Vineet Singh Hukmani: Grammys are way ahead in diversity as compared to other award shows

Last year, Grammy awards came under fire for lack of transparency, with The Weeknd boycotting the ceremony. But singer Vineet Singh Hukmani, with three of his singles being considered for Grammy nomination, is dispelling the myth around the awards being rigged.

“The Grammys are way ahead in diversity as compared to some of the other award shows. More and more indie musicians are getting nominated. There is Ricky Kej, Anoushka Shankar and Priya Darshini from India. It is opening up at least in the non prime genres,” says the Delhi-based singer.

Hukmani has three of his singles — Jab the World in Rock, I Pray in Melodic Rap and Turning Back Time in Pop — submitted for 2022 Grammy consideration in mainstream categories.

He further explains, “The sheer number of entries that make it to the Grammys are facilitated by the top labels. If 100 songs enter the race, almost 85% are by the labels, and only 15% by the independent artiste, because independent artistes do not have that access even to get to Grammy submissions. The songs by the labels have the whole weight of marketing and all, while that is not there on the independent artists side…so, you tend to get marginalised.”

The singer, who quit his comfortable life of a radio executive for the tunes of music, feels a lot has changed in the Grammy world, when it comes to diversity. He goes on to point out how the Black Lives Matter movement pushed forward the inclusivity metre in the industry.

He says, “They had to create separate Latino Grammys… a step in the right direction. Who knows, maybe in two years from now we might have Asian Grammys. I do speak to a lot of Grammy jury members, and all of them have their hearts in the right place. They are trying to change things they are trying to do the best possible.”

The singer, who single Hurry has become number one on Euro Indie charts/Global Radio Charts, adds, “They get over 35,000 entries, out of which only 20 win. I am sure it leaves the rest of them unhappy. Harvey Mason Jr. (CEO of The Recording Academy) is fair and is trying really hard.”