February is a month for lovers. It is a month for lovers of their significant someone and a month for lovers of music. Valentine's Day and the Grammy Awards have a key element in common with each other: money.
In less than two weeks, the world will tune into what many feel is America's most prestigious award show recognizing musicians, The Grammy Awards. The 2003 Grammy nominees are intended to represent the most talented musicians in the business. Who better to associate the Grammy with besides Nelly, P.O.D., and Pink?
An award that used to have a respectable reputation in the industry has simply become yet another vehicle to propel celebrities into the public eye. There is a possibility that Avril Lavigne could win the "Best New Artist" award, an honor the Beatles were presented with in 1964. That possibility scares me and leaves me embarrassed to be associated with this generation of music.
The Grammys are no longer focused on the music, which was its original intention. This year's awards are now just continuing the trend of most other award shows - cramming as many superstars as possible into one room. The Grammys allow hundreds of beautiful and famous faces to be herded into one room, while they watch other celebrities being presented with awards by yet more celebrities.
Even if they aren't up for an award, they serve a huge purpose in the structure of the show. While one performer is up receiving an award, the camera will use the other musicians for to entertain the television audience in the process. If Britney Spears is presented with the "Best Female Pop Vocal Performance" award this year, there is a fairly good chance we can count on reaction shots of audience members like adversary Christina Aguilera and ex-boyfriend Justin Timberlake. By doing so, CBS can count on even higher ratings, which is what the Grammys come down to.
Why should Grammy awards be given to these selected artists? Currently, a Grammy is basically used to compliment a pop star who has attained an especially high status and achieved a multi-platinum selling record. But ideally, a Grammy should be used to publicize artists who have been overshadowed by today's brutally commercial society. In essence, the golden statue should also be presented to musical talent that has yet to be discovered and recognized by pop culture due to lack of exposure by society's spotlight, which a Grammy can shine upon them.
The award should be based solely on the content of the music created, whether it has sold 10 million copies or 10,000. We are not living in a generation with bad music - there is tons of great music being put out - but it is swept under the carpet of obscurity. Unfortunately, an artist's music will go unheard if their face remains unseen.
The Grammys have also become a fashion spectacle, drawing the award even further away from the music. While in 1999, Santana walked away with eight Grammy awards, it seems as though in 2000, Jennifer Lopez's green Versace dress garnered more media coverage and furthered her career, despite coming away without an award. This so-called "prestigious" award show has been corroded down to a celebrity sightseeing tour for stargazers to admire their idols.
Still remaining is the sliver of credibility the Grammys has in several categories, but those awards get little or no coverage.
Many of today's Grammy nominated musicians serve some purpose in modern culture. These pop stars grace us with their presence at events like Spring Fest, provide background music for underage drunks to dance to at bars, and top singles to go on compilations like Totally Hits and Jock Jams.
It has become a popular attitude with the "underground" American youth to be anti-MTV, anti-radio, and in reality, anti-success. The whole Seattle indie garage band idea is cool in theory, but not in practice. Face it - it is, in fact, cool to be successful, enjoying the amenities that come with fame and fortune. I would hate to be associated with those who believe that triumph in the music industry means selling out and awful music. What I do believe, however, is that the fame and fortune should compliment quality music, not physical appearance and costume design.
Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
