Can we just for once have a sham awards ceremony without some massive controversy? Sheesh. Earlier this morning, the nominations for the 59th Annual Grammy Awards were announced, and in addition to bestowing nominations on several of our favourite Australian artists, the Grammys stirred controversy by giving a Best Rock Performance nomination to Beyonce.
Beyonce nabbing a few Grammy nominations is hardly news. At this point she could record the sound of her twirling her own hair between thumb and forefinger and it’ll get a Record of the Year nod, and Beyonce actually leads the 2017 Grammy nominees pool with nine nominations, with the likes of Drake, Rihanna, and Kanye trailing behind with a paltry eight.
Queen Bey’s universally acclaimed Lemonade is nominated for all of the top categories, as well as Best Urban Contemporary album. However, its nominations in the individual performance categories is where it’s raising a few eyebrows. Beyonce is squaring off against Alabama Shakes, David Bowie, Disturbed, and Twenty One Pilots in the category of Best Rock Performance.
And maybe we’ll be the only ones to say it, but she deserves to win.
Or you could give it to David Bowie. Either way, Beyonce actually deserves a place in that category more than Alabama Shakes, Disturbed, or Twenty One Pilots. Yes, we know she’s an R&B artist and we’re already anticipating the angry comments we’re about to cop from irate rock pigs, but just hear us out for a minute.
Let’s start by actually defining just what Best Rock Performance means, because there’s also a category for Best Rock Song, which this year is populated by the likes of Bowie (again), Radiohead, Metallica, Twenty One Pilots (again), and Highly Suspect. What’s the difference between the two? Glad you asked.
“Think of the ‘performance’/’song’ distinction as an extension of the ‘record of the year/’song of the year’ distinction,” an anonymous Grammy voter tells Fusion. “The ‘performance’ awards just that — the performance (though ‘recording; might be a better way to say it — where the song awards the composition.”
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“In other words, an artist could have a totally great song but totally tank the performance and recording of it—but maybe, just maybe, the song could still get a nod. Let’s say, oh, someone else had bought ‘Let it Be’ from the Beatles and then sang it off-key in a damp room. It’s unlikely, but that helps to understand the difference between the categories.”
Okay, so we guess that’s why the brilliant Alabama Shakes were nominated for a live recording? That’s fair enough, but we’re not sure it’s fair to pit a live recording against songs recorded in the studio. We’re not quite sure who’s at a disadvantage, but either make the entire category live or all studio-recorded. It’s like including best-ofs in a list of greatest all-time albums.
Not to mention ‘Joe’, the song Alabama Shakes are nominated for is more of a slow-burning blues slash soul number that should belong in one of those categories. As for Twenty One Pilots, we don’t think anyone could refer to ‘Heathens’ as a rock song. It’s a sublimely produced pop song that’s dark and brooding with an intimidating set of lyrics, but it’s not rock.
Disturbed are nominated for their already controversial cover of the Simon & Garfunkel classic ‘The Sound of Silence’. Need we say more? Disturbed are certainly a rock band, but their ‘performance’ of ‘The Sound of Silence’ cannot be called rock. It’s more of a grand orchestral number and maybe you can chuck it in the adult contemporary category, but it doesn’t belong in rock.
That just leaves the late great Bowie, whose ‘Blackstar’ is certainly not your conventional rock song, but nothing Bowie did was ever conventional and it could really fit into just about any category you like. As for Beyonce, hate all you want but ‘Don’t Hurt Yourself’, her collaboration with bonafide rock star Jack White is a great rock song.
It’s got all the fire power of Jack White’s solo output and the menace of his work with The Dead Weather. Beyonce, a vocal master, gives a powerhouse performance, making you believe every word of the sly and surprisingly vulgar lyrics. You don’t have to like it, but there’s no debate to be had about whether ‘Don’t Hurt Yourself’ is a rock song. Is it the best of 2016? We don’t think so, but it’s definitely rock.
