Only 11 Black People Have Won the Album of the Year Grammy..

[Hathaway]

I'm not one of those guys that puts alot of weight into grammys as it is not really meant for us but I thought this was interesting. The Grammys have been around since 1959 and the Album of the Year is considered the shows greatest and most coveted award. Here are some mindboggling stats surrounding that award:

Stevie Wonder is the first black person to win it in 1974 for his Innervisions album.

He won it again in 75 for Fulfillingness First Finale.

He won it a 3rd time in 1977 for Songs in the Key of Life.

The next black artist to win wouldn't come for another 7 years when MJ came through and crushed the buildings with Thriller in 84.

Lionel Richie won in 85 for Can't Slow Down.

Quincy Jones the GAWD took it home in 1991 with Back on the Block.

Natalie Cole becomes the 1st black woman to win the award in 1992 for her album Unforgettable with Love

Side note : it took 33 years for a black woman to win the award. That means Aretha, Diana Ross, Donna Summers, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald and other God tier black women in the prime of their careers were not good enough for this award. Let's move on.

1994 saw Whitney win for the Bodyguard Soundtrack.

Lauryn Hill won in 1999 for the Miseducation and she would be the last black woman to win the award as of today.

Outkast won in 2004 for The Love Below/Speakerboxx

Ray Charles won in 2005 posthumously for Genius Loves Company

Herbie Hancock the GAWD won in 2008 for The Joni Letters.


And finally, Jon Baptiste won in 2022 for We Are.

So only 11 black people have ever won the Grammys most prestigious award and of those 11, only 3 of them were black women.

Taylor shyt Swift has more album of the year wins than all black women combined.

Essentially, according to grammy voters, black women haven't made an album worthy of the award in 25 years.

I was mindblown to learn that the 90s survived the bloodbath that was Mariah Carey without her ever winning the award. There was no bigger pop star on the planet in the mid 90s and she never won the award.

Mj only having 1 is crazy. Off the Wall and Bad were both worthy. Especially Bad.

Prince never winning the award is insanity.

No love for Boyz II Men

Beyonce, Alicia and Rihanna are arguably the trinity when it comes to the most successful black female artist from 2003 onwards and neither of them have ever won.

Just an observation.

 

[LexDiamonds]

Mariah should have won that in 2006 and arguably 1996.

 

[ViShawn]

We can either take stock into what the Grammys means or form our own thing.

Pretty shocking facts you laid out though.

 

[Hathaway]

Mariah should have won that in 2006 and arguably 1996.

I don't think people really understand the chokehold Mariah had on music in the 90s:

Her 1st 3 albums had 7 #1 hits on the Billboard 100. That's incomprehensible. The fact that her albums were doing crazy numbers on the charts and she never won the award the years she was nominated is insanity.

 

[Hathaway]

We can either take stock into what the Grammys means or form our own thing.

Pretty shocking facts you laid out though.

BET tried but it became a mockery. I don't think black people will ever have our own show that could compare to the grammys.

 

[MrLogic]

problem
we take cac bubble awards like it's some type of validation.

it's not

 

[Northern Son]

Cac awards. I just don't like how they nominate and schedule performances from Black artists to get ratings and then predictably give all the awards to white people. More established Black artists should avoid the Grammy's and stop letting themselves get used every year.

 

[ViShawn]

I don't think people really understand the chokehold Mariah had on music in the 90s:

Her 1st 3 albums had 7 #1 hits on the Billboard 100. That's incomprehensible. The fact that her albums were doing crazy numbers on the charts and she never won the award the years she was nominated is insanity.

I googled. Yeah crazy she only won Best New Artist and Best Female Vocals.

I mentioned in another thread that The Weeknd doesn't put too much stock into the Grammys. Black artists should follow suit.

 

[ViShawn]

Thought this was cool. Jay Z boycotting the Grammys because DMX didn't get nominated after getting two #1 albums in the same year

Jay-Z Reveals He Boycotted the Grammys Because They Dissed DMX

The rapper and mogul opened up about his relationship with the late MC alongside LeBron James on HBO’s ‘The Shop: Uninterrupted.’

www.thedailybeast.com

 

[TRUEST]

White solidarity

 

[Paper Boi]

honestly fukk the Grammys

I wish people would really boycott it

 

[Space Cowboy]

The majority of this country is white. What y'all expecting? Tell me why I should be mad about this, especially given Beyonce, who this topic is about, doesn't make artistic, relevant, classic albums besides arguably Lemonade. Beyonce ain't no Janis Joplin or Aretha Franklin. She isn't even a Lauryn Hill or Stevie Nicks. She's not fukking with Heart or Diana Ross. She's mid as an artist. But I'm supposed to be mad because Jay is using his wife and platform to drum up social issues so his family can benefit?

 

[KidJSoul]

It's tough, because you have to factor in the percentage of popular and critically acclaimed black artists compared to white artists


Obviously the percentage isn't 1:10 so there should be more black artists. But considering what this country is demographically, and who runs the Grammys, you can't be surprised

 

[RaspberryFitted]

BET tried but it became a mockery. I don't think black people will ever have our own show that could compare to the grammys.

Why not if Black Culture defines American Culture?

 

[The Realist Perspective]

Why do the black celebs covet that award so much? Who cares about this white man trophy. Are you rich? Are you widely beloved? What you also need the white man pointing at you and saying wow also?