Jamaicans Grace Jones, Sister Nancy earn Grammy nod for Janelle Monae’s ‘The Age of Pleasure’
Jamaicans Grace Jones and Sister Nancy have earned themselves a Grammy nomination courtesy of Janelle Monae’s album, The Age of Pleasure, which has received the nod for Album of the Year.
Grace Jones is featured on the single ‘Ooh La La,’ while Sister Nancy collaborated on the track ‘The French 75.’
The nominees for the 66th annual Grammy Awards were announced by the Recording Academy on Friday morning. ‘The Age of Pleasure’ is Monae’s fourth studio album, and under the new law implemented by the Recording Academy in 2021, all acts credited as featured on the project will also receive a nomination.
The academy stated in May 2021 that any producer, songwriter, engineer, or featured artiste on an album nominated for Album of the Year will receive a nomination—even if the music creator co-wrote one song on the 10-track project. Before this change, songwriters or producers needed to be credited with at least 33 per cent or more playing time on the album to be eligible for nomination.
Monae’s album features samples of songs by Barrington Levy, Derrick Harriott, Patra, and Mad Cobra.
The singles ‘Champagne Shit’ and ‘Black Sugar Beach’ both sample the intro to Barrington Levy’s 1984 hit ‘Murderer,’ while Derrick Harriott’s 1967 single, ‘The Loser,’ is sampled in ‘Only Have Eyes 42.’ Patra’s 1993 song ‘Whining Skill’ and Sister Nancy’s cross-over hit ‘Bam Bam’ were also sampled on the track ‘Water Slide.’ As credited contributors to the project, they will also earn a Grammy nomination.
Albums from SZA, Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Boygenius, Miley Cyrus, Jon Batiste, and Lana Del Rey have also been nominated for Album of the Year.”