On June 12th, 2023, the Recording Academy announced that they would be adding three more categories to the GRAMMYs, the long running music industry recognition ceremony first held in 1959. Despite its long history in musical recognition, 2023 was the year that members and fans of the Hip-Hop community felt that they were properly acknowledged and given praise for the accomplishments and contributions of Hip-Hop to the world of music.
The GRAMMYs held a 50 year anniversary tribute to Hip-Hop and brought an all-star performance with it, which included the likes of Big Boi, Busta Rhymes, De La Soul, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Missy Elliott, Grandmaster Flash, Grandmaster Mele Mel, Ice-T, Lil Wayne, The Lox, Method Man, Public Enemy, Queen Latifah, Rakim, RUN-DMC, Salt-N-Pepa Scarface, Swizz Beatz, Too $hort and a list of others. To top it all off, LL Cool J introduced the segment.
With all of that being said, the GRAMMYs seem to be on a roll in a good direction, adding three new categories to the highly coveted show for recognition. The three new categories being acknowledged at the 2024 GRAMMYs ceremony (the 66th GRAMMY Awards) will be:
Best African Music Performance, Best Alternative Jazz Album & Best Pop Dance Recording.
“These Category additions and amendments were voted on and passed at the Recording Academy's most recent semiannual Board of Trustees meeting held in May 2023.”
In a statement from Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason jr., he stated that “the Recording Academy is proud to announce these latest Category changes to our Awards process. These changes reflect our commitment to actively listen and respond to the feedback from our music community, accurately represent a diverse range of relevant musical genres, and stay aligned with the ever-evolving musical landscape".
"By introducing these three new categories, we are able to acknowledge and appreciate a broader array of artists - and relocating the Producer Of the Year and Songwriter Of The Year categories to the General Field ensures that all our voters can participate in recognizing excellence in these fields,” Mason continued. “We are excited to honor and celebrate the creators and recordings in these categories, while also exposing a wider range of music to fans worldwide."
An excerpt from the Recording Academy’s announcement elaborating on the new categories:
Best African Music Performance
A track and singles Category that recognizes recordings that utilize unique local expressions from across the African continent. Highlighting regional melodic, harmonic and rhythmic musical traditions, the Category includes but is not limited to the Afrobeat, Afro-fusion, Afro Pop, Afrobeats, Alte, Amapiano, Bongo Flava, Genge, Kizomba, Chimurenga, High Life, Fuji, Kwassa, Ndombolo, Mapouka, Ghanaian Drill, Afro-House, South African Hip-Hop, and Ethio Jazz genres.
Best Pop Dance Recording
Recognizes tracks and singles that feature up-tempo, danceable music that follows a pop arrangement. Eligible Pop Dance recordings also feature strong rhythmic beats and significant electronic-based instruments with an emphasis on the vocal performance, melody and hooks. Dance remixes are eligible in the Best Remixed Recording Category only and may not be entered in Best Pop Dance Recording.
Best Alternative Jazz Album
This Category recognizes artistic excellence in Alternative Jazz albums by individuals, duos and groups/ensembles, with or without vocals. Alternative Jazz may be defined as a genre-blending, envelope-pushing hybrid that mixes jazz (improvisation, interaction, harmony, rhythm, arrangements, composition, and style) with other genres, including R&B, Hip-Hop, Classical, Contemporary Improvisation, Experimental, Pop, Rap, Electronic/Dance music, and/or Spoken Word. It may also include the contemporary production techniques/instrumentation associated with other genres.
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