October 16, 2024
Episode

The Business Behind the Grammys

The Business Behind the Grammys
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For this week’s Trapital show, we broke down the business behind the Grammys. We broke down how Grammys are won, the CBS – Recording Academy relationship, the For Your Consideration business, the Grammys impact on music, and the future of this award show despite declining TV ratings.

I’m joined by friend of the pod, Zack O’Malley Greenburg, who has been to several Grammy shows over the years. Let’s dive in.

A show for music lovers? or industry insiders?

Like most award shows, The Grammys have often felt like a tug-of-war between TV networks and academies. The networks want an entertaining show that can reach the masses. The academies want a show that preserves its roots and celebrates the industry. The result often feels like a niche startup that just got a ton of funding to grow its target audience, and now tries to balance both.

On one hand, The Grammys are as entertaining as an award show can get. There are more performances than awards given out on the telecasts, and the performances often deliver. That’s a decision that CBS, the longtime broadcast partner of The Grammys, likely prefers.

But some category definitions, like Record of the Year vs. Song of the Year, can still confuse music fans who don’t know the difference between masters and publishing (and understandably so).

CBS and The Recording Academy are at the tail end of their ten-year agreement that concludes in 2026. When the current deal started in 2017, The Grammys pulled in 26.05 million viewers. The 2023 show had 12.55 million, which felt like a relative win in post-pandemic times.

If CBS and The Recording Academy continue, this next deal will have to be considerably cheaper than the reported $57 million that CBS pays annually for broadcast rights, especially if it can no longer generate the $66 million in ad revenue that it once did in January 2020.

To capture more viewers, I expect that the show will be simulcast on a video streaming service as well.

In the NFL, both Amazon Prime and Peacock proved that video streaming platforms can handle an exclusive event watched by tens of millions of people. In film, the SAG Awards have now moved to Netflix.

Every network wants to reach younger audiences, and many of them are on streaming. But both networks and academies need to be aligned on that.

You can listen to the episode here or continue for more highlights.

How Grammys get won

It’s earnest, but naive, to think that Grammy awards are won on pure merit. Great art often does get recognized, but these are subjective awards voted for by people who can be swayed. Not swayed in a nefarious way, but swayed in the way that anyone can be swayed to make a decision: through relationships, campaigns, and advertising.

The Recording Academy often recognizes artists who put in work with its membership body. These artists have participated in Grammy education performances, artist showcases, and private events. It’s an opportunity to meet voters, build connections, and create memories that can have a lasting impact.

Bruno Mars is living proof. In our episode, Zack spoke about a small private Grammys event he attended that Bruno sang at very early in his career. The Hawaiian singer also performed at the 2010 Grammys nomination show.

Several years later, Bruno’s album 24KMagic and his duo with Anderson .Paak, Slik Sonic, swept the Grammys and won the major awards. It’s hard to itemize which specific early career event moved the needle for Bruno Mars, but it’s better to think about the collective influence. This was more like a decade-long enterprise sales initiative where the relationship is nurtured over time.

On the flip side, Kanye West has seen both sides. “The old Kanye” was a Grammys darling. West was the first solo artist to have his first three studio albums (College Dropout, Late Registration, Graduation) nominated for Album of the Year. But 2010’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, an album often considered to be the best album of the 2010s, did not get nominated for Album of the Year, and only won awards that weren’t televised on TV.

Was Ye ‘punished’ by voters for the 2009 Taylor SwiftMTV VMA incident? It’s hard to prove, but hard to ignore its potential impact.

Also, some record labels are much better than others at The Grammys. In recent years, Verve Records’ artists like Jon Batiste and Samara Joy have won Album of the Year, Best New Artist, and Best Folk Album, and continue to get nominated in the major categories. The labels create the traditional music that Grammy voters love, and the label and artists invest in those relationships and events with the Academy.

And this is only part of what goes into a Grammy campaign! There’s also the multi-million dollar For Your Consideration ad businesses to promote artists. FYC is a cash cow for the industry trade publications and countless billboards throughout Los Angeles.

This episode was a lot of fun. Zack and I also covered:

– how The Recording Academy makes money outside of the broadcast
– how The Grammys helped legitimize music in the 1950s and 1960s
– improvements we would make to The Grammys

Plus, our Chartmetric stat of the week was a fun one.

