Music News
Grammy Awards: Samara Joy wins best new artist
Samara Joy
Credit:The Recording Academy via Twitter
Samara Joy won her first two Grammy Awards on Sunday, including best new artist.
Joy picked up her first Grammy when her album Linger Awhile won best jazz vocal album, not long after the vocalist delivered a rousing performance at the Grammys premiere ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday. She then won best new artist at the Grammys’ main event later that evening.
Terri Lyne Carrington, Arturo O’Farrill, Wayne Shorter and Snarky Puppy were some of the other winners of the 65th annual Grammy Awards.
This year’s winners of the Grammys’ jazz categories turned out to be a mix of new and familiar names. Wayne Shorter and Leo Genovese shared the award for best improvised jazz solo for “Endangered Species.” Terri Lyne Carrington’s New Standards, Vol. 1 took the award for best instrumental jazz album. Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra won best Latin jazz album for Fandango at the Wall in New York.
Steven Feifke, Bijon Watson and the Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra’s self-titled release won the title of best large jazz ensemble album. The album was released by Vancouver-based Cellar Music Group, marking a rare Grammy victory for a Canadian jazz record label.
Snarky Puppy continued their dominance at the Grammys, with their latest album Empire Central winning best contemporary instrumental album.
Also that evening, Geoffrey Keezer helped kick things off by winning the award for best instrumental composition for his tune “Refuge.” That was followed by John Beasley winning a Grammy for best arrangement for “Scrapple From the Apple,” recorded with Magnus Lindgren, the SWR Big Band and Martin Auer. Vince Mendoza then won for his arrangement of Christine McVie’s “Songbird.”
Robert Glasper’s Black Radio III won best R&B album.
Best traditional pop vocal album went to Michael Bublé’s Higher.
Aaron Neville and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band won best American roots performance for “Stompin’ Ground.” Ranky Tanky won best regional roots music album for Live at 2022 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
Finally, Jazz Fest: A New Orleans Story won the Grammy for best music film.
On Friday, Berry Gordy and Smokey Robinson were honoured as the 2023 MusiCares Persons of the Year. Bobby McFerrin, Ma Rainey and The Supremes were among the recipients of the Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, and Ellis Marsalis was among the Trustees Award recipients.
Here’s a selected list of this year’s Grammy Awards nominees, with the winners in bold.
Best Improvised Jazz Solo
- Ambrose Akinmusire – Rounds (Live)
- Gerald Albright – Keep Holding On
- John Beasley – Cherokee/Koko
- Marcus Baylor – Call of the Drum
- Melissa Aldana – Falling
- Wayne Shorter & Leo Genovese – Endangered Species
Best Jazz Vocal Album
- The Baylor Project – The Evening: Live at Apparatus
- Carmen Lundy – Fade to Black
- Cécile McLorin Salvant – Ghost Song
- The Manhattan Transfer & The WDR Funkhausorchester – Fifty
- Samara Joy – Linger Awhile
Best Jazz Instrumental Album
- Joshua Redman, Brad Mehldau, Christian McBride & Brian Blade – LongGone
- Peter Erskine Trio – Live in Italy
- Terri Lyne Carrington, Kris Davis, Linda May Han Oh, Nicholas Payton & Matthew Stevens – New Standards, Vol. 1
- Wayne Shorter, Terri Lyne Carrington, Leo Genovese & Esperanza Spalding – Live at the Detroit Jazz Festival
- Yellowjackets – Parallel Motion
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
- John Beasley, Magnus Lindgren & SWR Big Band – Bird Lives
- Remy Le Boeuf’s Assembly of Shadows – Architecture of Storms
- Ron Carter & The Jazzaar Festival Big Band (directed by Christian Jacob) – Remembering Bob Freedman
- Steve Gadd, Eddie Gomez, Ronnie Cuber & WDR Big Band (conducted by Michael Abene) – Center Stage
- Steven Feifke, Bijon Watson & Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra – Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra
Best Latin Jazz Album
- Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra feat. the Congra Patria Son Jarocho Collective – Fandango at the Wall in New York
- Arturo Sandoval – Rhythm & Soul
- Danilo Pérez feat. the Global Messengers – Crisálida
- Flora Purim – If You Will
- Miguel Zenón – Música de las Américas
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
- Brad Mehldau – Jacob’s Ladder
- Domi & JD Beck – Not Tight
- Grant Geissman – Blooz
- Jeff Coffin – Between Dreaming and Joy
- Snarky Puppy – Empire Central
Best Instrumental Composition
- Danilo Pérez feat. the Global Messengers – Fronteras (Borders) Suite: Al-Musafir Blues
- Geoffrey Keezer – Refuge
- Miguel Zenón, José Antonio Zayas Cabán, Ryan Smith & Casey Rafn – El País Invisible
- Tasha Warren & Dave Eggar – African Tales
- Tasha Warren & Dave Eggar – Snapshots
Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
- Armand Hutton feat. Terrell Hunt & Just 6 – As Days Go By (An Arrangement of the Family Matters Theme Song)
- Danny Elfman – Main Titles
- Kings Return – How Deep Is Your Love
- Magnus Lindgren, John Beasley & The SWR Big Band feat. Martin Auer – Scrapple From the Apple
- Remy Le Boeuf – Minnesota, WI
Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals
- Becca Stevens & Attacca Quartet – 2 + 2 = 5 (Arr. Nathan Schram)
- Cécile McLorin Salvant – Optimistic Voices / No Love Dying
- Christine McVie – Songbird (Orchestral Version)
- Jacob Collier feat. Lizzy McAlpine & John Mayer – Never Gonna Be Alone
- Louis Cole – Let It Happen