This week may be the music business’ most important of the year. Littered with VIP parties, star-studded events, and heavy-hitter brunches leading up to the big dance on Sunday, The 61st annual Grammy Awards is set to honor the best, brightest, and most talented musicians of our time. Or will it?
More so than the Oscars and Golden Globes, the Grammy’s appear painfully out of step with current trends and consumer sentiment. Although it remains a dream for most artists to be nominated, viewers are increasingly scratching their heads at the results, their feelings more often resembling those elicited by politicians misrepresenting their interests without consequence.
And that’s before we look under the hood. The controversy surrounding the new CEO, Deborah Dugan, stepping down just five months into her tenure grows more explosive by the day, with troubling accusations of rape, rigged results, and self-dealing. This doesn’t feel like an organization with its house in order. I truly wonder how long the Grammy’s can remain the crown jewel of artistic achievement — or relevant whatsoever — without serious innovation.
Considering music is one of the most disruptive creative industries (from the turn of the century P2P networks to today’s TikTok stars), it would only seem right for its Super Bowl moment to represent the state of the art itself. Alas, another year has come and gone without much-needed house-cleaning and self-reflection from on high.
So, I’ll be watching from New York this year, rooting for the new faces and hoping the latest scandal becomes the catalyst for change. Anybody having a viewing party in the city? Let me know!