2024 Record of the Year nominee, SZA’s “Kill Bill,” is currently on 103 editorial playlists on Spotify, 107 on Amazon, 64 on Apple Music, and 12 on Deezer! This song has been everywhere this past year, and the playlist counts show.

Dan smiling at the camera against a dark background, wearing a blue shirt."
Dan Runcie
Founder of Trapital
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If you’re looking for a podcast with a wealth of info on the business of hip hop, then Trapital is your new home. Dan is an excellent host who has a myriad of of experienced guests to talk their role in the business of hip hop. Check it out!
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A good friend of mine put me on this podcast and it took me some time to tap in, but once I did, I couldn’t stop listening! Dan has a talent for pulling out the narratives between lines, connecting it to the culture and then making it make sense. I’m a loyal subscriber and am thankful for the podcast!
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I am a real estate investor and came across this podcast after a recommendation from a friend who shares my loves for both hip hop and business. Often, those two interests have such polar opposite “voices” - but Dan’s podcast brings those two together for me. The result is magical. Great guests, too!
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As a guy who came up in NYC during the late 90s / early 2000s rap scene, I appreciate the history revisited by Dan, who obviously has an authentic and unique perspective on the culture. But he’s not only a hip hop historian; he’s also a visionary of art, technology and culture who curates other trend setters from across the globe. Salute!
Mrkamal
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I love Dan’s ability to bring diverse and timely perspectives to the show while asking deeply insightful questions that engage the audience on so many interesting levels. I’ve learned so much in just a short period of listening. Excited for what Dan has in store for the show in the future!
Greg0188
Great podcast! Keep it up!
I stumbled upon this podcast by learning about Dan / Trapital via LinkedIn. I listen to A LOT of podcasts and I decided to give it a listen. First, Dan has a calm and authentic demeanor, which are great qualities. When he’s talking to his guests it’s very conversational and easy flowing. I’m a former music industry vet so the topics are right up my alley.
Phil Stolaronek

Read what the industry leaders read

Hip-hop mirrors the business world in a lot of ways. While I’ve always thought and known that, it’s great to see those ideas brought to life by someone so knowledgeable about both of those things. Huge fan of Trapital.
PPLS CHAMP
Looking forward to future episodes of Trapital. I’ve been following the newsletters for awhile and always learn something new that’s relevant to hip hop and business. Great job getting the nuggets of info from Matthew Knowles on the 1st episode, can’t wait until the next one!
Cburns08
If you’re looking for a podcast with a wealth of info on the business of hip hop, then Trapital is your new home. Dan is an excellent host who has a myriad of of experienced guests to talk their role in the business of hip hop. Check it out!
RoyalSkegee
If you work in — or have an interest in — the music business, Trapital is a must.
Samu Rast
A good friend of mine put me on this podcast and it took me some time to tap in, but once I did, I couldn’t stop listening! Dan has a talent for pulling out the narratives between lines, connecting it to the culture and then making it make sense. I’m a loyal subscriber and am thankful for the podcast!
Zealous Advocate
I am a real estate investor and came across this podcast after a recommendation from a friend who shares my loves for both hip hop and business. Often, those two interests have such polar opposite “voices” - but Dan’s podcast brings those two together for me. The result is magical. Great guests, too!
Gabriel Blue
As a guy who came up in NYC during the late 90s / early 2000s rap scene, I appreciate the history revisited by Dan, who obviously has an authentic and unique perspective on the culture. But he’s not only a hip hop historian; he’s also a visionary of art, technology and culture who curates other trend setters from across the globe. Salute!
Mrkamal
I love Dan’s ability to bring diverse and timely perspectives to the show while asking deeply insightful questions that engage the audience on so many interesting levels. I’ve learned so much in just a short period of listening. Excited for what Dan has in store for the show in the future!
Greg0188
I stumbled upon this podcast by learning about Dan / Trapital via LinkedIn. I listen to A LOT of podcasts and I decided to give it a listen. First, Dan has a calm and authentic demeanor, which are great qualities. When he’s talking to his guests it’s very conversational and easy flowing. I’m a former music industry vet so the topics are right up my alley.
Phil Stolaronek
Dan sitting at a table with others, smiling and engaged in a discussion, with glasses and a water pitcher on the table.

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