HOLLYWOOD—We are in the thick of Awards Season America. We’ve already had the Golden Globes and Critic’s Choice Awards. However, there are plenty of more to come, SAG Awards, BAFTA Awards, Razzie Awards, Academy Awards and then the Grammy Awards. I used to be a fan of award shows, but when the pandemic happened, it just changed the perspective. I don’t care that much. They’re fun to watch, but they should not be indicative of something grand as I would consider in the past.
Out of all the award shows there is none that I find more annoying than the Grammys. I have no clue why, but there has not been a Grammy Awards ceremony I actually enjoyed as long as I can recall since I’ve watched the show. For starters, it is not an awards show, it’s a musical concert. I mean there is more than 80 plus categories and guess what, only like 10 of them are handed out on the big night. Ten awards people. Why is it almost every other awards show can hand out all their prizes, but the Grammys cannot? Yeah, 80 means you would have a long ceremony, but you can absolutely bump things up to 20, maybe 25.
Why? If the Academy Awards can present all 24 categories including 5 musical performances (Best Original Song nominees), what is the Grammy’s problem? Just lazy or they don’t care. Look, there is nothing problematic with having a musical performance, but the problem is the performances are not all that entertaining or memorable. The ceremony opens with the big musical act of the year, followed by a host who is boring and unnecessary, sorry Trevor Noah, you’re just not hitting it for me, followed by 1 award, then a long lapse before the next award. You probably have 2-3 more performances before the next award.
The Grammy Awards drag in a way that no other awards show transpires that I cannot explain. Why is the Grammys clocking in at 4 hours or even beyond that? Come on already, the Oscars, GG Awards, SAG Awards, and every other awards show, including the Tony Awards don’t even clock in that damn long and they hand out way more trophies than the Grammys.
This is just a ceremony that is out of touch with reality and the public people. Why? The nominees never align with the popular zeitgeist, but that’s with all awards shows, but the Grammys take it to another level. People who should win the top prizes never do, there always seems to be a sweep in the major categories every single damn year that it just sometimes make you want to throw your remote at the TV screen. I cannot tell you how many times the Grammys have gotten it wrong, but that is beyond the point, the show needs to do something that brings a burst of energy into the show and the musical acts are not it. I am literally bored almost 45 minutes into the ceremony and for 2023, I think I’m not watching the Grammy Awards. I rather utilize that 3 to 4 hours I have and do something more productive or relaxing.
There is nothing more annoying than recapping a boring awards show because it is time you lose that guess what you cannot get back. In 2023, after more than 60 years of celebrating music, I don’t know what the Recoding Academy can do to change the dynamic and deliver a ceremony that excites not only members of the Recording Academy, those in the music industry, but the viewers. People don’t talk about the Grammys in a positive light and that is not a good thing. Do I expect a stellar show despite big names like Beyonce, Adele and Kendrick Lamar leading the pack? No.
There performances might entertain if they even attend. They might fall flat, and at the same time, we’re likely to see people robbed of big accolades they deserve, but they don’t earn. For those who plan to watch the Grammy Awards they air Sunday, February 5 on CBS at 8 p.m. I think I’m going to have plans on that day and that time people.
