The 58th Grammy Awards will be remembered for subpar medleys, Kendrick Lamar, and Taylor Swift. For those of you hoping this would be another CMA-level moment for Chris Stapleton, unfortunately that did not happen. Stapleton did win 2 out of the 3 awards that he was nominated for, and he had a good performance that showed general music listeners that he is one to pay attention to. If he had won Album of the Year, sneaking up and beating out front runners Lamar and Swift, it would have been bigger for him than the CMAs. But he didn't. That prize went to Taylor Swift.
During her set at the Grammy Museum last year, Swift openly admitted that when she didn't win Album of the Year for Red, (when for a split second she and her team thought she had), she skipped all the after parties and went home and cried. She then tried to figure out what she had done wrong, and pledged to fix whatever was wrong with Red and Speak Now on her next record. That flaw, she concluded, was cohesiveness, and out of that came 1989. To come back to the Grammys two years later and win the Album of the Year prize she had wanted so desperately two years before is touching. Although that album wasn't the best album out of the five nominees, she deserved it the most. Maybe it means that she'll never come back to country music. Maybe she'll realize that she's conquered the world and she'll make a more stripped down record. But whatever she does next, she can know that she is a role model for all artists, in pop and country music alike.
Little Big Town did as well as expected, and stole two of the four country Grammys, for Best Country Song, and for Best Country Duo/Group Performance with "Girl Crush." Their performance of the smash added an orchestra, which took away from some of the magic and sultry quality of the original hit. They lost song of the year to Ed Sheeran and "Thinking Out Loud," but besides their not great performance and loss, this song did something amazing for this band and country music. It really is a perfect example of 21st century country music.
Little Big Town did as well as expected, and stole two of the four country Grammys, for Best Country Song, and for Best Country Duo/Group Performance with "Girl Crush." Their performance of the smash added an orchestra, which took away from some of the magic and sultry quality of the original hit. They lost song of the year to Ed Sheeran and "Thinking Out Loud," but besides their not great performance and loss, this song did something amazing for this band and country music. It really is a perfect example of 21st century country music.
Sam Hunt didn't win anything. I think he had a shot at Best New Artist, and I think he would have deserved that one if he had won it. His success this year and the success of Montevallo has been unparalleled. He does continue to almost exploit country music however, which is why he didn't win any country awards. The Grammys are doing the thing they did to Taylor Swift in the Red Era: they nominate these not-very-country albums that are amazing, but not country, and then don't let them win. It's recognition, but also a slight push, telling him to get out of country music.
Every year, I continue to be impressed by how good all of the nominees are. Unlike country radio, the Grammys accept and reward those artists that are truly country singers. They also acknowledge so many women in country music. For Best Country Album, the nominees were Hunt, Stapleton, Little Big Town, Kacey Musgraves, and Ashley Monroe. The latter two, although they didn't win, haven't gotten nearly enough credit for their incredible albums this year, but they finally got recognition at the Grammys. Carrie Underwood, Cam, Lee Ann Womack, and Brandy Clark are other artists acknowledged by the Grammys this year. Again, although the winners weren't women, I feel that this year was a very women heavy selection, and I applaud the Grammys for giving that to the insanely talented women of country music.
Every year, I continue to be impressed by how good all of the nominees are. Unlike country radio, the Grammys accept and reward those artists that are truly country singers. They also acknowledge so many women in country music. For Best Country Album, the nominees were Hunt, Stapleton, Little Big Town, Kacey Musgraves, and Ashley Monroe. The latter two, although they didn't win, haven't gotten nearly enough credit for their incredible albums this year, but they finally got recognition at the Grammys. Carrie Underwood, Cam, Lee Ann Womack, and Brandy Clark are other artists acknowledged by the Grammys this year. Again, although the winners weren't women, I feel that this year was a very women heavy selection, and I applaud the Grammys for giving that to the insanely talented women of country music.
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