11 Worst Grammy Snubs of All Time
By April Jones
Credit: Grammys / Facebook
Looking back over the years, most fans can easily name at least one award that the Grammys got wrong. Here are 11 of the worst Grammy snubs of all time.
At times, it seems like the Grammy awards have been more about rewarding commercial success rather than recognizing actual talent, creativity, and cultural impact. How else can we explain the fact that people like Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin have never been awarded a Grammy? Or that artists like Lou Reed and Sam Cooke have been overlooked?
Although there have been numerous songs, albums, and artists who have been snubbed by the folks at the Recording Academy, let’s took a look at some of the most egregious oversights in the history of the Grammy Awards.
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Today, we’re reminiscing about 11 of the worst Grammy snubs of all time, starting with:
Blackstar, David Bowie
It wasn’t until David Bowie’s death just days after the release of Blackstar that the album’s true brilliance was revealed. Unbeknownst to fans, Bowie was dying of cancer when the album was being written and recorded. He knew this and it’s evident in the album’s references to illness and death. Fans were hoping that Bowie would receive a posthumous award for Blackstar in the Album of the Year category.
Instead, Blackstar received nominations in the categories for Best Alternative Album, Rock Song (for the title track), and rock performance among others. Sure, those are all great honors, but not the Album of the Year award that many felt Bowie deserved. And the somewhat prophetic single “Lazarus” wasn’t nominated at all. Was Bowie’s album not as worthy as Bieber’s? Did Sturgill Simpson really do a better job than a legend who blessed us all with Ziggy Stardust? Hard to comprehend.
This certainly isn’t the first time that Bowie fans have felt slighted on his behalf. Prior to the 59th Grammy awards, Bowie had been nominated twelve times and yet only received a Grammy for “Jazzin’ for Blue Jean” in the Best Video, Short Form category.