Not Just a Popularity Contest: The Educational Value of Watching the Grammys
This is for all the musicians out there… Watch the Grammys! It's easy to ignore the importance of an award show. Flippantly scoff at your lack of interest in the talent or comment about the celebrity elite basking over themselves and their accomplishments. I remember sitting in my dorm room in college watching the Grammys, only to realize the next day that I was the only one who watched, and not a single person seemed to care about any of the results. Was I crazy for idolizing these musicians? Everyone else seemed to write off pop music and its fetishized commercialization as if they had read Adorno's work on music and capitalism. Not one student I knew pulled that article from the stacks. Just because there are valid arguments for skipping out on these award shows doesn't bother me any less by the lack of interest in the academic community.
The Grammys had 86 categories' this year. Jazz and classical awards are not announced during the 210 minutes of on-air programming, but that doesn't mean you should skip out on the show's greater relevance? The celebration of talent is undeniable. As Musicians, we should want to better understand our industry's ebbs and flows and what talent is represented at peak popularity. More importantly, where and how music is presenting itself in the culture. If you are a musician and didn't take the time to listen to at least one of the ten nominated albums of the year, you are missing out on an opportunity to digest America's hunger for quality art. Each one of these albums holds merit, and being dismissive of this music is problematic in its own right.
If you aren't into popularized genres, sitting through 3 and a half hours of ceremony and performances may sound boring and spark little interest. At the very least, it is worth noting the nominations, new award categories, and how the cultural interests have altered over the years. Keep in mind the Grammys is more than a simple popularity contest. It represents the professional music community, from performers to sound engineers. I drudged through 700 plus years of western art music in over 9 courses during my undergraduate degree I perceived at the time to be repetitive and monotonous. Working through that music, I developed a pallet and appreciation for those styles. A little bit of study leads to an endless amount of appreciation, and it doesn't take much effort to maintain that knowledge base. The same can be done for popularized genres. Don't forget, genres like classical and jazz are included as well.
Just a few observations I thought were of note in this year's award show:
Colombian artists J Balvin and Korean pop sensation BTS performed. International performances have been normalized at the Grammys over the years. I've seen "Butter" performed numerous times throughout 2021, and for the Grammy stage, they put an engaging spy theme that created some much-needed novelty to the performance.
Chris Stapleton won the best Country Solo performance. I couldn't help but notice his live performance could have been categorized as Rock in the late 90s. Genres alter to the needs and desires of the audience, and it's important to accept these changes.
Billi Eilish's on-stage performance began in a house staged to appear upside down. This trope at first appeared cliche, only to realize she was standing in a foot of water which foreshadowed the rain effect added at the climax of her song. Her shirt paid homage to Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters, who recently passed away, was a cognisant detail that created depth to a powerful rock-themed performance.
My favorite moment of the night was when Nas was on stage with a classic big band. The lead alto player stood up to take a brief solo, and I instantly recognized the tone and technique of Terrace Martin. Martin is a phenomenal sax player and hip-hop producer I first discovered while watching Kendrick Lamar perform one of his tracks from "Untitled" live on The Colbert Report years ago. I couldn't help but Fan Boy at the moment, no matter how brief.
Finally, the realization that a talent like Lady Gaga can successfully shift genres and become a classic crooner. She has released works with the great Tony Bennet. She completely embodies the genre's persona as she snaps her fingers along to performances later in the evening.
These fleeting moments sparked interest and fulfillment during my viewing of the Grammys. Dedicating a single night to gaining a glimpse into the zeitgeist can pay immense dividends for those willing. You can keep a hipster attitude, ignore popularized music and continue to wall yourself off from the greater music community. Or take the time to expose yourself to what most of America deems worthy of consumption and accolade. Commercial success is not an excuse to dismiss these popularized genres. I would argue that for concert music's longevity, we should be in tune with what the culture is consuming and use that knowledge to better orient our own pursuits for success when creating our own art.
