Country singer-songwriter Vince Gill defended the Recording Academy last week against criticism that female artists are underrepresented at the Grammys.
“I look at it kind of trying to see the whole field, you know," he said during a speech in New York for the Country Music Hall Of Fame, "and I think the Grammys will go on and the country artists will feel slighted. Or maybe the classical people will feel slighted. It’s impossible to pull something off like that and not leave a few people by the wayside.”
During his speech, the 21-time Grammy winner shared the stage with Emmylou Harris, Maren Morris, and Kesha.
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“You’re looking at three really open-minded musical people. We don’t care about genres, of colour of skin, or gender, or anything. We just love playing music with great people and that’s all,” he continued.
According to Billboard, Gill sat with Harris and Morris before the concert and claimed that artists are “conscious of what’s great at the end of the day.” Morris reportedly agreed with Gill’s opinion, and claimed that Grammy history backs it up.
She said: “I think the person that’s won the most Grammys is Alison Krauss so I don’t know. I mean, there’s obviously some things that need to be looked at and maybe it’s just voting members. Maybe we need to like expand on that."
Krauss has actually dominated female Grammy wins, with 27 in total, out of a whopping 44 nominations.
“I was really proud of Alessia Cara that she won Best New Artist. I think she really deserved that,” Morris said of the Canadian winner. “But I think there’s always improvement that needs to be had.”
This year’s Grammy Awards sparked controversy and criticism for female underrepresentation after Album Of The Year nominee Lorde was denied a chance to perform solo at the ceremony. Additionally, of all those awarded during the evening’s festivities, the only two female winners were Cara and Rihanna (for a collaboration with Kendrick Lamar).