Two organizations—Presente.org and Grammywatch.org—are leading a rally and a concert to the Grammy Awards 2012 in Los Angeles, California. The protest is a response to the NARAS decision to eliminate 31 music categories from the Grammy’s 2012, which some say is motivated by money and even racism. On April 6, 2011, Neil Portrow, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) announced that they were eliminating the following music genres: Latin Jazz, contemporary jazz, Native American, Zydeco, Cajun, classical, Hawaiian, regional Mexican, world music, contemporary blues, polka, and other ethnic categories. This reduces the total amount of categories from 109 to 78, or one third. One protest will take place during the red carpet while the stars arrive, with a concert in Studio City later in the evening.
A spokesperson from Grammy Watch said in a press release, “We are holding this concert to remind music fans about all the great music that has been eliminated from the Grammys. To paraphrase what Frank Sinatra said at the first Grammy Awards in 1959, ‘Remember the awards are about excellence, not popularity’ It is part of the NARAS mission to support the diversity of all American music.” Famous people who have expressed support to the protests and oppose the NARAS decision are Ruben Blades, Carlos Santana, and Bobby Sanabria. Legendary Tito Puente, one of the most successful, talented, and famous musicians of all time, won Grammys for Latin Jazz. So that means that if Tito Puente had recorded his music today, he would not have a chance to be recognized at the 2012 Grammy Awards.
The red carpet protest starts at 3:30pm at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA. Once the ceremony begins, the protest will continue at a concert at Mama Juana’s Nightclub in Studio City starting at 4pm until nighttime. Mama Juana’s Nightclub, a popular spot for music and salsa dancing, is offering 50% off all dinners during the concert. Representatives from presente.org have collected 20,000 signatures from people who oppose the NARAS decision to eliminate 31 music categories.
Mama Juana’s can be reached at (818) 505-8636 and is located at 3707 Cahuenga Blvd. West, Studio City 91604
The online petition to reinstate the 31 categories that were eliminated can be found at:
http://act.presente.org/sign/grammys/?source=presente_website
Grammy Watch
Comments