Call Me If You… Like Music: A Ben Zangas Grammy Review
Following the 64th annual Grammy awards, the music world is thrown into a whirlwind of accolades and backlash resulting from snubs or well-deserved awards. And as we head into the summer, I’m going to be looking at some of the picks I thought were worthy, and suggestions I would have for wins in other categories.
Topic 1: Rap Album of the Year
Tyler, the Creator took home the award for rap album of the year with his second grammy award winning and third nominated release, Call Me if You Get Lost. The Recording Academy typically does take into consideration popularity when choosing what to award, and Call Me if You Get Lost fits the bill. Also, it is just a great record on its own. Painting a picture of a lavish Swiss vacation, Tyler creates a great atmosphere of decadence complete with a flair of braggadocious language. Competing with other LPs like Donda by Ye, Kings Disease II by Nas, and The Off-Season by J. Cole. Personally, I think that Tyler’s album was the one out of the list that mixed critical and commercial success enough to win the award, so I’m happy with this pick.
Topic 2: Record of the Year
This award went to Bruno Mars and Anderson.Paak’s track “Leave the Door Open,” off of their collaborative album, An Evening with Silk Sonic. When this song was released, it instantly captured the nation, taking the world back to the 1970s with a rich soul-sound. And with names like Mars and Paak, the track was bound to be heard everywhere. I approve of this pick because of the highly anticipated release of the rest of the album, and the great music it produced. Despite being in the company of other popular names like Olivia Rodrigo, Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X, the track gave a fresh sound for the year, and introduced the new supergroup in a way that only Bruno Mars and Anderson.Paak could do, and for that reason, this track is deserving of its award.
Topic 3: Album of the Year
Lastly, I have a critique for Album of the Year. The award was given to We Are by John Batiste out of a list of Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Ye, Doja Cat and last but not least, Olivia Rodrigo. While many of these major names made great headlines throughout the year, none of them achieved as much musically as Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour. With an angsty, teenage sound, the former Disney Channel star made serious headway in the music scene, with beloved songs like “good 4 u,” “brutal,” and “drivers license.” Recently, no artist has come on to the scene as strongly and in so little time as O-Rod. Her fresh sound, musical potential, influence and irrefutable commercial success makes her deserving of the award. Additionally, I have heard many more great things about this record than about Batiste’s. All in all, I would have gone with Rodrigo for Album of the Year.
Overall, I don’t think the Academy made too many egregious decisions for this year’s Grammys, but here were just a few of my own thoughts. And at the end of the year, I think that they had some solid picks that reflected the sounds of the world, especially in our school. The 2021-2022 school year was subject to some great music, which I think were not only reflected by the Grammy’s but in the cars, phones, and AirPods of the entire student body.
https://www.grammy.com/news/2022-grammys-complete-winners-nominees-nominations-list
