Every year the grammy awards make an educated guess as to who the best new artist is for that year. Someone once said that to judge the best from a given year you need the perspective of time to help determine who was really the best. So here is a list of grammy's best new artist nominees from the 1990s. How many of them were deserving of recognition and are still making records/still relevant or are still popular? And are there any acts that you think the grammies should have included that were overlooked?

1990

Mariah Carey- WINNER, had the most consistent string of hits of the 5 nominees
Lisa Stansfield- she was a good singer, different
Black Crowes
Kentucky Headhunters
Wilson Phillips

1991

Marc Cohn- WINNER, but only had one hit
Seal- he's still on the charts and has been pretty consistent
Boyz II Men- they had a long run of hits
C&C Music Factory
Color Me Badd

MISSING: Celine Dion came out this year and has sold a gazillion records. She won major awards in other years though

1992

Arrested Development- WINNER, they only had one hit album
Kriss Kross- they were a fad act
Sophie B Hawkins
Jon Secada
(I forgot the 5th entry, if you remember type it in)

1993

Toni Braxton - WINNER, she had a lot of hit records in her heyday
SWV
Digable Planets
Blind Melon
Green Day

1994

Sheryl Crow- WINNER, has sold very well, her greatest hits was a recent bestseller
Green Jelly
Ace if Base- they were so popular then they vanished
Crash Test Dummies
(forgot the 5th entry- if you remember type it in)

MISSING: All4One won a pop award but didn't turn up in this race

1995

Hootie and the Blowfish- WINNER, they're still making records, but peaked a long time ago (like with their first CD)
Brandy
Shania Twain
Alanis Morrisette
Joan Osbourne


1996

Lee Ann Rimes- WINNER, she peaked before she even turned 21
Jewel
No Doubt- they seem to have had the most success out of these 5
Garbage
Tony Rich Project- he had 1 hit

1997

Paula Cole- WINNER, she vanished into thin air right afterwards
Fiona Apple
Puff Daddy
Erykah Badu
Hanson- new album out but will it sell?

1998

Lauryn Hill- WINNER, how was she new when she was a grammy winner with the Fugees???
Natalie Imbruglia
Backstreet Boys- they came out 3 years earlier actually
Andrea Bocelli
(I forgot the 5th entry, if you remember type it in)

1999

Christina Aguilera- WINNER, still very popular, but will she still be in 2009?
Britney Spears
Macy Gray
Susan Tedeschi
(I forgot the 5th entry, if you remember, type it in)

Considering that the grammies pick people for this field who have some type of hit record it is not surprising that more big stars who didn't catch on right away didn't show up in these lists.

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1990

Mariah Carey- WINNER, had the most consistent string of hits of the 5 nominees
Lisa Stansfield- she was a good singer, different
Black Crowes
Kentucky Headhunters
Wilson Phillips


Mariah deserved it. Black Crowes did have a fairly long-running career on rock radio until Kate Hudson broke them up. Lisa Stansfield was great too, she's still around tho she hasn't had an American hit in ages

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1991

Marc Cohn- WINNER, but only had one hit
Seal- he's still on the charts and has been pretty consistent
Boyz II Men- they had a long run of hits
C&C Music Factory
Color Me Badd

I think Seal deserved it. Boyz II Men had the most success, but I always thought they were an ungodly boring act.

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1992

Arrested Development- WINNER, they only had one hit album
Kriss Kross- they were a fad act
Sophie B Hawkins
Jon Secada
(I forgot the 5th entry, if you remember type it in)

I don't care much for any of these acts, but Sophie B. Hawkins probably would be the one I liked best

Originally posted by jamesanthony

1994

Sheryl Crow- WINNER, has sold very well, her greatest hits was a recent bestseller
Green Jelly
Ace if Base- they were so popular then they vanished
Crash Test Dummies
(forgot the 5th entry- if you remember type it in)

