In some ways, “Cowboy Carter” played to the ingrained tendencies of Grammy voters, new or old. With a focus on American roots, it was far from Beyoncé’s usual work but involved hallowed traditions and music-making practices. In announcing the project, Beyoncé said she had chosen “real instruments” like banjos, organs and strings, and eschewed artificial intelligence and digital filters. More effective Grammy catnip is hard to find.
The album was a reclamation of the Black roots of country, and of the role women have played in its history. In her acceptance speech, Beyoncé dedicated the award to Linda Martell, the first Black woman to play the Grand Ole Opry, though most country histories had since relegated her to a footnote.
“For her to dedicate that award to Linda Martell was to really highlight and amplify the idea that we’ve always been here,” said Treva B. Lindsey, a professor at Ohio State University who has written about Beyoncé. “You just haven’t heard us, you haven’t seen us, you haven’t affirmed our presence and our contributions to this tradition.”
But “Cowboy Carter” is also a big, welcoming tent, with cameos by Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson and a reverent treatment of the Beatles’ “Blackbird.” That cover featured background vocals from a group of young Black women in country, though on the album Beyoncé also duetted with country-friendly white stars like Cyrus and Post Malone.
“Cowboy Carter” was hardly Beyoncé’s best-received album, with some critics finding it overstuffed. But in another Grammy tradition, voters saw an opportunity to atone for past errors and omissions by crowning a late-period album by a master whose earlier masterpieces they had overlooked. (Longtime Grammy watchers know this as the Steely Dan phenomenon, after the great 1970s jazz-rock band’s win for “Two Against Nature” in 2001.)
Mason, who took over the job in 2020, said he welcomed criticism as a catalyst to improvement. The Weeknd’s protest was focused on the academy’s use of anonymous committees that reviewed nominations and sometimes overruled voters in making up the ballots. Those committees were largely eliminated in 2021.
“My hope is that all of our awards are going to people who deserve them and make great music,” Mason said. “We’ll also take heat. And if there’s valid points of constructive input that we can use in our process to be better, then we’ll do that.”
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