James Corden, Zooey Deschanel, Walt Dohrn, Ron Funches, Caroline Hjelt, Aino Jawo, Christopher Mintz-Plasse & Kunal Nayyar), Track from: Trolls
“Heathens” — Tyler Joseph, songwriter (Twenty One Pilots), Track from: Suicide Squad
“Just Like Fire” — Oscar Holter, Max Martin, P!nk & Shellback, songwriters (P!nk), Track from: Alice Through The Looking Glass
“Purple Lamborghini” — Shamann Cooke, Sonny Moore & William Roberts, songwriters (Skrillex & Rick Ross), Track from: Suicide Squad
“Try Everything” — Mikkel S. Eriksen, Sia Furler & Tor Erik Hermansen, songwriters (Shakira), Track from: Zootopia
“The Veil” — Peter Gabriel, songwriter (Peter Gabriel), Track from: Snowden

 

PACKAGE FIELD

Best Recording Package:

Anti (Deluxe Edition) — Ciarra Pardo & Robyn Fenty, art directors (Rihanna)
Blackstar — Jonathan Barnbrook, art director (David Bowie)
Human Performance — Andrew Savage, art director (Parquet Courts)
Sunset Motel — Sarah Dodds & Shauna Dodds, art directors (Reckless Kelly)
22, A Million — Eric Timothy Carlson, art director (Bon Iver)

Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package:

Edith Piaf 1915-2015 — Gérard Lo Monaco, art director (Edith Piaf)
401 Days — Jonathan Dagan & Mathias Høst Normark, art directors (J.Views)
I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It — Samuel Burgess-Johnson & Matthew Healy, art directors (The 1975)
Paper Wheels (Deluxe Limited Edition) — Matt Taylor, art director (Trey Anastasio)
Tug of War (Deluxe Edition) — Simon Earith & James Musgrave, art directors (Paul McCartney)

PRODUCTION, NON-CLASSICAL FIELD

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical:

Are You Serious — Tchad Blake & David Boucher, engineers; Bob Ludwig, mastering engineer (Andrew Bird)
Blackstar — David Bowie, Tom Elmhirst, Kevin Killen & Tony
Dig In Deep — Ryan Freeland, engineer; Kim Rosen, mastering engineer (Bonnie Raitt)
Hit N Run Phase Two — Booker T., Dylan Dresdow, Chris James, Prince & Justin Stanley, engineers; Dylan Dresdow, mastering engineer (Prince)
Undercurrent — Shani Gandhi & Gary Paczosa, engineers; Paul Blakemore, mastering engineer (Sarah Jarosz)

Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical:

Benny Blanco
Greg Kurstin
Max Martin
Nineteen85
Ricky Reed

Best Remixed Recording:

“Cali Coast (Psionics Remix)” — Josh Williams, remixer (Soul Pacific)
“Heavy Star Movin’ (staRo Remix)” — staRo, remixer (The Silver Lake Chorus)
“Nineteen Hundred Eighty-Five (Timo Maas & James Teej Remix)” — Timo Maas & James Teej, remixers (Paul McCartney & Wings)
“Only” (Kaskade X Lipless Remix)— Ryan Raddon, remixer (Ry X)
“Tearing Me Up (RAC Remix)” — André Allen Anjos, remixer (Bob Moses)
“Wide Open (Joe Goddard Remix)” — Joe Goddard, remixer (The Chemical Brothers)

SURROUND SOUND FIELD

Best Surround Sound Album:

Dutilleux: Sur La Mêe Accord; Les Citations; Mystère De L’Instant & Timbres, Espace, Mouvement — Alexander Lipay & Dmitriy Lipay, surround mix engineers; Dmitriy Lipay, surround mastering engineer; Dmitriy Lipay, surround producer (Ludovic Morlot & Seattle Symphony)
Johnson: Considering Matthew Shephard — Brad Michel, surround mix engineer; Brad Michel, surround mastering engineer; Robina G. Young, surround producer (Craig Hella Johnson & Conspirare)
Maja S.K. Ratkje: And Sing … — Morten Lindberg, surround mix engineer; Morten Lindberg, surround mastering engineer; Morten Lindberg, surround producer (Maja S.K. Ratkje, Cikada & Oslo Sinfonietta)
Primus & The Chocolate Factory — Les Claypool, surround mix engineer; Stephen Marcussen, surround mastering engineer; Les Claypool, surround producer (Primus)
Reflections — Morten Lindberg, surround mix engineer; Morten Lindberg, surround mastering engineer; Morten Lindberg, surround producer (Øyvind Gimse, Geir Inge Lotsberg & Trondheimsolistene)

