The Recording Academy widening nomination ambit for Album of the Year acknowledges all contributors, invites mediocrity

The Recording Academy, that bestows the coveted Grammy Awards, has once again updated its rule book for several categories, with most of them coming into effective immediately. This move will be reflected during the January 2022 ceremony itself. While the academy has widened the nomination ambit for some categories, it has cut the flab and renamed some others, in a bid to institute the most comprehensive music awards ever.

Yet one change that is likely to stir diverse opinions is the one concerning the Album of the Year. The academy announced on Wednesday that the Album of the Year nomination will now include all producers, songwriters, engineers, and artists featured on said album, irrespective of how much their overall contribution is. The move abolishes the 2017 rule of being eligible for nomination only if the songwriter or producer’s contribution is 33 percent or more of the total playing time of the album. Prior to 2017, songwriters were not even included in the nomination category, so the Wednesday announcement sees the category at its inclusive best. 

By including all songwriters associated with an album, the academy is unequivocally acknowledging just every collaborator irrespective of their final playtime on the album.

It must be noted here that songwriters are set to get their due, a big improvement from the time when they had to prove their eligibility. Historically, in genres like pop, the main artists themselves are frequently not the songwriters of many albums in the pop genre even if they are the voice behind it. Elvis Presley, in fact, was simply the sonorous voice to Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller’s iconic songwriting skills, as the duo are brains behind 'Hound Dog,' 'Kansas City,' and 'Jailhouse Rock.' Of course, this is not the 1950s, and the Recording Academy is very aware of how many more hands make up an album today.

And then you have genres like rap and hip-hop, which have conventionally listed everyone who has worked on the album. Going by the new rule change, someone like Justin Bieber — whose vacuous number 'Baby' in 2010 alone had five songwriters— will now have over 50 collaborators listed should his 2021 release Justice be nominated in the Album of the Year category. 

Accustomed to how the rock and country genres function, where the main collaborators are largely the artist/band themselves with the occasional guest partnerships, the Grammy’s latest rule change will immensely benefit songwriters who are the backbone of a collaborative effort like an album. 

Yet, there is mixed response to a seemingly sweeping move that may find “less deserving” awardees take home statuettes merely by association. Simply put, it is like the songwriter or engineer or producer of a B-side number having a Grammy at home, simply by the happenchance of being on an album that rode on the brilliance of others. It also, in some ways, makes it so much easier to win a Grammy, an award that is so coveted for being one that runs on merit and approval from one’s peers, not some popularity contest or a function of sales figures.

But would this be a simplistic view of the academy’s effort? Yes and no. 

Sport is replete with examples of how a winning team in a tournament includes its bench strength and coaching staff. When India won the cricket World Cup in 2011, it was not just the playing 11 that received individual medals; the reserve players, the coaches, and managers were all on hand to partake in the glorious collaborative effort. Awarding the full team is a way of acknowledging their roles both consciously and inadvertently, as they contribute to the triumphant journey of the victors.

Albums, in many ways, function just like that. Not every album is a Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band or a Dark Side of the Moon or a Led Zeppelin IV, full of great songs and little room for musical weaknesses. Most albums have 50 to 60 percent greatness, whose sheen is enhanced by the existence of the remaining averageness. 

On the other hand, by taking the Math out of the equation (in this case the 33 percent reservation, so to speak), the academy is certainly acknowledging that sometimes it takes just one or two outstanding songs and six to seven good ones, to herald an album into superstardom. Therefore, those associated with these songs need to be a part of the album’s victory, and cannot lose out on the nomination just because they did not meet the 33 percent playtime criteria. Prior to 2017, songwriters did not even stand a chance even as engineers and mixers were unambiguously acknowledged in the submission of a nomination.  

Does this rule change finally give songwriters their due and not treat them like afterthoughts? In a way, yes. But if the Recording Academy truly wants to effect change, then it should consider a separate category like Songwriter of the Year. Culling from a plethora of songs, the award would be a befitting validation of the songwriter’s role without having them have to share space with singers, producers, and engineers, who have other categories to dominate as well.

It appears like the Recording Academy, led by interim CEO Harvey Mason Jr, has its heart in the right place to inspire change. Its efforts to streamline categories and nominees is a reflection of that.