Sheryl deserved it

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1995

Hootie and the Blowfish- WINNER, they're still making records, but peaked a long time ago (like with their first CD)
Brandy
Shania Twain
Alanis Morrisette
Joan Osbourne

thought it was funny Alanis swept that year, yet didn't win Best New Artist. Her, Shania and Brandy have all had good careers

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1996

Lee Ann Rimes- WINNER, she peaked before she even turned 21
Jewel
No Doubt- they seem to have had the most success out of these 5
Garbage
Tony Rich Project- he had 1 hit

No Doubt and Jewel are my faves of these. Garbage is okay but I've never been as into them as others

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1997

Paula Cole- WINNER, she vanished into thin air right afterwards
Fiona Apple
Puff Daddy
Erykah Badu
Hanson- new album out but will it sell?

don't like any of these, I'd go with Hanson. Puff Daddy IMO, is responsible for the downturn in music

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1998

Lauryn Hill- WINNER, how was she new when she was a grammy winner with the Fugees???
Natalie Imbruglia
Backstreet Boys- they came out 3 years earlier actually
Andrea Bocelli
(I forgot the 5th entry, if you remember type it in)

probably Natalie Imbruglia

Originally posted by jamesanthony
1999

Christina Aguilera- WINNER, still very popular, but will she still be in 2009?
Britney Spears
Macy Gray
Susan Tedeschi
(I forgot the 5th entry, if you remember, type it in)

Macy Gray has the most talent of them IMO

Originally posted by BuffySlayer79


I think Seal deserved it.

Puff Daddy IMO, is responsible for the downturn in music



Seal is a good talent, different, original. Puffy is more of a personality than an artist really, but he epitomizes the American dream so he's become an icon of fascination to many. He can actually tap dance and knows how to market himself/create a demand/hunger for him and his product.

Originally posted by jamesanthony
Seal is a good talent, different, original. Puffy is more of a personality than an artist really, but he epitomizes the American dream so he's become an icon of fascination to many. He can actually tap dance and knows how to market himself/create a demand/hunger for him and his product.

true, I think Puffy took sampling to another level. People were annoyed with the way MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice "stole" songs, but what they did didn't come close to what Puff did with Every Breath You Take. He may be a decent producer, just as long as he stays away from a microphone

Year-by-year, here's who should have won "best new artist." This is based solely on artistic merit, and not necessarily total number of records sold.

1990: The Black Crowes
1991: Seal
1992: Nirvana. If they weren't nominated, they should have been.
1993: Blind Melon
1994: Radiohead. See Nirvana.
1995: Alanis Morissette
1996: No Doubt- they seem to have had the most success out of 1997: Erykah Badu
1998: ?
1999: Macy Gray

None. I hate all of them. I think todays music stinks :rolleyes:

Originally posted by BuffySlayer79
true, I think Puffy took sampling to another level. People were annoyed with the way MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice "stole" songs, but what they did didn't come close to what Puff did with Every Breath You Take. He may be a decent producer, just as long as he stays away from a microphone

I can't think of a single record he has made that isn't based on some sample. But the people who own the records that are sampled allow it (not just in his case) in part because it means that they get paid if the new song catches on. I don't know how Sting felt at first about him taking the Police record but he did perform the new sampled song with Puffy on an awards show (might've been the grammies for that year).

Originally posted by Rurry007
None. I hate all of them. I think todays music stinks :rolleyes:

"Today," meaning between five and fifteen years ago?

Originally posted by AKA
"Today," meaning between five and fifteen years ago?

exactly, I hardly think 1990-1995 is exactly "today"

Originally posted by Rurry007
None. I hate all of them. I think todays music stinks :rolleyes:

My tastes are rather anti-rock, so looking over the nominees listed above I would pick:

1990- Lisa Stansfield- Mariah Carey has talent, but she overdoes it with the screeching high notes and melisma, Lisa is a much more subtle performer

1991- Seal, I didn't like him at first, but he has staying power; Boyz II Men are not bad, but they themselves admit that they were heavily influenced by Take-6 a much better group who were nominated in this same category in 1988

1992- probably Arrested Development who did hip hop that wasn't gangbanger, bling bling or sexually oriented

1993- don't really like any of them but I guess Digable Planets who mixed jazz with rap. Toni Braxton doesn't grab me.