 

MUSIC VIDEO/FILM FIELD

Best Music Video:

“Formation” — Beyoncé
“River” — Leon Bridges
“Up & Up” — Coldplay
“Gosh” — Jamie XX
“Upside Down & Inside Out” — OK Go

Best Music Film:

I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead — Steve Aoki
The Beatles: Eight Days A Week The Touring Years — (The Beatles)
Lemonade — Beyoncé
The Music Of Strangers — Yo-Yo Ma & The Silk Road Ensemble
American Saturday Night: Live From The Grand Ole Opry — (Various Artists)

 The full list can be found here.

Image: Billboard

After five years of hosting music’s biggest night, LL Cool J will be stepping down as host of the 2017 Grammy Awards. He will be replaced by comedian and talk show host James Corden, who has become famous for the Carpool Karaoke series on his Late Late Show.

Recording Academy President and CEO Neil Portnow said of the decision, “Thanks to ‘Carpool Karaoke,’ we’ve all been on some incredible rides with James, and The Recording Academy couldn’t be more excited to welcome his passion and enthusiasm for music, both as an entertainer and a fan, to the Grammy stage on February 12.

“He’s got big shoes to fill after the magnificent run we had with LL Cool J, but James Corden is a commanding, dynamic showman who, we believe, is perfect to host the Grammy Awards.”

Executive producer of the award night, Ken Ehrlich, said that Corden is “a captivating host, and I have no doubt that his musical background, personal charm and comedic instincts will resonate with our audience.”

The news follows Corden’s acclaimed hosting of the Tony Awards back in June, as well as the runaway success of his aforementioned Carpool Karaoke series. According to Variety, the series has achieved more than 2 billion views, and a spinoff series has even been purchased by Apple.

The 2017 Grammy Awards will take place at the Staples Centre in LA on Sunday, February 12 at 8 pm PT. Nominations are yet to be revealed, but one thing we do know is that independent artists who release music for free, or for streaming only, will be eligible for the first time ever thanks to Chance the Rapper.

No Frank Ocean tho.

Image: Variety

There’s been a lot of contention of late, most notably following the release of Chance the Rapper‘s mixtape Coloring Book, which was released for free online, about the Grammys and their eligibility rules. Many rightfully believed that a change needed to be made, stipulating that releases made available via streaming or free downloads should be just as eligible for a Grammy nomination as those released in more traditional ways. Considering how much the musical landscape has changed in recent years, with many more artists shifting toward free releases, it only made sense.

People started petitions, wrote articles and open letters, countless tweets and more. In a miraculous turn of events, the Grammys have actually listened, assessed, and changed their rules. They will now allow any album released via download or stream, so long as it employs “paid subscription, full catalogue, on-demand streaming/limited download platforms that have existed as such within the United States for at least one full year as of the submission deadline.” This is fantastic news for many artists who release their music via streaming services, like Soundcloud, as Chance himself has pointed out:

The news follows a similar change made by the RIAA earlier this year, who announced that streaming equivalents would now count toward album numbers in terms of artists achieving gold and platinum status for new releases.

