Everything about The Grammy totally explained
The
GRAMMY Awards (originally called the
Gramophone Awards)—or "GRAMMYs"—are presented annually by the
National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the
United States for outstanding achievements in the
record industry. The awards ceremony features performances by prominent artists, and some of the more prominent Grammy Awards are presented in a widely-viewed televised ceremony. The current President of the Academy is
Neil Portnow. The Grammys are considered the highest music honor, the U.S. record industry's equivalent to the
Academy Awards (Oscars) for motion pictures.
The awards were established in
1958. Prior to the first live Grammys telecast in 1971 on
ABC (
CBS bought the rights in 1973 after moving the ceremony to
Nashville, Tennessee; the
American Music Awards were created for
ABC as a result), a series of taped annual specials in the 1960s called
The Best on Record were broadcast on
NBC.
The award show is normally held in February. The
50th Grammy Awards ceremony was held on
February 10, again at the
Staples Center.
As of 2006, the eligibility period for the Grammy Awards begins
October 1.
The Gramophone
The actual trophy is manufactured exclusively by
Billings Artworks
in
Ridgway, CO. The trophies are all hand made and assembled. Years ago, the old smaller gramophone had to be revamped because the metals were too soft and there were many problems with the trophy breaking. The trophy was made bigger and grander. The Grammy is assembled in pieces and finally finished off in gold plating. The trophies used for the broadcast are called "stunt" Grammys. Billings keeps the actual awards in his studio until after the winners are announced at which time he engraves them and loads them into his van, drives them across country and personally delivers them to the academy.
As of 2007, 7,578 Grammy trophies have been awarded
Categories
The "General Field" are four awards which are not restricted by genre, and are generally considered to be the most important.
Other awards are given for performance and production in specific genres, as well as for other contributions such as artwork and video. Special awards are also given out for more long-lasting contributions to the music industry.
Criticism
Certain musical artists have voiced personal issues with the nature of the Grammys. The singer of
rock band
Tool didn't attend the Grammys ceremony to receive their award. Lead singer
Maynard James Keenan explained his thoughts of the Grammys:
Recording Academy and record companies are responsible for entering into nomination the works that they deem most deserving. Once a work is entered, reviewing sessions are held by over 150 experts from the recording industry. This is done only to determine whether or not a work is eligible or entered into the proper category for official nomination. The nomination process requires that members vote only in their fields of expertise. They may nominate in the four general categories (
Record of the Year,
Album of the Year,
Song of the Year and
Best New Artist) and in no more than nine out of 31 fields on their ballots. Once the nominations are secured, Recording Academy members may then vote in the four general categories and in no more than eight of the 31 fields. Ballots are tabulated secretly by the major independent accounting firm
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu.
There is much debate about whether or not this sort of nominating process is the result of commercial, political, or industry bias. Some conservative critics have argued that major award shows like the Grammys are merely the recording industry's attempt to congratulate themselves while advertising their products and ideas through the use of
selection bias in the nomination and award process. Some critics argue that winners naturally reflect "the social, political and artistic preferences of the nominating and voting members." Other critics within and outside of the industry, question openly whether music award shows are relevant in today's digital society. Award shows like the Grammys appear generally to be relevant agents of change in the industry:
Billboard Magazine regularly observes a spike in an artist or group's album after winning a Grammy Award. Such evidence, however, should naturally be considered in light of
confirmation bias.
Additionally, many have criticized the Grammys for distributing many more awards than necessary, and that a large portion of the ceremony is "filler" to result in a longer engagement and for being nothing more than individuals patting themselves on the back like any other awards showcase.
Trent Reznor (
Nine Inch Nails) wrote on his blog
December 6,
2007, "While the music industry is doing everything they possibly can to go out of business, can we all make sure to rid ourselves of the Grammys, too? Out of touch old men jacking each other off. ENOUGH! Have a nice day."
Popular culture
The long-time running animated show
The Simpsons often mocks the Grammy Awards. In the episode "
Homer's Barbershop Quartet",
Homer Simpson wins a Grammy for "Outstanding Soul, Spoken Word, or Barbershop Album of the Year" with his
barbershop quartet, The B Sharps. He uses the award as a tip for roomservice. The waiter is initially excited but is quickly disappointed when he realizes it's a Grammy, and throws it off the balcony. Someone on the ground then throws the award back up, exclaiming, "Hey, don't throw your garbage down here!" In the episode "
The Mansion Family", Homer, upset over not winning an award, is reminded that he once won a Grammy. He responds, "I mean an award that's worth winning." A disclaimer then rolls at the bottom of the screen saying that "Mr. Simpson's opinions don't reflect those of the producers, who don't consider the Grammy an award at all". In the episode "
I'm With Cupid",
Elton John gives Homer a Grammy casually as a thank you for a simple compliment. Homer then mumbles something and throws it away. In
Behind the Laughter the Simpsons also sweep the Grammy Awards for their song "Simpsons Christmas Boogie".
Award ceremony locations
Further Information
Get more info on 'Grammy'.
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