2013 Grammys!

From the Red Carpet to the inside of the Staples Center, there is something indisputably whimsical about the Grammy Awards. To watch all of these  individuals gain recognition for their talent and success is something to be cherished. For many of us, our talent and hard work within the music industry is overlooked and will remain so. For the handpicked few, it is at these award shows that they can see everything they’ve worked for come true. To even be invited is an honor, to be nominated is a dream, to win, a blessing. In these moments, watching the celebrities our culture has been trained to envy, I can only feel happiness, pride in their accomplishments, and joy in the fact that they are living in their dreams. There will be no resentment at the end of this evening, no thinking that someone could have done better because who are we to say any different, who are we to take away the magic of this evening, simply because we are jealous of those who have made it this far? In the end, music lovers alike, can cherish this moment as the opportunity to celebrate others successes, and find the motivation to achieve our dreams, our goals. As LL Cool J said it best “A Grammy is a dream come true”.

Congratulations to all of 2013’s Grammy winners!

Best Pop Solo Performance: “Set Fire to the Rain,” Adele
Best Country Solo Performance: “Blown Away,” Carrie Underwood
Song of the Year: “We Are Young,” Jack Antonoff, Jeff Bhasker, Andrew Dost & Nate Ruess, songwriters (Fun. featuring Janelle Monáe)
Best Urban Contemporary Album: “Channel Orange,” Frank Ocean
Best Rock Performance: “Lonely Boy,” The Black Keys
Best Pop Vocal Album: “Stronger,” Kelly Clarkson
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration: “No Church In The Wild,” Jay-Z & Kanye West, featuring Frank Ocean & The Dream
Best Country Album: “Uncaged,” Zac Brown Band
Best New Artist: Fun.
Record of the Year: “Somebody That I Used to Know,” Gotye, featuring Kimbra
Album of the Year: “Babel,” Mumford & Sons