This is a real triumph, but interestingly, a whole lot of other changes have been made to award categories – changes which no doubt come from the changing face of hip-hop. No longer are full albums necessary to be eligible for the Best new Artist award, a whole new category has been added under blues, to incorporate hip-hop as well as electronic elements, while the increased number of rapping/singing artists has similarly redefined an entire category:

  • Best New Artist award no longer has to include an album. The entrant must have released at least five singles, but no more than 30 singles or three albums. “Must have achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and impacted the musical landscape during the eligibility period.”
  • New Blues category to be added to American Roots:
    • Best Traditional Blues Album
    • Best Contemporary Blues Album – this is the interesting one, as it specifically stipulates, that entrants “may employ non-traditional blues rhythms such as funk, hip-hop, reggae, and rock, and may also include both traditional blues instruments and non-traditional blues instruments.” It goes on to mention that electronic synths, loops and programming are permitted.
  • Best Rap/Sung Collaboration award has changed from “Rap/Sung Collaboration” to “Rap/Sung Performance,” to “represent the current state and future trajectory of rap by expanding the category beyond collaborations between rappers and vocalists to include recordings by a solo artist who blurs the lines between rapping and singing. The new category “is intended to recognise solo and collaborative performances containing elements of R&B and rap in melody and song. In the case of a collaboration of artists who don’t usually perform together, one of the collaborating artists should be credited and recognised as a featured artist.”

You can find all the details and more here.

Image: chanceraps

Another year, another Grammys done and dusted – and more than a few upsets which is hardly surprising anymore. Long known for their “issues” with hip-hop and RnB, the Grammys did their best last night to be “down with the kids” but ultimately showed their true colours when they could have finally moved forward in their journey to recognise the genres as the influential styles they are.

It’s no secret that the Grammys have had an issue with hip-hop, but now The Washington Post have shown just how big that issue really is. In light of Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift taking out the top prizes over one of the most influential, inspirational and talked about records of our time, Kendrick Lamar‘s To Pimp A Butterfly, The Washington Post pulled a bunch of statistics to show how deep the problem lies – and it’s not good.

Since the Grammys introduced a rap category in 1989, the only act to win the three major categories (Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Record of the Year) was Outkast in 2004 for Speakerboxx/The Love Below, representing 1.2% of the winners since 1989. As for total nominations in those categories since hip hop was recognised, rap music only counts for 8.1% of the 421 nominations. A hip-hop artist has also never won the Song of the Year category, which goes to the actual songwriter of the track.

Whilst Kendrick did pick up five awards last night, it is interesting to note that only one of those awards was actually televised – Best Rap Album. The rest were awarded during commercial breaks.

So whilst the Grammys can pretend they’re cool and down with what the kids are playing these days, even going so far as to nominate Drake‘s Meek Mill diss track, Back to Back, the stats – like Shakira‘s hips – do not lie. Thankfully, the hip-hop world doesn’t seem too upset. Having a song turn into a civil rights anthem is probably more validating than a trophy anyway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-48u_uWMHY

For the full report, head here.

Image: XXL

The Grammys are once again on the horizon, with everyone’s favourite gangster rapper LL Cool J returning to host for the 5th consecutive year.

LL Cool J, who isn’t a stranger to being an MC, whether that be on the prestigious Grammy stage or on the surprisingly successful show Lip Sync Battle, had this to say about reviving his role as master of ceremonies, “I’m honoured once again to host Music’s Biggest Night as we celebrate the talented music creators of today. It’s going to be an incredible night and I’m excited to share this experience with the world”.

Although neither the award presenters nor the arguably most exciting part of the Grammies, the performers, have been announced, this year’s awards unsurprisingly look to be all about Kendrick Lamar, with the artist out in front with 11 nominations and Taylor Swift and The Weeknd trailing behind with 7 nominations apiece. With no Macklemore in sight and To Pimp A Butterfly being possibly the most influential album of this year, if not ever, it will be interesting to see how the Grammys manage to weasel their way out of this one.

Without the ceremony even taking place, the Grammys have already managed to spark a bout of controversy, debate and confusion in the hip-hop community by nominating the diss track, Back to Back by Drake for ‘Best Rap Performance’. In the event that somehow the Grammys do manage to give out awards to all those deserving, there’s always that to remember.

