Grammy Spotlight: Rock and Alternative Artists to Watch, from Wet Leg to My Chemical Romance
Jessica Shalvoy Over the past few Grammy ceremonies, the Recording Academy has seemingly warmed up to the idea of alternative and rock seeping back into the mainstream again. With Glass Animals, Arlo Parks and Japanese Breakfast all getting nominations for best new artist last year, it opens the door for acts other than the usual rock ‘n’ roll Grammy mainstays like Foo Fighters, AC/DC, Paul McCartney and Kings of Leon to really shine. On top of the alternative album award, which has existed since the early ’90s, they’ve even added a new category, best alternative music performance. This is a track and single category that will eliminate the need to push songs that are generally classified as alternative into either the rock or pop categories, as happened a few years ago when Beck’s “Colors” was thrown in with Post Malone, Camila Cabello, Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga for best pop solo performance at the 2019 Grammy Awards.