Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. Previously, he was nominated five times for the Grammy Award, but never received this award.
This may change at the 2023 Grammy Awards.
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Mason Jr. co-wrote Tony Braxton's 2000 hit "He Wasn't Man Enough" which Burna Boy used for his latest hit "Last Last". On Tuesday, the song won the award for Best World Music Performance.
"Honestly, it's a great honor," Mason Jr. said. told The Hollywood Reporter . “Someone asked me: “Do you feel old when someone tries your song? And I feel just the opposite. It makes me very, very thankful and thankful that someone thought it was a good enough song to try and remake it." ' It. and they did something original with it. I love Burna Boy! I like what he does. He is so creative that he used this song. It was really exciting and fresh for me."
Mason Jr. became interim executive director of the academy in January 2020 and was officially appointed in May 2021. Songwriter/Producer Grammy nominations include Album of the Year for Best R&B Song for "He Wasn't Man Enough" from Justin Timberlake's 2002 solo debut Justified . "Best Soundtrack Collection for Dream Girls and Pitch Perfect 2 and Best Musical Theater Album for Jesus Christ Superstar Live" .
In an interview with THR , the musician and music director discussed Burna Boy's nomination, controversial figures such as Dave Chappelle and Louis C.C., who are up for both the award and Drake's nomination despite not submitting his latest album for music. shown.
How does it feel to be recognized as the “last finisher” in a category because you had something to do with it?
There have been many musical collaborations and iterations in my career, almost taking what came before and drawing inspiration from it. Are you a little inspired to create something new? I think it's a very sweet form of flattery that they took this song and did what they did with it. I have my fingers crossed for that, of course.
You were busy running the Academy, but did you have the opportunity to write and produce music, or did you leave it alone for a while?
No, I still do. I work in my studio almost every day while we do academic stuff. I go in and do night and day so I go back to my old tricks. I don't have much time, but I try to be in the studio. My children have all grown up. I do not have any pets. My wife is very beautiful. He makes me work hard, so I'm very busy.
Dave Chappelle and Louis CK have been nominated and I'm sure some will be sad. What do you think of the controversial Grammy nominations?
Well, we don't control who chooses voters. If voters think a creator deserves a nomination, they will vote for him. All we can control is making sure people who attend our events feel safe. If someone is nominated that we don't necessarily agree with, we don't withdraw.
We would never worry about someone's moral status or how much we rate on a moral scale. I think our job is to value art and the quality of art. We can guarantee that all of our facilities are safe and that people do not feel threatened by anyone. But when it comes to nominations or awards, we really let the voters make that decision.
Drake is one of those who didn't show up this year, but he's been nominated four times for his collaborations, so his presence is palpable. What is your reaction to this?
Well, that's a good question. I think I'm always happy to see someone nominated because I know how hard it is. I have been nominated five times. However, I didn't win, which I'm not happy about, but I was nominated, so I know what these nominations mean and I know how important and special they are. When I nominate someone, the first thing I think of is to congratulate them.
When you start talking about who does and who doesn't, it's not something we can really control. Personally, I want to represent as many artists as possible. I don't care if you're new to the game (or if) you've (always) been in the game. I think the Academy is for all music lovers, whether you are young, old, male, female, banjo player or rapper. I don't care what it is. This is the place where we honor and respect music.
Do I want to see all the artists? absolutely I want to be able to recognize the best music of the year so when someone doesn't deliver I pay close attention. We take this very seriously as an academy and want to keep working on making it a place where people want to be.
ABBA surprised with nominations for the 2022 show and they're back. Are you surprised to see that they are nominated in two of the four main categories?
I thought it was really cool. I guess a lot of new people will probably get to know his music. They've been making great music for a long time, and they've changed the music, the way songs are written and performed. For me, I think this is a great opportunity to honor them. They haven't received many nominations before, so I'm very happy about that. I think it would be fun to see them on this show.
Diana Ross also received her first nomination since the 1983 Grammys. He never won a Grammy. Is this a reminder that Legacy Act still has to submit their work to the Grammys?
You never know what will resonate with voters, whether it's an iconic artist like Diana, a newcomer or someone at the peak of their career. Members and constituents were asked and instructed to listen to the music and appreciate it. You don't try to make emotional promises. You don't have to have an agenda. You don't have to look at who is famous, who was famous, who will be. It's about music. When you see the nominations, that's really what makes you realize that the voters respect him, and that's what makes the Grammys so special. It's not about all the other things. It's about being recognized by your peers for what you've done this year and I think that's what's great about the Grammys.
Six out of 10 nominees for Recording and Song of the Year in the main categories are female singles, and five out of 10 nominees for Album of the Year are female solo artists. Five solo artists, including three bands, were nominated for the Best New Artist award. How do you feel about the dominance of women in the main categories this year?
This is very nice, because we have done a lot of work and tried to attract more women to the organization. Our goal is 2,500 new women by 2025. We have almost reached our goal. In fact, we are now at 77 percent. I am very pleased to see that the work is paying off. We still have a lot of work to do, and seeing the results, we want to work even harder and continue some of the initiatives already started.
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