I'm a former Grammy voting member, too, and was ejected for the same reasons as you. I think they were wrong in my case, as well. I took the responsibility of voting very seriously. Did my homework and listened to every song and album in each category that I was voting in. Never voted on anything just because it was on the label I was working for. Like you, I tended to vote outside the lines of popularity. I also invested countless hours in the Academy as a Chapter Governor participating in events, fundraising, Grammy U mentoring, membership recruitment campaigns, and such. I was dedicated the cause but, alas, got cancelled.
I was invited a few times to serve on the (not so) secret (anymore) nominating review committees. At the time, those committees were a necessity to make certain that there were no glaring omissions that may have resulted from the "old white guy" vote and blocking voting by labels and publishers. I always thought that the academy should have just moved to a weighted voting system as a means of balance.
One year, serving on the committee for the review of the general field categories, I thought there was a glaring omission in the Album of the Year category and took the floor to lobby the committee to please consider the missing album. A secret vote was taken the results of which would not be known until the final nominees were announced. The missing album was Raising Sand by Robert Plant and Alison Krause and, yes, it won Album of the Year. Probably because of the "old white guy" vote. But not because of mine. I voted for Lil Wayne's, Tha Carter III.
In retrospect, I'm not sure that lobbying for Raising Sand was the right thing to do but it felt so at the time. I mean, neither Tha Carter III or In Rainbows were going to win under any circumstances and maybe it prevented the award from going to a mediocre Coldplay album.
I look forward to watching the Grammy awards tonite. If I were still voting:
Album: SZA
Record: SZA
Song: Eilish
New Artist: Noah Kahan. Would have been The War & Treaty in 2018 when they released their first album.
I hesitated writing about the purge, but I'm glad I did. It was not great but understandable that I got booted, but I can't fathom that they'd do the same to you. You're exactly the kind of person that should be fronting the business and someone with good enough taste to be a bridge between the different factions and generations.
Raising Sand is one of those odd choices, but nowhere near the worst of them this century. That Coldplay LP needed to be blocked and you're right, they'd never give it to Lil Wayne or Radiohead.
I'm never going to get over the "Blinding Lights" fiasco. Somehow, I imagine you would have been a voice of reason had you still been in the room.
Also, Noah Kahan better win. He's pretty much the only artist nominated in *any* on-air category whose vinyl is in demand at my friends' record stores. (Oh yeah, I'd always survey my friends with stores about what was selling before I voted.)
Hi Jim -
I'm a former Grammy voting member, too, and was ejected for the same reasons as you. I think they were wrong in my case, as well. I took the responsibility of voting very seriously. Did my homework and listened to every song and album in each category that I was voting in. Never voted on anything just because it was on the label I was working for. Like you, I tended to vote outside the lines of popularity. I also invested countless hours in the Academy as a Chapter Governor participating in events, fundraising, Grammy U mentoring, membership recruitment campaigns, and such. I was dedicated the cause but, alas, got cancelled.
I was invited a few times to serve on the (not so) secret (anymore) nominating review committees. At the time, those committees were a necessity to make certain that there were no glaring omissions that may have resulted from the "old white guy" vote and blocking voting by labels and publishers. I always thought that the academy should have just moved to a weighted voting system as a means of balance.
One year, serving on the committee for the review of the general field categories, I thought there was a glaring omission in the Album of the Year category and took the floor to lobby the committee to please consider the missing album. A secret vote was taken the results of which would not be known until the final nominees were announced. The missing album was Raising Sand by Robert Plant and Alison Krause and, yes, it won Album of the Year. Probably because of the "old white guy" vote. But not because of mine. I voted for Lil Wayne's, Tha Carter III.
In retrospect, I'm not sure that lobbying for Raising Sand was the right thing to do but it felt so at the time. I mean, neither Tha Carter III or In Rainbows were going to win under any circumstances and maybe it prevented the award from going to a mediocre Coldplay album.
I look forward to watching the Grammy awards tonite. If I were still voting:
Album: SZA
Record: SZA
Song: Eilish
New Artist: Noah Kahan. Would have been The War & Treaty in 2018 when they released their first album.
I hesitated writing about the purge, but I'm glad I did. It was not great but understandable that I got booted, but I can't fathom that they'd do the same to you. You're exactly the kind of person that should be fronting the business and someone with good enough taste to be a bridge between the different factions and generations.
Raising Sand is one of those odd choices, but nowhere near the worst of them this century. That Coldplay LP needed to be blocked and you're right, they'd never give it to Lil Wayne or Radiohead.
I'm never going to get over the "Blinding Lights" fiasco. Somehow, I imagine you would have been a voice of reason had you still been in the room.
Also, Noah Kahan better win. He's pretty much the only artist nominated in *any* on-air category whose vinyl is in demand at my friends' record stores. (Oh yeah, I'd always survey my friends with stores about what was selling before I voted.)
Check out the history of Al Green / Grammys.