Why I Love The Grammys
So it seems that the “I wanna F—k you like an Animal” guy, who’s only culturally relevant song was all over pop-radio in the 90s, thinks the Grammys are “old media trying to convince the outside world they’re relevant.” I disagree. I love the Grammys and think they’re an important American tradition. Arguments dissing the Grammys are never that convincing to me to begin with, but they’re much much less convincing coming from a washed up rockstar that at one time benefited from the same music industry that he’s knocking. Trent, do you think you’d have 600,000 twitter followers without Old Media? But that’s actually not the point I’d like to make…
Let’s not mix the issues here. I think there are legitimate problems with how music is sold and music rights are enforced, and I think record contracts with big labels tend to not give the artists a fare share. But that’s a separate issue from the Grammy Awards, which celebrate the most successful music from the last year. One should hate the game, but not the players.
In general, love of music is about loving how music makes you feel. Adding to love of music is common experience. I love Pearl Jam on my ipod, but I love it more when I’m listening with other fans, and I love it even more when I’m listening to it with 20,000 people in an arena. (Incidentally I think the same idea applies to professional sports, particularly in events like the Super Bowl and World Series). The Beatles are the ultimate example of the common experience effect.
The Connected Ventures lip dub video of Harvey Danger we did in 2007 is another example. The enthusiasm surrounding that one-take masterpiece was due in part to the common experience of our youth. That song was all over the radio when we were in High School or Middle School and that song was something we all had in common. We have Old Media to thank for that, and it is definitely relevant.
The music celebrated at the Grammys is important because it measures the tastes of our society in a given year. Ultimately it is democratic as our purchase decisions dictate commercial success. But our available brain-bandwidth for music is only so wide. Having 100,000 choices might in your living room or on your ipod, but not as a representative of American culture in a given time period. There are no icons on the long tail, so the selection has to be pared down. What remains is music that appeals to the most ears, and that music is always made by extremely talented people and is pleasant to listen to. So what’s the problem?
And The Grammys are just great entertainment: Taylor Swift and Stevie Nicks, Lady Gaga and Sir Elton John, Dave Matthews with 100 back-up musicians, Jaime Foxx, Lil’ Wayne and Slash… these are amazing match-ups. I watched the Grammys time-delayed on my DVR and saved it as I will probably go back and watch it again over the next few months.
In conclusion, I don’t see what could be more relevant in music than our culture’s most famous musicians all wrapped up into one show.
