These Well-Deserving Artists Have Never Taken Home A Grammy
There are a lot of mixed feelings about the Grammy Awards in the music industry. While many believe it is an opportunity for artists to earn their stripes in the music community, others see it as nothing but a rigged system to make even more money off of the already mainstream artists. These are some of the worst Grammy snubs in music.
Guns N' Roses Didn't Make The Cut
As a band, rock and roll group Guns N' Roses only managed to receive three nominations since they joined forces in 1985, yet the nominations were nothing more than a tease. All three nominations were for their two albums Appetite for Destruction in 1987 and Chinses Democracy in 2008.
However, members Slash, Duff McKagan, and Matt Sorum came together to create the band Velvet Revolver which took home the Best Hard Rock Performance trophy for the song "Slither" in 2005. Maybe there's just something with Axl Rose that is hurting the band' chances. Just by looking at them, is that the group The Recording Academy wants on the Grammy stage?
Apparently, Joe Satriani Doesn't Have The Chops
Fifteen-time nominated Joe Satriani is known for his extremely technical guitar playing. Yet, somehow, he's never been technical enough to receive a Grammy for his playing. Although he has been very close multiple times in both the pop and rock instrumental categories, the awards always seemed to get away from him.
His first set of losses were for his Surfing With the Alien LP and the song "Always With Me, Always With You" in 1989. Since then, he has managed to be nominated 15 times with no luck of taking home the award. Maybe someday, Joe. Keep on rocking.
Oasis Is Dry When It Comes To Grammy Wins
Our favorite Gallagher brothers have been nominated for three Grammys with no success. However, the most surprising was in 1997, when their huge hit "Wonderwall" lost in two different categories. First, it lost the Best Rock Song to Tracy Chapman's "Give Me One Reason" and then again for the Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group to Dave Matthew's Band's "So Much to Say."
They lost again for a final time in 1999, when their song "All Around the World" lost in a music video category. We don't think that we'll be seeing Oasis back at the Grammys for another shot at winning for some time to come.
Journey Had To Stop Believing
Journey's song "Don't Stop Believing" has become a sort of cultural trademark in the United States with more people knowing all of the words than not. Yet, somehow, their hit song and the album Escape which it came from even received a nomination in the 1981 Grammys, a shock to most.
However, Journey got their shot at another Gramophone trophy in 1997, when their track "When You Love a Woman" received a nomination for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or a Group. Of course, they ended up losing to the Beatles for "Free As a Bird." It can't be that hard to lose to the Beatles though.
KISS' Showmanship Isn't Good Enough
You would think that the band KISS is a total shoe-in for a multiple Grammys, but apparently, that isn't the case. Up until 1999, KISS was completely ignored by the Grammys without so much as a nomination. Then before the turn of the 21st century, they landed their first and only nomination in the category of Best Hard Rock Performances for the song "Psycho Circus."
Yet, they ended up losing to Jimmy Page and Robert Plant's "Most High" which is something respectable to lose too. Turns out all that makeup didn't help their chances of winning a Grammy after all.
Talking Heads: Close But No Cigar
Talking Heads have quite the relationship with the Grammy Awards. In a sense, the band has kind of won Grammys but at the same time technically not. In 1986 artist Robert Rauschenberg won a Grammy for Best Recording Package for his art on the album True Stories, and graphic designer Stefan Sagnier won for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Packaging for 2003 Once in a Lifetime.
Then, frontman David Byrne shared a Grammy with Cong Su and Ryuichi Sakamoto for their score on The Last Emperor which won for Best Album of Original Instrumental Background Score Written for a Motion of Television. However, Talking Heads has never won a Grammy as a band.
Björk Racks Up The Nominations
Björk has been nominated 15 times for a series of different Grammys but is best known for her nominations for Best Alternative Music Album nominations which she has lost four times. Her other 10 nominations are mostly for the music video and vocal performance categories.
Yet, if she's truly unsatisfied with her lack of a Grammy, maybe she'll be comforted with her numerous other awards from the BRIT Awards, MTV Music Video Awards, Webby Awards, a Best Actress Award at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival and more. Clearly, she's doing something right, but a Grammy would be the cherry on top.
