The 57th Annual Grammy Awards will take place on February 8th on CBS. Today, they announced all of the nominees for each category, but of course, the category we were most excited to see was the nominees for Best Reggae album. See the results…
Let’s get right to the nominees for Best Reggae Album:
Of the 6 albums up for nomination, it’s no surprise to see Ziggy Marley up there with Fly Rasta and with no argument, this album is well deserving of its nomination. With that said, I think it’s safe to assume that we’re all encouraged that SOJA is finally getting the recognition they deserve with their album Amid The Noise & Haste. This is the first Reggae-Rock band from this scene & community to see such commercial recognition. Being nominated and recognized by The Pier Awards seems like a no-brainer with what do year in and year out, but to finally see The Grammy’s acknowledge SOJA is a relief for the genre of Reggae-Rock. SOJA is very deserving of this nomination and we hope it’s the first of many as they continue to flourish.
[Related: The 2013 Grammys Reggae Album of the Year is…]
In addition, it’s nice to see our friends at VP Records get a nod with their release of Sean Paul’s Full Frequency and it’s hard to make a case against the legends of Lee SCRATCH Perry or Sly & Robbie.
One disappointment being listed here is Shaggy’s 2013 release of Out of Many, One Music. Not only was it released more than a year ago, (Oct 2013), but there are so many other relative reggae albums that deserve more recognition for their impact in 2014 – namely Tribal Seeds Representing; which a lot of us feel is as good of a reggae album as you’ll hear. By the time 2014 got going, Shaggy’s Out of Many, One Music was yesterday’s news, not leaving much of a timeless impression from a good, but not great album.
This furthers the argument that, even in a digital world of successful independent artists, you still need decent label backing to make an impact with something as commercial as the Grammys, unless you’re an established Reggae artist who’s been grandfathered in with the likes of Lee Scratch Perry or Sly & Robbie, respectfully. SOJA didn’t do it alone as Amid the Noise & Haste was released via Dave Matthew’s ATO Records and a lot of us still believe their 2012 release of Strength to Survive should have received a nod. But this is just the tip of the iceberg of bigger labels, as well as the Grammys, paying closer attention to the growing popularity of Reggae-Rock music.
If you had to guess, who would you pick as the next band from the Reggae-Rock community to receive commercial attention via The 58th Annual Grammys & beyond? Drop us a comment with your prediction, or let us know on Facebook!
Related Links:
Exclusive SOJA Blog
The Grammys Website
The Grammys Facebook
The Grammys Twitter
Article By: Mike Patti
SOJA – “I Believe” (ft Michael Franti and Nahko)
