The Grammys Did It Again
Well, if you didn't know, the 65th annual Grammy Awards were last night, and while Beyoncé made history as the most-awarded artist, Harry Styles' "Harry's House" ended up taking home the award for Album of the Year. As a huge fan of both Beyoncé and Bad Bunny, I woke up this morning still processing what had happened. I see why this may come across as a sore loser who just wanted their favs to win. But, with "Renaissance" and "Un Verano Sin Ti" surpassing Styles' third studio album in both sales and streams, the Recording Academy proves again why so many artists and fans distrust their credibility on Music's Biggest Night.
One of the highest-rated albums of the year, high praise from critics and artists and a glittering career with a golden reputation, yet Beyoncé has not been able to secure the biggest award for her music after a fourth straight loss — quite the paradox.
And yes, I understand she did get her recognition last night as she won awards in the dance/electronic and R&B categories, making her the most decorated artist at the Grammys. While others look at the outrage as greedy and unnecessary, I can't help but feel those wins come as consolation prizes, reduced to only being successful in those categories, because people believe she gets too much praise.
In a Feb. 2 Variety article, anonymous Grammy voters revealed their ballot picks. Voter 4 said, "With Beyoncé, the fact that every time she does something new, it’s a big event and everyone’s supposed to quake in their shoes — it’s a little too portentous."
Even Adele, who won AOTY in 2017 over "Lemonade," utilized her speech to gush about how Beyoncé should've won. "I can’t possibly accept this award, and I’m very humbled, and I’m very grateful and gracious, but the artist of my life is Beyoncé,” she said. “And this album to me, the ‘Lemonade’ album, was just so monumental, Beyoncé, so monumental, and so well thought out, and so beautiful and soul-bearing, and we all got to see another side to you that you don’t always let us see. And we appreciate that, and all us artists here f*cking adore you. You are our light, and the way that you make me and my friends feel—the way that you make my black friends feel—is empowering, and you make them stand up for themselves. And I love you, I always have, and I always will.”
On the other hand, Bad Bunny's "Un Verano Sin Ti" was historic, becoming the most-streamed album in 2022 on Spotify and generating more than 4 billion US streams across several platforms last year. Not to mention, Bad Bunny was the most-streamed artist globally in 2022 on Spotify for the third year in a row. The album is the first Spanish-language album to ever receive a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. If Beyoncé was not going to win, it definitely should have been Benito.
My opinion? The fact that some of the reasoning people used to vote against Beyoncé is because she "wins" all the time is abhorrent because she has NEVER won the top prize. It's like giving someone a couple of flowers but never giving them the bouquet to teach them a so-called lesson on humility. Stop trying to humble Beyoncé and Black women. This was Beyoncé's first solo project in six years, and people still have the audacity to roll their eyes at her name and act like she is all in their faces. "Renaissance" was an instant hit — every song. It was critically acclaimed and ranked as the number-one album in 2022 for top news outlets. It is frustrating that she doesn't receive top recognition for each culture-impacting piece she makes. Bad Bunny's impact cannot be denied either. Downplaying his reach and influence just because he is an artist who centers non-English-speaking audiences in his music is lazy and discriminatory.
And on that note, I will now continue to wait patiently for my turn to secure tickets for The Renaissance World Tour.
