Certainly, the world famous awards ceremony needs no introduction. The Grammy Awards from the very beginning has been making its way onto the hearts of the people and have gained immense popularity to drive people frenzy over the years. Presented annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS); popularly known as the Recording Academy to recognize the achievements in the music industry, the Grammy Awards is something to which not only the residents of the United States (U.S.) but everyone across the globe are hooked to.
But it all became very uncertain and grim last year. With rising corona cases and intensified situations, while the world was forced to go into a lockdown, everyone wondered will the situation ever become normal for hosting of the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony. As dark clouds hovered, everyone wondered will the status of Grammy Awards be reduced to a mere zoom call but as the Grammy Awards 2021 is finally concluded, we can tell you : “definitely not !”
Key Highlights Of The Blog are :-
- Grammy Awards 2021 : The Significance In The Era Of Covid
- From Nominations To Winning : How Does Grammy Awards Work?
- Grammy Awards 2021 : The Covid 19 Era Show
- The Story Of Winners On March 2021
- History At 2021 Grammy Awards
Grammy Awards 2021 : The Significance In The Era Of Covid
The Grammy Awards certainly is one of the biggest events in the music industry. It is not only limited to the performances or the big names handing out awards and the big names receiving it either. It’s about encouraging the ones who did their best and played a crucial role and were our source of relaxation and entertainment, all throughout the year. The annual awards ceremony isn’t just the talk of the town simply for the big names receiving the trophy that depicts a gilded gramophone, it has its place and is a big and significant event because it is compassionate and upholds those who add value. Upholding to this legacy, the 2021 Grammy Awards ceremony featured employees from music venues that have struggled amid a lack of live entertainment during the pandemic and have faced grim situations over the past one year or so.
From Nominations To Winning : How Does Grammy Awards Work?
The way one gets a Grammy Awards is not that simple after all. The process is quite complex and complicated enough in a way that most people might even feel ridiculous about it. But at the end of the day : it is, what it is.
The Grammy Awards has different nomination categories, each of which isolate and address to a specific contribution in the music and recording industry. The categories for nominations are :-
- Album Of The Year
- Song Of The Year
- Record Of The Year
- Best New Artist
- Best Pop Solo Performance
- Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
- Best Pop Vocal Album
- Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
- Best Dance Recording
- Best Dance/ Electronic Album
- Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
- Best Rock Performance
- Best Metal Performance
- Best Rock Song
- Best Rock Album
- Best Alternative Music Album
- Best R&B Performance
- Best Traditional R&B Performance
- Best R&B Song
- Best Progressive R&B Album
- Best R&B Album
- Best Rap Performance
- Best Melodic Rap Performance
- Best Rap Song
- Best Rap Album
- Best Country Solo Performance
- Best Country Duo/Group Performance
- Best Country Song
- Best Country Album
- Best New Age Album
- Best Improvised Jazz Solo
- Best Jazz Vocal Album
- Best Jazz Instrumental Album
- Best Latin Jazz Album
- Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
- Best Gospel Performance/Song
- Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song
- Best Gospel Album
- Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
- Best Roots Gospel Album
- Best Latin Pop or Urban Album
- Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
- Best Regional Mexican Music Album (including Tejano)
- Best Tropical Latin Album
- Best American Roots Performance
- Best American Roots Song
- Best Americana Album
- Best Bluegrass Album
- Best Contemporary Blues Album
- Best Traditional Blues Album
- Best Folk Album
- Best Regional Roots Music Album
- Best Reggae Album
- Best Global Music Album
- Best Children’s Album
- Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling)
- Best Comedy Album
- Best Musical Theater Album
- Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
- Best Score Soundtrack Album for Visual Media (Previously in the “Composing and Arranging” field)
- Best Song Written for Visual Media (Previously in the “Composing and Arranging” field)
- Best Instrumental Composition
- Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
- Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals
- Best Recording Package
- Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package
- Best Album Notes
- Best Historical Album
- Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
- Best Engineered Album, Classical
- Producer of the Year, Non-Classical
- Producer of the Year, Classical
- Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical
- Best Immersive Audio Album
- Best Orchestral Performance
- Best Opera Recording
- Best Choral Performance
- Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance
- Best Classical Instrumental Solo
- Best Classical Vocal Solo (previously including albums and tracks)
- Best Classical Compendium
- Best Contemporary Classical Composition
- Best Music Video
- Best Music Film
These nomination categories are then sent out to a voting constituency. To be a part of the voting constituency, one needs to have production credits on an album. And once, one has a production credit on an album he needs to apply for becoming a voter of the voting constituency and that’s all one need to have in order to vote in the different nomination categories.
