The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Batiste leads nominations at 64th Grammys
A celebration of this year’s music is finally here. The Grammys, originally scheduled to air Jan. 31, was postponed due to a rise in COVID-19 cases associated the Omicron variant. Now in its the 64th year, the much-loved annual Grammy Awards will be broadcast live on CBS from the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas Sunday, April 3.
The MC, Comedy Central’s “Daily Show” host Trevor Noah, is tasked with carrying the show from start to finish while introducing top nominees Jon Batiste, known for his residency with band Stay Human in “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” R&B artist H.E.R. and Canadian pop star Justin Bieber. Noah will also set the stage for the many other recognized artists, which include, but are not limited to, ABBA, Doja Cat, Billy Eilish, Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga, Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo and Kanye West.
While music fans often see many artists nominated for awards spanning different categories, Batiste, H.E.R. and Bieber have blown regular standards out of the water with 27 nods between them. In fact, Batiste’s 11 nominations are some of the highest the industry has seen in the past decade, and many of the New Orleans musician’s fans will be watching to see if Batiste can beat Michael Jackson’s legendary eight wins at a single Grammy Awards show (in 1984). Batiste’s nominations this year include Album of the Year (“We Are”), Best Improvised Jazz Solo (“Bigger Than Us” in the 2020 animated film “Soul”), Best Jazz Instrumental Album (“Jazz Selections: Music From And Inspired By Soul”), Best American Roots Performance (“Cry”), Best American Roots Song (“Cry” with Steve McEwan), Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (“Soul” with Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross), Best Contemporary Classical Composition (“Batiste: Movement 11’”), Best Music Video (“Freedom”), Best R&B album (“We Are”) and Best
Traditional R&B performance (“I Need You”).
In addition to that, his track “Freedom,” from the “We Are” album, has also been nominated for Record of the Year. The album’s title track includes the acclaimed St. Augustine High School Marching 100 from his New Orleans high school and words by his activist grandfather, David Gauthier.
In response to his nods, Batiste told the New York Times, “I’m so over the moon.”
Tying H.E.R. with eight nominations is the ever-sensational Bieber. The Canadian artist isn’t a new face at the Grammys, but this year his appearances are largely credited to his hit songs “Peaches” (nominated for Record of the Year, Best Music Video, Song of the Year and Best R&B Performance), “Lonely” (nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with benny blanco) and “Anyone” (nominated for Best Pop Solo Performance), as well as his album “Justice(Triple Chucks Deluxe)” (nominated for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album).
But while music is the main course of the evening, one thing can make or break the night — the host.
Wildly successful South African comedian and late-night host Trevor Noah has been announced as host for the second year in a row. E! News reported that the award-winning comedian’s decision to accept the invitation to host was an easy one: “It’s a front-row ticket to the best music concert of all time,” Noah said.
And while the ceremony will look similar in many ways this year, a few changes have been made to the voting process, including the elimination of the nominations review committees and genre fields.
In the past, most of the categories, whether general or genre, were decided by 15 to 30 highly skilled music peers, but this time decisions are left to the members of the Recording Academy, meaning the entire membership body will now have a say as to the winners. The academy has
confirmed that over 90% of its members have undergone the requalification process to ensure the results remain as credible as possible.
There are also two new categories in this year’s show, bringing the total to 86. The new categories are Best Música Urbana Album (Latin Music Field) and Best Global Performance (Global Music Field). These additions come from the Recording Academy’s commitment to ensure that all music creators are authentically represented. Finally, while the Recording Academy has also allowed more voters in, it has reduced the number of categories in which each voter can cast their decision from 15 to 10 across three different fields. The hope here is that each voter will only contribute to fields in which they are qualified. The Recording Academy’s goal is to guarantee credible results, and this year’s changes are an additional safeguard against bloc voting.
With Raj Kapoor (“Adele One Night Only,” 2021) at the helm as showrunner and executive producer alongside co-executive producers Jeannae Rouzan-Clay (“Sunday Best,” 2019) and Jesse Collins (“The Bobby Brown Story,” 2018), fans are excited to see the pomp, circumstance, and, of course, the winners of this prestigious evening in music history. Grab the snacks, place your wagers and watch on as the 64th Grammy Awards unfolds live on CBS Sunday, April 3. (It is also available to stream on Paramount+, the CBS app or CBS.com.)