Snoop Dogg Doesn't Care Anymore
Snoop Dogg has been nominated for a Grammy a whopping 18 times over the last 24 years. But the only title he holds is for having the most Grammy nominations with zero actual wins. In 2016, he was nominated for his feature on Kendrick Lamar's album To Pimp a Butterfly which was up for album of the year.
In the past, he has also been nominated for songs such as "Nuthin' But a 'G' Thang," "Gin and Juice," "Drop It Like It's Hot," and numerous others.
Kid Rock Didn't Rock Hard Enough
Rock and roll star Kid Rock has solidified himself as a successful musician. His 1998 album Devil Without A Cause sold 14 million copies alone and he has sold over 35 million albums in total worldwide. Along with his sales, his songs such as "Bawitdaba," "Cowboy," and "All Summer Long" were incredibly successful with "All Summer Long" topping the charts in eight countries.
He has also been nominated for five Grammy Awards, however, hasn't been able to get his hands on one. His most recent nomination was in 2009 for the Best Male Vocal Performance but ended up losing to John Mayer.
Katy Perry Is Patiently Waiting
Unbelievably, Katy Perry is another deserving artist to be added to the list of the biggest Grammy snubs with 13 nominations. She is considered by many to be one of the most deserving artists in numerous categories without any luck. Even though her album Teenage Dream had a record-breaking five number-one hits, she still never took home the gold.
Although there has been some serious competition with other artists such as Adele who has won nine times, and Sam Smith, it doesn't make her lack of wins any less painless. It's beginning to seem like The Recording Academy has something against her...
Busta Rhymes Is Still Going
Busta Rhymes is no stranger to Grammy nominations with 11 under his belt. Back in the late 1990s, he was even nominated four years in a row for the best Rap Solo Performance and lost all four. In 1997, Rhymes' song "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See" lost to Will Smith's "Men in Black."
He lost to Smith again in 1998 when his song "Dangerous" was beaten out by Smith's "Gettin' Jiggy With It." However, he didn't let these defeats slow him down, with his latest nomination being in 2012 when he featured in "Look At Me Now" alongside Chris Brown and Lil Wayne which was nominated for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song.
Tupac Shakur Had Something To Say About The Grammys
West Coast rapper and activist Tupac Shakur was nominated for a total of seven Grammys over the course of his musical career. At the1996 Grammys, while onstage introducing rock and roll group KISS, he took his time to say a few words. He went on to condemn the Grammys saying that everybody is tired of the same old award show with "all straight-looking folks with suits...everybody looking tired [...] we need something different."
That same night, he was up for two Grammys for his song "Dear Mama" for Best Rap Solo Performance, and his album Me Against The World" for Best Rap Album. Unfortunately, he left empty-handed.
Nicki Minaj Was Made For The Grammys
Yet another pop star yet to walk away from the Grammys holding a Gramophone Award is the incredibly successful and popular Nicki Minaj. With 10 nominations and countless other wins at events such as the Billboard Music Awards, BET Hip-Hop Awards, American Music Awards, and more, its a wonder how she hasn't walked away with a single Grammy.
In 2012, she was nominated for four different awards, and even lost the Best New Artist category to indie performer Bon Iver. Her nominations haven't been for small awards either with Minaj being nominated in categories such as Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, Best Rap Performance and even Best Rap Album.
Queens of the Stone Age Takes a Hit
In 2011, Josh Homme, frontman for Queens of the Stone Age, received a Grammy alongside Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl and Led Zeppelin Bassist John Paul Jones for their power band Them Crooked Vultures. They walked away with the Grammy Best Hard Rock Performance for their song "New Fang."
However, the frontman can't seem to achieve the same kind of success with Queens of the Stone Age. Although they have been nominated six times, in 2014, the band had a hard time at the Grammys when they lost twice for Best Rock Performance for "My God Is The Sun" and Best Rock Album for ...Like Clockwork.
