If we noticed an excess of music stars walking past the sidewalk by our Nashville mastering studio here on Music Row a few nights ago, it was likely because they were on their way to or from the Grammy nominations concert at the Bridgestone Arena here in town.
The concert, hosted by Taylor Swift and LL Cool J, served as a prime time announcement of which artists will be in the audience at the 55th Annual Grammy Awards early next year. It probably also served to put a few extra bucks in the pockets of the network. But hey, I'm not here to talk down anyone's business practices, I'm here to see what this year's Grammy nominations say about the music industry today. Or, at least what the mainstream thinks the music industry is today.
Major Labels versus Independent, Frank Ocean and Alabama Shakes
![Grammy Award Nominations for Grammies](https://api.sageaudio.com/storage/article/uploads/2013-07-Grammy_Award-300x300.jpg)
Well, as we know, the Grammy's don't tend to generally favor independent artists other than a couple of awards that all-too-often seem like the RIAA is throwing a bone to the independent artists that have become someone known in the mainstream (read: Arcade Fire, Bon Iver, etc.). This year is no different, and the label with the most awards is Warner Music Group labels.
The closest to an independent artist getting nominated this year is Frank Ocean, a member of the Odd Future rap collective that received six nominations for his album Channel Orange , which was the most nominations any artist received, though a slew of artist also received six nods. Channel Orange was released on Def Jam records, which is a part of the Universal Music Group, but Ocean was largely seen as an underground artist before his album became known in wider circles – due in large part to significant internet buzz surrounding its release. Also in independent news, the Alabama Shakes – signed to Dave Matthews' ATO Records – were nominated for Best New Artist.
Other acts with six nominations include Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys, Mumford and Sons, Jay-Z, Kanye West and fun.
All the Young Dudes (and Dudettes)
But it is safe to say that this year's nominations belong in large part to the young. For instance, this summer's mega hit “Call Me Maybe” earned Canadian Carly Rae Jepsen two nominations, Gotye earned a few largely on the success of the even more successful “Somebody That I Used to Know,” and Taylor Swift's “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” will be in the running for Record of the Year. It is probably safe to say Swift would be up for many more if that song's album and current best-seller Red was eligible, but it was released too late. We'll have to wait until next year to see how it does in terms of Grammy success.
Who Wasn't Nominated for a Grammy
Finally, some of the most shocking news from the nomination ceremony were those who weren't nominated. Speaking of the young, the most prominent artist with zero nominations was Justin Bieber, who essentially swept the American Music Awards in November. Other artists with new music but no nominations include Bruce Springsteen, Ellie Goulding, Lana Del Rey, Lionel Richie and the Beach Boys. And that list would get much longer if we were to include all of the independent artists that put out great music this year that got no love from the Grammy nomination committee. But we won't – not now.
So, Why A Membership?
Let’s face it — trying to create professional mixes without the correct knowledge, tools, services, and network is like playing a concert with a broken instrument to an audience of no one.
That’s where the Sage Audio membership comes in — the membership gives you everything you need to create professional mixes consistently.
The membership is the secret to your success — it’s the difference between the 1,929,999,999 of poor-sounding mixes and the .00000002% of mixes that make people say 'WOW!"
There are 7 unique value-points included in your Sage Audio membership.
Let’s go over each one so you can decide if the membership is right for you.
1. Sage Audio University
- SAU Flagship Mixing Course: 23-video in-depth mixing course that reveals the little-known secrets of mixing and matches the needs of the new music industry.
- SAU Flagship Mastering Course: 19-video in-depth modern mastering course that dives into every nuance of making professional-sounding masters.
- SAU Pre-Mastering Course: Concise pre-mastering course that details the latest industry standards for preparing your mixes for mastering.
- SAU is designed for every experience level, ranging from budding mixing engineers to advanced engineers. The techniques and concepts taught can be applied to any DAW to create industry-leading mixes without expensive software or plugins - and free plugin alternatives are suggested throughout each course.
- Each SAU course includes Start-to-Finish session walkthrough lessons for multiple genres so you can follow along with your preferred genre.
- SAU Certification Document, which can be downloaded and showcased on your website and social channels.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
2. Private 1-on-1 Mentorship
- The Sage Audio private 1-on-1 Mentorship gives you direct access to us for advanced mixing feedback, in-depth discussions, and customized guidance that's tailored to your specific needs.
- Unlimited private access to us for advanced mixing feedback, where we provide detailed suggestions for improvement.
- Unlimited private access to us for in-depth discussions to help you improve every aspect of your mixes and masters.
- Customized guidance that’s tailored specifically to your needs.
- Fast communication so you can improve your skills quickly.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
3. Unlimited Mixing Feedback
- Unlimited professional mixing feedback directly from us so you can consistently improve your skills and create professional mixes.
- Mixing feedback is invaluable, and the Sage Audio membership gives you continual direct access to us for real-world feedback so you can improve every aspect of each of your mixes while you're in the process of mixing.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
4. 50 Free Mastered Songs Per Year
- 50 free mastered songs per year with your own dedicated professional mastering engineer so you can get all your mixes sounding like professional songs.
- You get your own dedicated Sage Audio mastering engineer to create custom masters that are specific to you and sound exactly how you want.
- Unlimited revisions with your dedicated mastering engineer. As a standard of our service, we are not happy until you are happy with the sound of your masters.
- All masters are delivered as commercial, industry-standard high-resolution 24-bit HD WAV masters so they will sound clean and clear on every platform.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
5. Community
- The Sage Audio community is a tight-knit community of passionate audio engineers who can provide you with additional real-world mixing feedback, meaningful discussions, networking, collaborations, and more.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
6. 70+ GB of Curated Sage Audio Downloadable Content
- 36 multitrack sessions spanning multiple genres for mixing practice.
- 57 un-mastered mixes spanning multiple genres for mastering practice.
- 62 Recommended Free Plugins List (vetted, tested, and approved, so you don’t have to).
- 39 Recommended Paid Plugins List (vetted, tested, and approved, so you don’t have to).
- 71 Sage Audio custom plugin presets to improve your mixes and masters.
- Sage Audio Membership Badge to showcase on your website, social channels, and portfolio.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
7. 800+ Video Catalog
- Access 700+ in-depth Sage Audio mixing and mastering videos - curated and organized into categories so you can easily take a deep dive into all aspects of audio engineering with thousands of hours of concise, expertly crafted Sage Audio videos to continually improve your skills at your own pace.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >