Louisiana Artists Set To Shine In Grammy Spotlight

BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana’s deep and diverse musical heritage will once again be on display Sunday night with the 63^rd annual Grammy Awards presentation. A total of 16 Louisiana acts are nominated for 23 awards, representing musical genres from jazz and blues to Cajun, rap and gospel.

With pandemic precautions still in place, this year’s prime-time awards show from Los Angeles will be largely a virtual event. The show will be broadcast live from the Staples Center with no audience members in attendance, and most nominees will participate in the awards show via online connections. The broadcast is scheduled for 7 p.m. on CBS, with Trevor Noah of The Daily Show hosting.

“Again this year, the Grammy Awards provide an outstanding showcase for many of Louisiana’s great musical ambassadors,” Gov. John Bel Edwards said. “Music in all its forms is an important aspect of our state’s unique culture, and it’s gratifying to see so many of our great artists get the recognition they deserve. We congratulate all of our nominees this year and wish them the best of luck on awards night.”

“Louisiana is proud to be the birthplace of jazz and home of numerous Grammy award-winners and nominees,” Louisiana Economic Development Secretary Don Pierson said. “Our state-of-the-art recording studios, unique production rebate program and highly skilled studio musicians and engineers create an unrivaled opportunity for success in sound recording in Louisiana. At LED, we work with our creative artists in music, digital media, film and TV productions to sustain and grow our entertainment industry, and provide programs to encourage these creative leaders to invest more permanently in our state. There is no better place than Louisiana for creating and producing the very best entertainment content.”

Jon Batiste, who won a Golden Globe last month for his original score of the Pixar film Soul has two Grammy nominations. He is nominated in the Best Contemporary Instrumental Album category for Chronology of a Dream: Live at the Village Vanguard and Best New Age Album for Meditations, with Cory Wong.

PJ Morton, a 14-time nominee who won Grammys in each of the past two years, is nominated this year for Best Gospel Album for Gospel According to PJ.

Other Louisiana nominees are:

• Harry Connick Jr., Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for True Love: A Celebration of Cole Porter. Connick has earned 15 Grammy nominations during his career, with three wins.
• Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, Best Improvised Jazz Solo for Guinevere; and Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for Axiom.
• Lucinda Williams, Best Americana Album for Good Souls Better Angels; and Best American Roots Song for Man Without a Soul. The singer-songwriter is a three-time Grammy winner and has been nominated 17 times.
• John Beasley, with four nominations: Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album for Monk’estra Plays John Beasley; Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella for Donna Lee; Best Arrangement, Instrument and Vocals for Asas Fechadas with Maria Mendes; and Best Jazz Vocal Album for Holy Room: Live at Alte Oper.
• Bobby Rush, Best Traditional Blues Album for Rawer Than Raw. Rush won the 2016 Grammy for this category and has been nominated a total of six times.
• Ledisi, Best Traditional R&B Performance for Anything For You. The New Orleans native is a 13-time Grammy nominee.
• Jay Electronica, Best Rap Album for A Written Testimony.
• Luke James, Best R&B Album for To Feel Love/d.
• North Mississippi Allstars, Best Contemporary Blues Album for Up and Rolling. The late Carl Dufrene, a member of the band, was a Louisiana native.
• Social Science, Best Jazz Instrumental Album for Waiting Game, with Terri Lyne Carrington. Band member Morgan Guerin is a New Orleans native.
• Brian Blade, two nominations in the Best Jazz Instrumental Album category for Trilogy 2, featuring Blade, Chick Corea and Christian McBride; and RoundAgain, featuring Blade, McBride and Redman Mehldau. The three-time Grammy winner is a Shreveport native.

Three of the five contenders for Best Regional Roots Album are Louisiana acts. They include two Cajun bands and a New Orleans brass band, all first-time Grammy nominees:

• Sweet Cecilia for A Tribute to Al Berard. The group comprises two daughters and a niece of the late Al Berard, a Grammy-nominated Cajun musician.
• Cameron Dupuy and the Cajun Troubadours for their self-titled album Cameron Dupuy and the Cajun Troubadours.
• New Orleans Nightcrawlers for Atmosphere.

About Louisiana Entertainment
Louisiana is one of the top destinations in the world for motion picture production; digital interactive and software development projects; live performance; and sound recording. With state-of-the-art facilities, a wealth of talent, production-friendly communities and a competitive incentive program, Louisiana is the perfect location for the entertainment industries. For more information on Louisiana film, digital interactive, live performance and sound recording programs, visit Louisiana Entertainment, a division of Louisiana Economic Development, at louisianaentertainment.gov.

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