1994- don't like any of those nominees, but if I had to pick I guess Sheryl Crow

1995- Hootie & the Blowfish, not my favorite but at least they are a band who play their own instruments

1996- Don't really like any of these, but LeeAnn Rimes had some songs I thought were decent

1997- Don't like any of these really, maybe Hanson

1998- Backstreet Boys are corny but they would be my choice even though they are not a band as the media likes to call them

1999- Don't like any that much. Christina Aguilera by default. Definitely not Britney Spears. Is she an artist? Like Puff Daddy she is more of a personality who just happens to make records.

Originally posted by jamesanthony
I can't think of a single record he has made that isn't based on some sample. But the people who own the records that are sampled allow it (not just in his case) in part because it means that they get paid if the new song catches on. I don't know how Sting felt at first about him taking the Police record but he did perform the new sampled song with Puffy on an awards show (might've been the grammies for that year).

that is true about being allowed, but it kinda showed a lack of creativity when all "I'll Be Missing You" was was Every Breath You Take without the vocal tracks. I was happy to see it make VH1's top 50 worst songs list, because what Puffy did with the song would be no different than doing the song karaoke and starting a rap you wrote instead of singing along with the song.

1991

Marc Cohn- WINNER, but only had one hit
Seal- he's still on the charts and has been pretty consistent
Boyz II Men- they had a long run of hits
C&C Music Factory
Color Me Badd


Here's a case where I think the Grammy voters were so afraid of a repeat of the Milli Vanilli fiasco, they decided to give the award to the person furthest away from that type of act. Seal's first two singles, "Crazy" and "Killer" were well-produced dance tracks, C&C Music Factory had the issue of Martha Wash, who sings on the record, being replaced in the video, and though Boyz II Men and Color Me Badd were vocal groups, their debut singles were uptempo dance tracks. I think voters saw Marc Cohn's music as the safest, most potentially controversy-free of the bunch and gave him the award. He obviously deserved it :rolleyes:

1990- Mariah Carey deserved it, undoubtedly.

1991- WTF were they smoking?... Boyz II Men deserved it. LOL @ Color Me Badd being nominated.

1992- Arrest Development was great, they deserved the award. I'm glad they got it.

1993- Wow, four great nominees this year. Blind Melon, Green Day, SWV, and Toni Braxton are all great. IMO, I would of gone with Green Day, but Toni Braxton was well deserved as well, she had a very impressive debut.

1994- Sheryl deserved it. Smart choice.

1995- Another great year, they all deserved the recognition. Brandy was a breath of fresh air, and very unique at the time. Shania Twain MILLIONS of records and was (is) talented in her own right, but Alanis Morrisette had the best year and produced the best material that year- she deserved the award, hands down.

1996- A even BETTER year, ALL of these nominees deserved the award. I'm not surprised that No Doubt didn't win, people still thought of them as a fad, if we were allowed to re-vote as of today, they will most definately win. The Tony Rich Project was great as well, but the competition was better. But between LeAnn Rimes and Jewel, I would of gone with Jewel, she had the best material, and Pieces of You was a great album- she should of won.

1997- Paula Cole DID NOT deserve the award, and Puff Daddy didn't even deserve the nomination, even though No Way Out was a good rap album, but when you think about it... it was wan't him that made it good. IMO, Erykah Badu was good, but Fiona Apple was (an in past tense,) better, much better. **** it... Hanson honestly deserved the award.

1998- Despite being overexposed that year, Lauryn Hill deserved the award. Natalie Imbruglia was also great, "Smoke," and "Torn" were two of the most beautiful songs of the year.

