Contest for 'Best Reggae Album' AT 2022 Grammy Awards

The 2022 Grammy Award nominations have now come out, and as expected, the Best Reggae Album category is sparking controversy. The six positions available for the reggae unit went to Etana PAMOJA, Sean Paul and his Live N Livin album, Spice his 10th album, Jesse Royal and his Royal album, Gramps Morgan with Positive Vibration, and reggae band SOJA with Beauty in the Silence.

This is Spice's first Grammy nomination, but her nomination made history a bit in the Best Reggae Album category as, for the first time, two women are vying for the trophy. Meanwhile, Etana is taking her second nomination after being previously nominated in 2019 for her album, Reggae Forever.

"Thank you Grammy Nominated @recordingacademy Thank you so much for making this historic day a success. Besties I LOVE YOU #SpiceAlbum10,” wrote Spice as he shared his video of freestyle shooting.

Etana also responded to her nomination letter, "Thank you to all the producers for the Joint album, we have just been nominated for the @recordingacademy Grammy Awards." He also thanked his album partners and the production team, as well as his fellow nominees.

The Etana Pamoja album has been well received by reggae fans this year. The project witnessed features from Vybz Kartel, Nandy, Stonebwoy, Alborosie, Patrice, Damian Jr Gong Marley, and more.

At the time of this publication, Sean Paul, who has previously taken several appointments over the years, has not yet responded. But his album is probably the biggest project among the group in terms of the number of collaborations with many tons of reggae / dancehall artists, young and contemporary. The SP Live N Livin album saw him working with Intence, Squash, Skillibeng, Chi Ching Ching, Govana, Mavado, Buju Banton, Agent Sasco, and more.

This year, Jesse Royal released his Royal album in June featuring 11 songs and collaborations with Vybz Kartel, Protoje, Stonebwoy, Samory I, Kumar, and Runkus. The album is now a Grammy-nominated project.

Gramps Morgan of Morgan Heritage released its solo project Positive Vibration in July. The 15-song project witnessed a few guests from popular names like Shaggy, India Arie, and his brothers Jemere and Denroy Morgan.

The California-based reggae band SOJA released their album Beauty in the Silence. The album was released in September featuring 13 songs and guest elements from Collie Buddz, J Boog, Rebelution, Ali Campbell, Figure Figure, Trevor Young, Mihali, Slightly Stoopid, and many others.

Almost every year, the Best Reggae Grammy Album sparked controversy among artists and fans. This year’s nomination will not be different, as some fans will say that their artist should have been nominated or won.

Following widespread complaints from big-name artists earlier this year such as The Weeknd, The Recording Academy announced major changes, including dissolving its Nomination Review Committees and reducing the number of categories open to voters.

The 64 annual Grammy Awards include 86 categories this year. The award ceremony will take place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 31, 2022. The show will be shown live on CBS.

Best Grammy Nominees for Reggae Album: -