PRE-GRAMMY WINNERS
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Dan Auerbach
Pop Instrumental Album: “Impressions,” Chris Botti
Alternative Music Album: “Making Mirrors,” Gotye
Pop Duo/Group Performance: “Somebody That I Used to Know,” Gotye, featuring Kimbra
Rock Album: “El Camino,” The Black Keys
Rock Song: “Lonely Boy,” Dan Auerbach, Brian Burton & Patrick Carney, songwriters (The Black Keys)
Hard Rock/Metal Performance: “Love Bites (So Do I),” Halestorm
Traditional Pop Vocal Album: “Kisses on the Bottom,” Paul McCartney
Country Song: “Blown Away,” Josh Kear & Chris Tompkins, songwriters (Carrie Underwood)
Country Duo/Group Performance: “Pontoon,” Little Big Town
World Music Album: “The Living Room Sessions, Part 1,” Ravi Shankar
Dance/Electronica Album: “Bangarang,” Skrillex
Dance Recording: “Bangarang,” Skrillex, featuring Sirah
R&B Album: “Black Radio,” Robert Glasper Experiment
R&B Song: “Adorn,” Miguel Pimentel, songwriter (Miguel)
Traditional R&B Performance: “Love on Top,” Beyoncé
R&B Performance: “Climax,” Usher
Rap Album: “Take Care,” Drake
Rap Song: “N****s In Paris,” Shawn Carter, Mike Dean, Chauncey Hollis & Kanye West, songwriters (W.A. Donaldson, songwriter) (Jay-Z & Kanye West)
Rap Performance: “N****s In Paris,” Jay-Z & Kanye West
Musical Theater Album: “Once: A New Musical”
Regional Roots Music Album: “The Band Courtbouillon,” Wayne Toups, Steve Riley & Wilson Savoy
Folk Album: “The Goat Rodeo Sessions,” Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile
Blues Album: “Locked Down,” Dr. John
Bluegrass Album: “Nobody Knows You,” Steep Canyon Rangers
Americana Album: “Slipstream,” Bonnie Raitt
Score Soundtrack for Visual Media: “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo,” Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, composers
Song Written for Visual Media: “Safe & Sound” (From “The Hunger Games”), T Bone Burnett, Taylor Swift, John Paul White & Joy Williams, songwriters (Taylor Swift featuring The Civil Wars)
Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media: “Midnight In Paris,” Various Artists
Latin Jazz Album: “¡Ritmo!,” The Clare Fischer Latin Jazz Big Band
Large Jazz Ensemble Album: “Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You),” Arturo Sandoval
Jazz Instrumental Album: “Unity Band,” Pat Metheny Unity Band
Jazz Vocal Album: “Radio Music Society,” Esperanza Spalding
Improvised Jazz Solo: “Hot House,” Gary Burton & Chick Corea
Reggae Album: “Rebirth,” Jimmy Cliff
Comedy Album: “Blow Your Pants Off,” Jimmy Fallon
New Age Album: “Echoes Of Love,” Omar Akram
Spoken Word Album: “Society’s Child: My Autobiography,” Janis Ian
Children’s Album: “Can You Canoe?”, The Okee Dokee Brothers
Classical Instrumental Solo: “Kurtág & Ligeti: Music For Viola,” Kim Kashkashian
Classical Vocal Solo: “Poèmes,” Renée Fleming (Alan Gilbert & Seiji Ozawa; Orchestre National De France & Orchestre Philharmonique De Radio France)
Classical Compendium: “Penderecki: Fonogrammi; Horn Concerto; Partita; The Awakening Of Jacob; Anaklasis,” Antoni Wit, conductor; Aleksandra Nagórko & Andrzej Sasin, producers
Contemporary Classical Composition: Hartke, Stephen: Meanwhile — Incidental Music To Imaginary Puppet Plays, Stephen Hartke, composer (Eighth Blackbird)
Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance: “Meanwhile,” Eighth Blackbird
Opera Recording: “Wagner: Der Ring Des Nibelungen,” James Levine & Fabio Luisi, conductors; Hans-Peter König, Jay Hunter Morris, Bryn Terfel & Deborah Voigt; Jay David Saks, producer (Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; Metropolitan Opera Chorus)
Choral Performance: “Life & Breath — Choral Works By René Clausen,” Charles Bruffy, conductor (Matthew Gladden, Lindsey Lang, Rebecca Lloyd, Sarah Tannehill & Pamela Williamson; Kansas City Chorale)
Orchestral Performance: “Adams: Harmonielehre & Short Ride In A Fast Machine,” Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor (San Francisco Symphony)
Engineered Album, Classical: “Life & Breath — Choral Works By René Clausen,” Tom Caulfield & John Newton, engineers; Mark Donahue, mastering engineer (Charles Bruffy & Kansas City Chorale)
Producer of the Year, Classical: Blanton Alspaugh
Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album: “Imaginaries,” Quetzal
Latin Pop Album: “MTV Unplugged Deluxe Edition,” Juanes
Regional Mexican Album (Including Tejano): “Pecados y Milagros,” Lila Downs
Tropical Latin Album: “Retro,” Marlow Rosado y La Riqueña
Contemporary Christian Album: “Eye on It,” TobyMac
Gospel Album: “Gravity,” Lecrae
Contemporary Christian Song: “10,000 Reasons (Bless The Lord),” Jonas Myrin & Matt Redman, songwriters (Matt Redman); “Your Presence Is Heaven,” Israel Houghton & Micah Massey, songwriters (Israel & New Breed)
Gospel/Contemporary Christian Performance: “10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord),” Matt Redman
Gospel Song: “Go Get It,” Erica Campbell, Tina Campbell & Warryn Campbell, songwriters (Mary Mary)
Engineered Album, Non-Classical: “The Goat Rodeo Sessions,” Richard King, engineer; Richard King, mastering engineer (Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile)
Surround Sound Album: “Modern Cool:” Jim Anderson, surround mix engineer; Darcy Proper, surround mastering engineer; Michael Friedman, surround producer (Patricia Barber)
Remixed Recording, Non-Classical: “Promises (Skrillex & Nero Remix),” Skrillex, remixer (Nero); Joseph Ray, Skrillex & Daniel Stephens, remixers
Recording Package: “Biophilia,” Michael Amzalag & Mathias Augustyniak, art directors (Björk)
Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: “Woody At 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection,” Fritz Klaetke, art director (Woody Guthrie)
Album Notes: “Singular Genius: The Complete ABC Singles,” Billy Vera, album notes writer (Ray Charles)
Historical Album: “The Smile Sessions (Deluxe Box Set),” Alan Boyd, Mark Linett, Brian Wilson & Dennis Wolfe, compilation producers; Mark Linett, mastering engineer (The Beach Boys)
Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s): “City Of Roses,” Thara Memory & Esperanza Spalding, arrangers (Esperanza Spalding)
Instrumental Arrangement: “How About You,” Gil Evans, arranger (Gil Evans Project)
Instrumental Composition: “Mozart Goes Dancing,” Chick Corea, composer (Chick Corea & Gary Burton)
Long Form Music Video: “Big Easy Express,” Mumford & Sons, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes, Old Crow Medicine Show
Short Form Music Video: “We Found Love,” Rihanna, featuring Calvin Harris