1999- Are you kidding me?... Christina Aguilera deserved the award, where was the competition?... I'm glad she got it. BTW... the nominee you are missing is Kid Rock, believe or not.

Wait a second? Are you sure Green Day was nominated in 1993? I'm pretty sure their breakthrough album, Dookie, wasn't released until 1994.

Originally posted by AKA
Wait a second? Are you sure Green Day was nominated in 1993? I'm pretty sure their breakthrough album, Dookie, wasn't released until 1994.

I think he switched 93 and 94. I noticed Green Jelly(Jello) were listed in 1994, but their album and video was popular in the summer of 1993. While Green Day exploded in 1994

Originally posted by vashti1999
Here's a case where I think the Grammy voters were so afraid of a repeat of the Milli Vanilli fiasco, they decided to give the award to the person furthest away from that type of act. Seal's first two singles, "Crazy" and "Killer" were well-produced dance tracks, C&C Music Factory had the issue of Martha Wash, who sings on the record, being replaced in the video, and though Boyz II Men and Color Me Badd were vocal groups, their debut singles were uptempo dance tracks. I think voters saw Marc Cohn's music as the safest, most potentially controversy-free of the bunch and gave him the award. He obviously deserved it :rolleyes:

Another trend in this category is that the act who has the most presence in the other top 3 fields (record, song and album of the year) is the one who will most likely win. Of those 5 acts from 1991 Cohn was the only one nominated in one of those 3 fields: best song for Walking in Memphis. That song was nominated for pop male vocal as well. Boyz II Men beat Color Me Bad in the r&B group field though.

Other examples of this trend of awarding the act that is most prominent in the top 3 categories: The Carpenters, Christopher Cross, Cyndi Lauper, Tracy Chapman, Mariah Carey, Paula Cole and Norah Jones all of whom were nominated or had their music nominated in all 3 fields. Sheryl Crow was up for two out of three in 1994. Lauryn Hill was the only contender in 1998 to appear in a top 3 field. The same was true of Evanescence this year and Jose Feliciano in 1968. LeeAnn Rimes' song "Blue" was nominated for best song in 1996 while no music by her competitors appeared in the top 3.

The other trend that takes away the suspense from predicting this category is record sales. In cases where no one nominee is heavily represented in the top 3 fields the act that sells the most records will usually win: Sheena Easton, Men at Work, Culture Club, Sade, Bruce Hornsby, Milli Vanilli, Toni Braxton, Arrested Development, Hootie (they outsold all the others from their year including Alanis, although I believe that Alanis eventually outsold them in the long run), and Alicia Keys (outsold India.Arie). The only exception to this since 1980 has been Christina Aguilera who I think sold less than Britney Spears- but I guess Britney was such a laughable choice that they had to go with Christina who sold way more than Macy Gray, Susan Tedeschi and probably the other nominee that I can't remember (it may have been Kid Rock- I'm too lazy to do a web search to confirm it).

I suppose that another sign of success is if a winner gets nominated for something again particularly in a top category. Here is a list of nominees from the 90s who showed up in a top 3 field (record, song or best album) after they won.

Mariah Carey- Record, Album in 1995 (note: she had a lot of other nominations through 2000 but never won after 1990)

Seal- WON both Record and Song in 1995, nominated for album in 1994 (last mention in any category was in 1997)

Boyz II Men- Record 1995 (with Mariah Carey) (they won 3 other r&B awards between 92-94 and have had several other nominations through 2000)

Sheryl Crow- album 1996, Record 1997 (has won 8 awards in total- a lot of wins in rock performance)

Shania Twain- Record and album 1998, Song in both 1998 and 1999 (she won 4 country awards in those years and was up for more this past year)

Brandy- Record 1998 (has had various nominations in r&B through 1999)

Garbage- Album 1998 (nominated in rock, don't know how many times though)

No Doubt- song 1997 (won pop group in each of the last 2 years, Gwen Stefani won a rap award in 2001)

Macy Gray- Record, Song 2000 (hasn't been seen at the grammies since)