WIKIPEDIA ARTICLE
| Grammy Award for Song of the Year | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Quality song containing both lyrics and melody |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences |
| First awarded | 1959 |
| Currently held by | Donald Glover, Ludwig Göransson & Jeffery Lamar Williams, "This is America" (2019) |
| Website | grammy.com |
The Grammy Award for Song of the Year is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards.[1] The Song of the Year award is one of the four most prestigious categories at the awards (alongside Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Album of the Year) presented annually since the 1st Grammy Awards in 1959. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide, the award is presented:
to honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position.[2]
Song of the Year is related to but is conceptually different from Record of the Year or Album of the Year:
- Song of the Year is awarded for a single or for one track from an album. This award goes to the songwriter who actually wrote the lyrics and/or melodies to the song. "Song" in this context means the song as composed, not its recording.
- Record of the Year is also awarded for a single or individual track, but the recipient of this award is the performing artist, the producer, recording engineer and/or mixer for that song. In this sense, "record" means a particular recorded song, not its composition or an album of songs.
- Album of the Year is awarded for a whole album, and the award is presented to the artist, producer, recording engineer, and mastering engineer for that album. In this context, "album" means a recorded collection of songs (a multi-track LP, CD, or download package), not the individual songs or their compositions.
Contents
History and description[edit]
The Song of the Year awards have been awarded since 1959.[3] It is one of the four most prestigious Grammy Awards. Despite both the Record of the Year award and Song of the Year being awarded for a single or for one track from an album, this award goes only to the composer(s) of the song whereas the Record of the Year award goes to the performer and production team of the song. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide, the award is given to the songwriter(s) of a song that "must contain melody and lyrics and must be either a new song or a song first achieving prominence during the eligibility year. Songs containing prominent samples or interpolations are not eligible".[4]
Since the late 1960s other songwriter's awards have been presented for genre-specific categories including Grammy Award for Best Country Song (since 1965), Grammy Award for Best R&B Song (since 1969), Grammy Award for Best Rock Song (since 1992) and most recently in Grammy Award for Best Rap Song (since 2004), Grammy Award for Best Gospel Song (since 2006), Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Christian Music Song (since 2012) and Grammy Award for Best American Roots Song (since 2014).
Thirty-one of the winning songs have also won the award for Record of the Year.
The category will expand to include eight nominees in 2019.[5]
Achievements[edit]
In many cases, the songwriters were also the performers. (Domenico Modugno, Henry Mancini, John Lennon & Paul McCartney, Joe South, Paul Simon, Carole King, Barbra Streisand, Billy Joel, Michael McDonald, Christopher Cross, Sting, Michael Jackson & Lionel Richie, Bobby McFerrin, Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen, Seal, Shawn Colvin, James Horner, Rob Thomas, U2, Alicia Keys, Luther Vandross, John Mayer, Dixie Chicks, Amy Winehouse, Coldplay, Beyoncé, Lady Antebellum, Adele, Fun, Lorde, Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars, and Childish Gambino).
Multiple winners in this category include Henry Mancini (1962 and 1964), Johnny Mercer (1962 and 1964), James Horner (1988 and 1999), Will Jennings (1993 and 1999), U2 (2001 and 2006), and Adele (2012 and 2017), winning two times each. However, songs written for Andy Williams, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, and Roberta Flack have received this award twice.
Christopher Cross is the first artist to receive the Grammy Award for Song of the Year as well as for Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best New Artist in one ceremony. Adele is the first female artist to receive the award for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, Best New Artist, and Album of the Year, nonconsecutively. Only five artists have won the Song of the Year and Best New Artist awards the same year: Christopher Cross (1981), Alicia Keys (2002), Amy Winehouse (2008), Fun (2013), and Sam Smith (2015); Marvin Hamlisch is only composer to win the Song of the Year and Best New Artist awards the same year in 1975.
The song "Volare", winner in 1959 by Domenico Modugno and performed in Italian, is the only foreign-language song to win this award, although the 1967 winner "Michelle" by the Beatles has a critical part of its lyrics in French.
As of 2019, no songwriter has won Song of the Year twice in a row.
Process[edit]
Members of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences nominate their choices for song of the year. A list of the top twenty records is given to the Nominations Review Committee, a specially selected group of anonymous members, who then select the top five records to gain a nomination in the category in a special ballot.[6] The rest of the members then vote a winner from the five nominees.[7] In 2018, it was announced the number of nominated tracks will be increased to eight [8]
Recipients[edit]
- An asterisk (*) indicates this recording also won Record of the Year.
- ^[I] Each year is linked to the article about the Grammy Awards held that year.
- ^[II] The performing artist is only listed but does not receive the award.
See also[edit]
- Grammy Award for Record of the Year
- Grammy Award for Best Country Song
- Grammy Award for Best R&B Song
- Grammy Award for Best Rock Song
- Grammy Award for Best Rap Song
- Grammy Award for Best Gospel Song
- Grammy Award for Best American Roots Song
- Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media
References[edit]
- General
- "Past Winners Search". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Retrieved March 4, 2011. Note: User must select the "General" category as the genre under the search feature.
- "Grammy Awards: Album of the Year". Rock on the Net. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- Specific
- ^ "Grammy Awards at a Glance". Los Angeles Times. Tribune Company. Retrieved February 4, 2011.
- ^ "Overview". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Retrieved March 16, 2011.