The Grammys will air Monday, 15th of February, 2016, and hopefully L will absolutely knock them out the box.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVDfyc2lh4Q

The Grammy Award selection panel are cool. They’re not in squaresville. They’re hip. They pin-roll their jeans, slick their hair back with pomade, and keep a single unlit menthol behind their left ear. That’s why it’s not surprising that they went and did something totally neat and super radical at this year’s nominations. They nominated a “disrespectful audio track” by a hippity-hop rapper named Aubrey Graham (colloquially known as “DRAKE”) in the category of ‘Best Rap Performance.’

The Grammys have always had an uneasy relationship with hip-hop. In 1989 when the award was first launched, the Grammys overlooked true legends like KRS-One and Big Daddy Kane in favour of the vanilla combination of Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff. In 2014 many people felt that the Grammys lacked any critical insight into the genre. The fact that they chose Macklemore over Kendrick Lamar in the category of ‘Best Rap Album’ suggested that they couldn’t appreciate nuances in the genre, or discern between varying levels of art and skill. But that was last year and the Grammys have realised how uncool they were being. And just like Olivia Newton-John in the final act of Grease, in just one year the Grammys have transformed from “geek” to “fleek.”

Not in touch with the youth of today? Not familiar with the groundbreaking work of Kendrick Lamar? Well then why did the Grammys go ahead and just casually nominate Lamar in 11 categories? Because nothing says cool like reacting to criticism by performing miraculous back flips. No no no. The Grammys in 2015 love Kendrick Lamar. He’s the coolest. He transgressed genre and style. Not only has he been nominated for his own tracks, but as a featured guest on tracks by Flying Lotus and Taylor Swift.

But it doesn’t stop there! The Grammys in 2015 are “phresh.” It’s not just about nominating Kendrick Lamar for every award he could conceivably win. They’re also down with some other “ill” rappers. Fetty Wap, that guy with the song about the Queen in the trap. Kanye West as well. He’s a good one. But no doubt the coolest, most totally sweet thing the Grammys did to show the world that they truly understood and appreciated hip-hop culture was to nominate Drake’s Back to Back – a diss track.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2c354QkShZ4

Historically, something like a diss track would be very unlikely to earn Grammy recognition. This is for a number of reasons. Firstly, diss tracks are generally not composed with radio play in mind. They are often simpler and slower. They generally lack those elements that typically make rap more accessible, like a melodic hook or a dance rhythm. Simpler still, they are often un-mastered, raw cuts. Cobbled together quickly to respond to an insult, diss tracks generally don’t have the same level of production quality as something made specifically for a studio album. Diss tracks are also typically more extreme then even your standard rap track. This is because the violence they talk about is aimed at real, living people. It’s difficult for an institution like the Grammy’s to endorse the message in Hit ‘Em Up, which advocates literally murdering Christopher Wallace and everybody who associates with him.

In nominating Back to Back the Grammys are trying to show that they understand the art form. They understand that one of the fundamentals of hip-hop is competition. They understand that the concept of the diss track epitomises that theme, and in turn, the entire genre. Clever words assembled to denigrate an opponent; they’re progressive and rough. It’s one step away from nominating a freestyle done straight off the dome.

But in reality, the Grammys have achieved nothing of the sort. They just look even more clueless and even more desperate to appear edgy. Much like my uncle who decided to give frosted tips a crack at the humble age of 43 – they’re just embarrassing themselves.

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Whatever your feelings about Drake, there’s no doubt that Back to Back is already one of the most iconic diss tracks of all time. It has some of the most quotable one-liners ever recorded, and they’ve spawned a litany of memes. Drake cleverly pokes fun at himself – turning his biggest weaknesses into strengths. Back to Back is the first truly important diss track in the age of the “singing rapper,” and as such it is inherently going to have more potential for club play. Drake’s nasal crooning has the potential to transform a No Vaseline into a Runaway. It peaked at 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold more than 253,000 copies in the US. Yet despite these redeeming features, Back to Back is still nothing more than a laptop diss track posted direct to Soundcloud. At the end of the day this is not Runaway and it could never be. If for no other reason, the recording quality is very poor. This isn’t the product of painstaking effort and artistic output. It’s been recorded in a hotel room on a whim, with Drake clearly starting with the “world tour” line and working backwards. To reward this kind of laziness actually shows a lack of respect for the artistry. To suggest something recorded by pressing your mouth really close to your MacBookPro is as good as the live jazz band used on Chance the Rapper’s Angels is absurd. It shows that all rap music sounds the same to the Grammy selection panel. Provided it has some kind of social media impact – the Grammys will pick it, and try desperately to remain relevant within the fluid environment that is hip-hop today.

