Diversity brightens up the new-artist category
Featuring two rising female country stars and two hip-hop upstarts, the 2017 Grammys’ best-new-artist field actually lives up to its name. In recent years, the nominees have been a homogenous group of mostly pop, mostly white artists. But 2017’s nominees are a welcome change, the first newartist pool with two non-white faces since 2013. In his first year nominated, Chance the Rapper and his triumphant Coloring Book are a Grammys success story, his nomination made possible by the rules change that allows mixtapes to be eligible. The Chicago rapper picked up seven nods, and while the list of rappers who have won best new artist is short (Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Lauryn Hill and Arrested Development), Chance has a slight edge in the category. Voters seemed to have enjoyed 2016’s proliferation of colorful, melodic rap; alongside Chance is Anderson .Paak, known for his similarly energetic, jazz-influenced work.
Chance’s biggest competition comes from electronic duo The Chainsmokers. Compared with the two nominated rappers, who had made music for years before winning the academy’s attention, Andrew Taggart and Alex Pall linked up only in the past few years. But their swift rise made them an obvious inclusion, thanks to their hits including Roses, Don’t Let Me Down and Closer, the latter of which spent 12 weeks at No. 1.
Rounding out the category are Kelsea Ballerini and Maren Morris, two of country music’s most exciting names. Morris’ debut, Hero, has been a critical favorite, boosting her to a newartist-of-the-year win at last month’s Country Music Association Awards and earning her accolades for her honest, witty songwriting. Meanwhile, Nashville darling Kelsea Ballerini has broken records with her infectious chart-topping hits, earning her the reputation as a successor to Taylor Swift.
Regardless of who wins, this year’s best-new-artist field is a hopeful sign the Grammys are recognizing the changing face of the music industry.