The making of a Grammy Award ... and other facts
Published:Thursday | February 1, 2024 | 12:09 AMYasmine Peru/Senior Gleaner Writer
What is the worth in dollars and cents of a Grammy award, the golden gramophone that is handed out each year at music's biggest night? Some websites quote a grand total of US$15 (excluding the workmanship) and note that it is "made with a unique alloy containing no precious metals".
However, of note is the fact that there is no assembly line in the manufacturing of a Grammy award, and the maker insists that each piece is unique.
Interestingly, the value is reduced to zero once it is received because the Recording Academy – formally known as the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences – the entity which hands out the award prohibits resale.
The Grammy website in 2020 showcased the work of John Billings who, along with his small team, has been making the Grammy Awards by hand for more than four decades.
Here is how the process works: "Each piece is handmade by Billings and his Ridgway, Colorado-based team. Each year Billings’ team receives a list of nominations, which they then use to create an estimate of how many awards will need to be produced. The awards, which are composed of three separate pieces (the base, gramophone cabinet, and tone arm), are all assembled separately and made from a special material – appropriately called grammium – and finished with a coating of 24 karat gold. No matter the nominee or award category, every award is created the same, and takes approximately 15 hours to make. Since the first Grammy Awards ceremony, the award has changed several times, but for the past 30 years, the design has stayed roughly the same."
Billings, in a YouTube video said that grammium, which is a custom metal alloy, is a "trade secret" and in another interview he did not reveal the cost of the gramophone, when asked. Talking about his 40 years as The Grammy Man, Billings said that he had made a promise to Bob Graves – the previous maker who took ill – that he would never let anybody else craft the awards.
"I can't describe the honour it is to carry his tradition forward. I think my art has made me a good person and I will be there in that shop every day for the rest of my life," Billings said in the YouTube video.
On his website, he stated, “I’ve always loved the fact that when I go to the Grammys and see the winners’ faces, it changes them. Once you’ve won a Grammy, it changes your life. You’re always introduced as ‘Grammy-winning so-and-so.’ I like that part of being some sort of conduit to lifting people’s lives. It changes their life and it satisfies mine. I get a lot of comfort and satisfaction by helping ]to] lift people up – I love doing that.”
Although the award is gold-plated instead of being made with real gold, the prestige and recognition that comes with owning a Grammy is incomparable.
"Winning the Grammy award can bring in millions of dollars through increased ticket sales, boost record sales and streams, sponsorship deals and overall popularity," music marketer Sean 'Contractor' Edwards stated, adding as an example that sales for Koffee's Grammy Award-winning album, Rapture, increased to 224 copies, from the 26 copies sold the week prior to the win.
In a 2022 article, Billboard explained the 'Grammy bump'.
"Artistes will often see a boost in album sales and streaming numbers after taking home a Grammy in what’s called a 'Grammy bump', but the size of the bump often correlates with how many awards are collected and when in the ceremony the wins occur. Generally, primetime award wins and showstopping performances during the main telecast will yield bigger gains. In the case of Taylor Swift, Folklore won the night’s album of the year award and later saw a 53 per cent increase in earnings in the week of and week following the ceremony."
The 66th Grammy Awards ceremony unfolds on Sunday, February 4 and will air live from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Performers include Burna Boy, Billie Eilish, Billy Joel, Dua Lipa, Joni Mitchell, Luke Combs, Olivia Rodrigo, SZA, Travis Scott, and U2. For the fourth consecutive year, it will be hosted by two-time Grammy-nominated comedian, author, podcaster, and TV host Trevor Noah.
REGGAE GRAMMY FUN FACTS
In 2001, Beenie Man said he had insured his Grammy against theft to the tune of J$1 million.
One of Shabba Ranks' Grammy awards was removed from his mother's home in Seaview Gardens, Kingston.
Grammy Kid Koffee told Rolling Stones in a 2022 interview that she had no clue where her trophy was. “I haven’t seen it since I left the US, I swear I don’t know who has it.”