Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance

Template:Short description Template:Infobox award The Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards,<ref name=Grammy>Template:Cite news</ref> to recording artists for quality urban/alternative performances. Awards in several categories are distributed annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position."<ref name=Overview>Template:Cite web</ref>

The award was first awarded to India.Arie at the 45th Grammy Awards (2003) for her song "Little Things". According to the category description guide for the 52nd Grammy Awards, the award was presented to artists that had made "newly recorded urban/alternative performances with vocals". The award was intended to recognize artists "who have been influenced by a cross-section of urban music" and who create music that is out of the "mainstream trends".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Two-time recipients include India.Arie, Cee Lo Green (once as part of the duo Gnarls Barkley), and Jill Scott. Erykah Badu, Big Boi (a member of OutKast) and will.i.am (a member of The Black Eyed Peas) share the record for the most nominations, with three each. Sérgio Mendes is the only performer to be nominated twice in one year. The category was dominated by Americans, yet individuals from Jamaica and Côte d'Ivoire also won the award. The award was discontinued from 2012 in a major overhaul of the Grammys where the category was shifted to the Best R&B Performance category.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Recipients

A woman wearing an orange dress while singing into a microphone.

India.Arie became the first recipient of the award in 2003.

A woman wearing a brown dress while smiling and snapping her fingers.

2005 and 2008 award winner Jill Scott performing in 2007

A man wearing a hat and brown shirt while opening his mouth.

2009 award recipient will.i.am

YearTemplate:Ref	Performing artist(s)	Work	Nominees	Ref.
2003	India.Arie	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2003>Template:Cite news</ref>
2004	OutKast	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
2005	Template:Sortname	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2005>Template:Cite news</ref>
2006	Template:Sortname	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2006>Template:Cite news</ref>
2007	Gnarls Barkley	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2007>Template:Cite news</ref>
2008	Template:Sortname and Jill Scott	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2008>Template:Cite web</ref>
2009	Template:Sortname and will.i.am	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2009>Template:Cite web</ref>
2010	India.Arie and Dobet Gnahoré	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2010>Template:Cite web</ref>
2011	Template:Sortname	Template:Sort	Template:Smalldiv	<ref name=Grammy2011>Template:Cite news</ref>

^{Template:Note} Each year is linked to the article about the Grammy Awards held that year.

See also

• List of Grammy Award categories
• List of Urban contemporary artists

References

General

• Template:Cite web
• Template:Cite web

Specific

External links

• Official site of the Grammy Awards Template:Webarchive