“Every year that the Grammys come out people are disgruntled about it, and this one is no different. It is what it is. I always tell people if you want to make a change, register and get involved and be a part. You caan just stay pon di side and seh di Grammy dem a dis and di Grammy dem a dat. If you are not registered then you are not a part of it. Get on board if you want a different outcome.” Shaggy after the 2022 Grammy Awards.
Let’s look at the 2022 annual Grammy Awards, and the category in question is Best Reggae Album. The nominations were;
1. SOJA (USA) – Beauty In The Silence
2. Sean Paul (Jam) – Live N Livin
3. Jesse Royal (Jam) – Royal
4. Etana (Jam) – Pamoja
5. Gramps Morgan (Jam) – Positive Vibration
6. Spice (Jam – 10
Knowing that The US ensemble SOJA took the award, it is easy to understand the Caribbean faithful’s frustrations about the whole process. However, who is part of that voting process? And is it a true reflection of what is going on in the world? The United States Recording Academy of Arts and Sciences hosts the Grammy Awards, which are the most prestigious peer-voted music awards in the world. CEO Harvey Mason Jnr has defended the academy’s work and challenged more participation through membership saying,
“This goes to every category we have. You have to understand that voting is done entirely by members. So think about our membership; think about what the makeup of that membership is. Then think about the music that they know and are experts in. And this is why diversifying our membership is so important”.
Basically, the message is that there are not enough members who represent the Windies people in the voting process, thus their failure falls right back on them. With a US$100.00 membership fee, I think we all know what needs to be done here.
The wheels seem to be in motion though. Following Harvey Mason’s challenge to consider a petition to include a Dancehall Category for the Academy, the President of Solid Agency in Jamaica, Sharon Burke, has vowed to put things in motion.
“Let’s Lobby for Dancehall to have its own Category. We will write to the Academy. We will have the Dancehall fraternity attach their signature. Well done @jrwatkis . Thank you Harvey for sharing. Hope to see you at the Feb 8th to 12th 2023 Island Music Conference.”
Things will eventually come right. I presume. Who is to say SOJA wouldn’t still have won this year’s Best Reggae Award despite having more representation of “reggae aficionados”? Baby steps for now, and I think it’s now common sense to get involved. It is easy to cry wolf, however, sometimes, you need to think objectively and not always feel like the victim. It has taken a while to reach this juncture in Jamaica’s reggae history, however, let us hope the evolution does not take too long until we all feel we are playing on the same level.