This year’s Grammy Awards came with a lot of record breaking awards and show stopping performances! Even through these accomplishments, there has been a bit of controversy with the winners of some of the awards. Here are the general facts.
Starting with the larger awards, Beyonce won Album of the Year for her country album Cowboy Carter. Kendrick Lamar took home the award for record of the year for his single “Not Like Us,” as well as Best Music Video, Best Rap Performance, and Best Song of the Year.
As for record breaking awards, Doechii won her first grammy in the Best Rap Album category, making her the third female rap artist to ever win the award after Cardi B and Lauren Hill. Another record came with Beyonce’s album Cowboy Carter, when she became the first ever black artist to win the award of Best Country Album.
Feelings are mixed with the outcome of this year’s Grammy awards. One popular belief is that Beyonce’s album Cowboy Carter didn’t deserve to win this year’s best country album, and a similar belief is held for her receiving the Album of the Year award. Many people suggest that Billie Ellish should have won the Album of the Year award instead due to her album Hit me Hard and Soft having more streams and seemingly more feedback.
One interviewee had this to say, “Billie should have won the award because not only was this the album Billie was most proud of, but one song had over 300 million more (Spotify) streams than the Cowboy Carter album in total.”
Another said, “Personally, I had no idea Cowboy Carter existed, so when it won I was so confused about what it was. Billie’s music, and new album Hit me Hard and Soft, not only instantly mainstreamed on tiktok but it was more widespread.”
Others believe that Beyonce’s award was deserved simply due to the message that it brought with it. They argue that because the album’s message was concise throughout every track it demonstrates a consecutive album rather than a collection of singles.
Another interviewee said, “ When you listen to the whole track of Cowboy Carter it gives you the experience of a true album.”
Though many are disappointed with the Grammy Awards this year, there are still many positives to the winnings this year. Many artists like Chapel Roan and Doechii received their first Grammy awards this year, with Roan receiving the award of Best New Artist. Each artist gave an inspiring speech showing care for the music industry as well as care for their own communities. Roan’s speech focused on labels treatment towards artists, as she pushed for them to add other benefits like health care and a better wage as to protect young artists. Doechii’s speech ended with an inspiring message to any other black girls or women, pushing them to reach for their goals and to not listen to other people who may try to put them in a box.
Though the Grammy Awards may not seem fair or many times may be “rigged” or biased, the Grammys offer special opportunities to artists who have worked hard to stay in a difficult and altering industry. The Grammy Awards offer hope to new artists as well as others who aspire to one day get on that stage and receive their golden gramophone. It’s inspiring to watch normal people become big stars through their passion, and many hope to see even more new faces next year!
Image courtesy of AI, via deepdreamgenerator.com.
