Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. made the decision last week that Kacey Musgraves’ latest album ‘star-crossed’ is ineligible for the country album category at the upcoming Grammys. Members of the screening committees can reject recordings if they do not feel they fit into the genre, though they remain eligible for the all-genre Album of the Year category. Musgraves, who released ‘star-crossed’ on Sept. 10, already has six Grammy awards — two of those wins are in the country album category – in 2014 for Same Trailer Different Park, and in 2019 for Golden Hour. Golden Hour also won Album of the Year that year.
Kacey’s label — Universal Music Group Nashville — expressed their displeasure at the decision, with label president Cindy Mabe penning an open letter to the Recording Academy that made a case for ‘star-crossed’ to be considered a country album. Now Kacey has offered a brief ‘reply’ on social media about the controversy, tweeting a snapshot of herself as a child wearing a broad, pink cowboy hat along with the caption: “You can take the girl out of the country (genre) but you can’t take the country out of the girl”.
The 64th annual Grammy Awards will be held Jan. 31.
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