- ^ "GRAMMY REWIND: 1ST ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS". The Recording Academy. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
- ^ "Category Mapper". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- ^ Recording Academy Announces 61st GRAMMY Awards Update
- ^ Behind Grammy's Closed Door
- ^ Wyman, Bill (2011-02-11). "The Grammys: the secret committee that alters the membership's nominations". Slate.com. Retrieved 2014-05-23.
- ^ Mench, Chris (2018-06-28). "The Grammys' General Field Categories Will Expand From Five To Eight Nominees Next Year". Genius.com. Retrieved 2018-12-09.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1959 (May)". Awards & Shows. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1959". Awards & Shows. Retrieved July 20, 2011.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1961". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1962". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1963". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1964". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1965". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1968". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "'Now' Singers To Get Grammys". St. Petersburg Times. Times Publishing Company. February 11, 1969. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1970". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1971". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1972". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1973". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1974". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1976". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 1977". Awards & Shows.
- ^ "1977 Grammy Award Winners". Grammy.com. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
- ^ "Bee Gees Head Lists For 6 Grammy Awards". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. The News-Journal Corporation. January 9, 1979. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
- ^ Arar, Yardena (January 9, 1980). "Grammy awards field a definite mixed bag". The Spokesman-Review. Cowles Publishing Company. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
- ^ "Newcomer Is Top Grammy Nominee". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. The New York Times Company. January 20, 1981. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
- ^ "Lennon, Jones lead Grammy nominees". The Milwaukee Journal. January 14, 1982. Retrieved April 23, 2010.
- ^ "Toto, Stevie Wonder top Grammy nominations". Lodi News-Sentinel. January 12, 1983. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "David Foster Leading Grammy Nominations". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. The New York Times Company. January 12, 1985. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Best new artist category causes Grammys' only stir". The Gazette. Canwest. February 26, 1986. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Veterans top Grammy nominations". The Herald. The McClatchy Company. January 8, 1987. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ McShane, Larry (January 15, 1988). "Irish rockers among Grammy nominees". The Telegraph. Telegraph Publishing Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ De Atley, Richard (January 11, 1989). "Grammy nominations: Tracy Chapman, Bobby McFerrin lead pack". Pittsburgh Press. E. W. Scripps Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Grammys reach out to young listeners". Lodi News-Sentinel. February 21, 1990. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ Pareles, Jon (January 11, 1991). "Grammy Nominees Announced". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ Snider, Eric (February 26, 1992). "Cole's 'Unforgettable' wins song of the year". St. Petersburg Times. Times Publishing Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ Antczak, John (January 8, 1993). "Clapton leads the pack of Grammy nominees". Deseret News. Deseret News Publishing Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Sting Leads Grammy Nominations With Six". Reading Eagle. Reading Eagle Company. January 7, 1994. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "The line forms for Grammys". St. Petersburg Times. Times Publishing Company. January 6, 1995. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ Strauss, Neil (January 5, 1996). "New Faces in Grammy Nominations". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ Strauss, Neil (January 8, 1997). "Babyface, Celine Dion And Pumpkins Compete For Multiple Grammys". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. p. 2. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ Strauss, Neil (January 7, 1998). "Grammy Nominations Yield Surprises, Including Newcomer's Success". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Top Grammy nominations". The Register-Guard. Guard Publishing. January 6, 1999. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "Santana nominated for 10 Grammy Awards". Lodi News-Sentinel. January 5, 2000. Retrieved April 24, 2010.
- ^ "43rd Grammy Awards". CNN. February 21, 2001. Archived from the original on November 6, 2008. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "Complete List Of Grammy Nominees". CBS News. January 4, 2002. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "45 Grammy Nom List" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on April 26, 2012.
- ^ "They're All Contenders". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. December 5, 2003. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "Grammy Award nominees in top categories". USA Today. Gannett Company. February 7, 2005. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "The Complete List of Grammy Nominations". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. December 8, 2005. p. 1. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "49th Annual Grammy Awards Winners List". National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Archived from the original on December 20, 2006. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "Grammy 2008 Winners List". MTV. February 10, 2008. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "Grammy 2009 Winners List". MTV. February 8, 2009. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ "52nd Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominees And Winners: General Field". The Recording Academy. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
- ^ "53rd Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominees And Winners: General Field". The Recording Academy. Retrieved December 10, 2011.
- ^ "2011 – 54th Annual GRAMMY Awards Nominees And Winners: General Field". The Recording Academy. November 30, 2011.
- ^ "Dan Auerbach, Fun, Jay-Z, Mumford & Sons, Frank Ocean, Kanye West Lead 55th GRAMMY Nominations".
- ^ "Jay Z Tops 56th GRAMMY Nominations With Nine". Retrieved April 28, 2017.
- ^ "Grammy Awards 2015: The Complete Winners List". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
- ^ "Grammy Nominations 2016: See the Full List of Nominees". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 7, 2015. Retrieved December 7, 2015.
- ^ "59TH ANNUAL GRAMMY AWARDS NOMINEES". The Recording Academy. Archived from the original on February 1, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
- ^ 60th GRAMMY Awards: Full Nominees List Grammy.com, 28 November 2017
- ^ 61st GRAMMY Awards: Complete Nominations List Grammy.com, 8 December 2018
- ^ Lawrence, Derek (11 February 2019). "'This Is America' wins Song of the Year at 2019 Grammys". EW.com. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