WHAT A YEAR! The past twelve months have been memorable to the say the least, especially when it comes to music. From Justin Bieber returning; Kendrick Lamar releasing one of the most important records of the year; Drake fooling everyone and surprise-releasing not one, but two new records; the rise of The Weeknd and the total world domination of Taylor Swift, it’s safe to say the industry’s heavyweights really put in the miles this year – and whether or not they had awards in sight, each of the aforementioned acts (and many more) have now picked up one of the industry’s most important nods.

The 58th annual Grammy awards are set to take place on February 15, 2016 at the Staples Centre in LA. Whether you have some grievances with the awards in the past or not (subtle racism, anyone?), there is no denying that these awards do indeed hold the most significance of awards – however much that may be.

Narrowing the past year down to just a few names on a shortlist would have been no easy feat, and whilst in the past there have been some questionable nominations (looking at you, Milli Vanilli), we can’t help but feel they really hit the nail on the head this year.

Kendrick Lamar has lead the charge with a whopping 11 nominations in nine categories, including Song of the Year and Album of the Year, with The Weekend coming in at 2nd place with seven nominations. Drake copped five nods, Florence & The Machine and Alabama Shakes tied for four, and Kanye West, Diplo and D’Angelo each scored three nominations individually.

What is perhaps most interesting is the fact that Australian exports Courtney Barnett, Tame Impala and Hiatus Kaiyote also each nabbed a nomination, for Best New Artist, Best Alternative Album and Best R&B Performance respectively. Australia continues to hold a special place in America’s heart, and this just goes to show just how much the Yanks are paying attention.

The nominees for Record of the Year are D’Angelo’s Really Love, Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars‘ Uptown Funk, Ed Sheeran‘s Thinking Out Loud, Taylor Swift‘s Blank Space, and the Weeknd’s Can’t Feel My Face; whilst the nominees for Album of the Year are slightly different (and better in our opinion) with Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly, Taylor Swift’s 1989, Alabama Shakes’ Sound & Color, Chris Stapleton’s Traveller, and the Weeknd’s Beauty Behind the Madness all receiving a nod.

Nicki Minaj, Jamie xx, Caribou, J. Cole, Wiz Khalifa and Björk also all received a nomination each, as well as The Chemical Brothers, Diplo & Skrillex and many more. Check out the full list here.

Well, the Grammys coverage was pretty saturated by that whole Beck vs Beyoncé (vs Kanye) kerfuffle, but hopefully these two mashups will put an end to it.

Firstly, introducing Single Loser, a mashup of Beyoncé’s Single Ladies and Beck’s Loser.

This is genuinely one of the best I’ve ever heard. Considering that it’s not only topical but actually really good, it’s unsurprising that in four days it’s already nearing 700,000 SoundCloud plays.

The biggest, most instantly recognisable single from each artist, it’s an unlikely combination: Beyonce’s bright, empowering melody atop Beck’s twangy guitar, funky beats and that chorus we all know so well.

According to SoundCloud, it’s officially composed by “Beckyoncé Knowles-Hansen,” but the mashup maestro is actually New Jersey’s BJ Warshaw.

I originally wrote that for Indie Shuffle

Jumping on the Grammys mashup train, Arcade Fire leadman Win butler has actually also released his own mashup under the name DJ Windows98, bringing together Loser and Kanye’s new one Jesus Walks. He’s called it Jesus Walks, Loser, and it’s also pretty awesome – another unexpectedly genius combo, it seems as though everything sounds better with those twangy Beck guitars. It actually reminds me of Eminem’s Desperation, off his most recent album Marshall Mathers LP 2. Knowing Kanye, he’ll hear this and call up Beck for a new collab!