So, that time of year again, huh? The Grammys are a funny thing. On one hand, they are the GRAMMYS! The most infamous and high profile music award you can get – everyone wants one. Adele (kinda) wants one. I want one. Heck, I want three. But on the other hand, they have somehow managed to miss out on awarding some of the finest talent in recent years the titles they deserve. Chicago Tribune’s Kevin Johnson recently said about last year’s Album of the year award going to Herbie Hancock, “Hancock’s a legend, but ignoring the impact of [Kanye] West and [Amy] Winehouse felt like a mistake”. Ok, ss Winehouse did win five other categories, but his point is, as the LA Times puts it, “ The industry wants — more to the point, desperately needs — …innovators, but it decidedly prefers those who also find ways to acknowledge the old traditions”.

From my point of view, whether you love or their music or personalities, the artists mentioned are talented and made a massive impact on the music industry last year. If it were a nice-person contest judged by me, they certainly wouldn’t win, but it’s not. It’s the most significant award for musical talent. So what happened?

Well, again there are some solid and possibly surprising inclusions in the 2009 Grammy nominees, namely M.I.A and rapper Lil’ Wayne. I (and many) have been a fan of M.I.A. for some time via her work with artists such as Switch and Diplo, but her recent successes with Timbaland have been more noticeable and so may have earned her a real shot at Record of the Year. Wayne, despite his typically rap lyrical content, has lately been seen happily doing some ‘standard award-bating industry promotion’ (see Country Music Awards appearance)

Maybe their inclusion is part of the attempt to draw in new fans following a fall in viewers over recent years – something they tried to revive with a new prime-time concert full of stars at the announcement ceremony, and something that I hope works. People should be excited for the awards once again, like i said, it’s the GRAMMYS!

For a brief outline of some key categories, check out the US Music Jobs forum 2009 Grammy Nominees

…and here’s the official Grammy website.

Lee Jarvis.

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