Friday , March 29 2024

Grammy Update

The 47th Grammy Awards are just over two weeks away now (Feb 13), and here is the latest on performances and tributes, with Ray Charles looking very much alive for someone who, you know, died. From Grammy.com:

    The Recording Academy announced today that Kanye West, currently nominated for 10 GRAMMYs, will perform on the 47th Annual GRAMMY Awards telecast with a group of soul, R&B and gospel artists including newcomer John Legend, R&B great Mavis Staples, and current nominee the Blind Boys Of Alabama. In addition, Bonnie Raitt and Billy Preston will perform in honor of Ray Charles, and Tim McGraw, Keith Urban, Gretchen Wilson, members of the definitive Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, and legendary musicians Dickie Betts (the Allman Brothers Band) and Elvin Bishop will appear in a special tribute to Southern rock. The Academy also announced that Norah Jones, Ludacris, Mark McGrath, and Gary Sinise will present.

    West is nominated for Best New Artist; Album Of The Year (as an artist on The College Dropout and as a producer on The Diary Of Alicia Keys); Best Rap Album (The College Dropout); Best Rap Solo Performance (“Through The Wire”); Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (“Slow Jamz” with Twista and Jamie Foxx, and “All Falls Down” with Syleena Johnson); Song Of The Year and Best Rap Song (“Jesus Walks”); and Best R&B Song (“You Don’t Know My Name”). Staples is being honored this year with the Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award. The Blind Boys Of Alabama are nominated with Ben Harper for their collaborative effort: Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album (There Will Be A Light) and Best Gospel Performance for the album’s title track.

    Nine-time GRAMMY-winner Bonnie Raitt and two-time GRAMMY-winner Billy Preston are slated to perform in a segment honoring the late Ray Charles. Charles is posthumously nominated for seven GRAMMY Awards: Record Of The Year (“Here We Go Again” with Norah Jones); Album Of The Year and Best Pop Vocal Album (Genius Loves Company); Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals (“Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word” with Elton John and “Here We Go Again”); Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance (“Sinner’s Prayer” with B.B. King); and Best Gospel Performance (“Heaven Help Us All” with Gladys Knight).

    ….These superstar artists join previously announced performances by Green Day, Alicia Keys, Tim McGraw, and U2; presenters Ellen DeGeneres, Christina Milian, and John Travolta; and host Queen Latifah.

The Southern rock tribute is interesting, except as far as I can tell there aren’t a whole lot of southern rockers involved beyond the mystery members of Skynyrd, Bishop and Dickie.

I’m very glad to see all the Ray love, too bad he had to die to get it.

More on this year’s Grammys here, here, here, and here.

About Eric Olsen

Career media professional and serial entrepreneur Eric Olsen flung himself into the paranormal world in 2012, creating the America's Most Haunted brand and co-authoring the award-winning America's Most Haunted book, published by Berkley/Penguin in Sept, 2014. Olsen is co-host of the nationally syndicated broadcast and Internet radio talk show After Hours AM; his entertaining and informative America's Most Haunted website and social media outlets are must-reads: Twitter@amhaunted, Facebook.com/amhaunted, Pinterest America's Most Haunted. Olsen is also guitarist/singer for popular and wildly eclectic Cleveland cover band The Props.

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