After the voting is done, it becomes evident as the voting constituency gets the final breakout of the nominations. To cross check the results, the nominations are again polled by a separate institution following which the names get announced in early December.
Grammy Awards 2021 : The Covid 19 Era Show
With dark clouds hovering over the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards Ceremony, people wondered if the biggest event in the music industry would fall prey to Covid. Certainly, nothing much was in the hands. As the cases continued to rise, the officials were forced to postpone the annual award ceremony from January to mid of March. But, conducting the event while following all the Covid protocols even in the month of March was a huge and humongous task.
Owing to the rising cases and intensity of the issue, Grammy Awards 2021 could not take place at its traditional venue of the Staples Center and was shifted to the outdoor location of Southern California in downtown Los Angeles. The unprecedented time like this, called for some unprecedented moves and the 2021 Grammy Awards which was presented on March 14, 2021 was reduced to a socially distanced award presentation ceremony, where some of the biggest stars of the music industry sat at small, safely spaced tables in open tents wearing masks.
Surely, the Grammy Awards 2021 did not have any audience in person but that did not reduce it to a mere virtual award show either. The event was conducted at an outdoor location and the host constantly cracked funny jokes and he walked along the red carpet to an indoor venue featuring five stages in the round, with artists performing for each other and the audience before another set of artists replaces them 45 minutes later. All this was done, without tinkering with the Covid protocols. The show worked with COVID-19 experts to make sure everyone followed the necessary protocols to remain safe. The event also highlighted the toll that COVID-19 had made on the live entertainment and the intensity with which it has affected the lives of those closely associated with it.
The Story Of Winners On 14th March 2021
The 63rd Grammy Awards Ceremony which was presented on 14th March 2021, took into account the recordings released between September 1, 2019, and August 31, 2020.
The winners of the top 20 awards categories are as follows :-
- Record Of The Year – Everything I Wanted by Billie Eilish
- Album Of The Year – Folklore by Taylor Swift
- Song Of The Year – I Can’t Breathe
- Best New Artist – Megan Thee Stallion
- Best Pop Solo Performance – Watermelon Sugar by Harry Styles
- Best Pop Duo /Group Performance – Rain On Me by Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande
- Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album – American Standard by James Taylor
- Best Pop Vocal Album – Future Nostalgia by Dua Lipa
- Best Dance Recording – 10%
- Best Dance/Electronic Album – Bubba by Kaytranda
- Best Contemporary Instrumental Album – Live At The Royal Albert Hall by Snark Puppy
- Best Rock Performance – Shameika by Fiona Apple
- Best Metal Performance – Bum-Rush by Body Count
- Best Rock Song – Stay High
- Best Rock Album – The New Abnormal by The Strokes
- Best Alternative Music Album – Fetch The Bolt Cutters by Fiona Apple
- Best R&B Performance – Black Parade by Beyoncé
- Best Traditional R&B Performance – Anything For You by Ledisi
- Best R&B Song – Better Than I Imagined
- Best Progressive R&B Album – It Is What It Is by Thundercat
History At 2021 Grammy Awards
Certainly, the Grammy Awards 2021 was an award presentation ceremony of many firsts. Be it conducting the event without any live audiences or the shifting of the venue from the traditional Staples Center to the outdoor location of Southern California in downtown Los Angeles. Adding to this, was the wearing of masks and maintaining social distancing norms. But, that was not all as the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards Ceremony demanded more and that was also met as Taylor Swift made history at the Sunday’s ceremony, by becoming the first female artist ever to win album of the year three times. Beyoncé also set a new record for the Grammy Awards with her 28th win and set the tone for the evening.
