After Kacey Musgraves made her disappointment known with the Recording Academy's decision to exclude her album star crossed from the country genre, singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile is weighing in on the Grammys decision to consider her song "Right on Time" for the Pop category instead of the Americana & Roots category.
Back in 2019, Carlile won three Grammy Awards for her album, By the Way, I Forgive You, earning awards for Best Americana Album, Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song for "The Joke."
Her new album, In These Silent Days, was also recorded with the same production team. Unfortunately, the album was released on Oct. 1, 2020, which makes it ineligible to be considered for Album of The Year. But, her lead single "Right on Time'' will be considered in the pop categories according to Carlisle's rep.
Read More: Kacey Musgraves Reacts After Being Excluded From Grammys Country Category
The singer-songwriter responded to the decision, taking to social media to say that she was "surprised and disappointed" at the same time. About the potential Grammy nominations, she wrote, "Americana/American Roots music is more than a genre to me. It represents my community, my family, my friends and my beautiful island of misfits. I am also proud that it represents a great number of people actively WORKING to platform marginalized people - LGBTQIA, women, and people of color (who, of course, actually built the genre)."
"The Story" singer continued, saying she felt "great responsibility in representing marginalized queer people in rural America who are raised on country and roots music but are repeatedly and systematically rejected by the correlating culture." Carlile wrote how she was proud to be the American Association's Artist of the Year for two years in a row and debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard Americana chart.
The singer stated that Americana is a community more than a style of music, one she would be allowed to represent in regard to how a song might come off stylistically. In response to Carlile's post, country and Americana artist Margo Price commented on the post, saying "PREACH." Americana singer-songwriter Yola commented, "Speak it!!"
Brandi Carlile's single "Right on Time," from her recent Billboard Top Americana/Folk Albums and Top Rock Albums No. 1 album In These Silent Days, has been moved from the American roots Grammys categories to the pop category.https://t.co/cKCCzpaUwx
— billboard (@billboard) October 26, 2021
The news of Carlile's statement echoes Musgrave's disappointment with the Recording Academy's decision regarding star-crossed, which will not be considered in the country music categories, despite being recorded with the same team who produced Golden Hour, which won Best Country Album and Album of the Year. Musgraves responded to the Academy by showing photos of her with other country singers and one of herself raising both middle fingers.
Carlile signed off with a note saying that the decision was unfortunately out of her hands, but she was still honored to be a nominee.
"While I'm incredibly flattered to be considered 'pop' as a 40-year-old crooning lesbian mother. I would be lying if I said I wasn't a bit surprised and disappointed to learn the Recording Academy decided to move 'Right on Time' out of the American Roots genre and into the pop category," Carlile wrote. "Being recognized by the Grammys — in any form — is a great honor. I just want folks to know this wasn't my decision. Regardless, it doesn't change who I am or what my Americana community continues to mean to me."
