Speaking to World Music Views, Antaeus shed light on the machinery behind Grammy campaigning and the enormous competition artists face for the attention of voters. His argument presents another side of a debate that surfaces almost every Grammy season, particularly when reggae and dancehall fans believe deserving Jamaican artists have been overlooked.
The timing of the conversation is particularly interesting because the race for the 2027 Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album is already packed with Jamaican talent. According to World Music Views, a record 119 albums were submitted for consideration, with 22 classified by the publication as dancehall or dancehall-influenced projects. Crucially, these artists have not yet been officially nominated. The Recording Academy's first-round voting will determine which projects advance to the final nominations.
Among those hoping to make that final cut are Masicka with Forever Reign and Alkaline with NPT, with both artists seeking their first Best Reggae Album nominations. Vybz Kartel is also back in contention with God and Time, following nominations for Party With Me in 2025 and Heart & Soul in 2026. Former Grammy winners Buju Banton, Beenie Man and Shaggy have entered Too Too Bad, Eminence and Lottery respectively.
The dancehall field stretches much further. Armaniii, Ayetian, Devin Di Dakta, D'Yani, Iyara, Jayds, J'Calm and Tony "CD" Kelly, Ai Milly, Nhance, Rajahwild, Sikka Rymes, Squash, Shawn Storm, Roe Summerz, Vershon and Xyclone are also among the dancehall and dancehall-influenced acts with projects submitted for Best Reggae Album consideration.
And they are not only competing against each other. The wider field highlighted by World Music Views includes established reggae names such as Ziggy Marley, Chronixx, Protoje, Burning Spear, Capleton, Queen Ifrica and Kabaka Pyramid. The sheer size of the field illustrates why getting an album entered is only the beginning of the journey towards becoming a Grammy nominee.
This is where Antaeus's argument becomes especially relevant to reggae and dancehall. An artist can have a huge fan base, successful releases and enormous cultural influence, but the Grammys ultimately operate through the Recording Academy and its voting members. For Jamaican music, his message places greater focus on participation and ensuring that reggae and dancehall have a strong voice within that structure, rather than only questioning the results after nominations or winners have been announced.
The history of the category also shows that dancehall can break through. Shaggy has twice won Best Reggae Album, including for Boombastic and his collaborative project 44/876 with Sting. Buju Banton won with Before the Dawn, while Beenie Man took the award with Art and Life. Sean Paul's hugely successful Dutty Rock also won the category, while more recent projects by Spice, Shenseea, Beenie Man and Vybz Kartel have been nominated without winning.
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Masicka continues his fight for greater international recognition with Forever Reign, which debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart. Now submitted for 2027 Grammy consideration, the project could earn the dancehall star his first Best Reggae Album nomination and mark another major step in his growing international reach |
That history makes the situation surrounding Masicka and Alkaline particularly interesting this year. Both are major contemporary dancehall names, yet neither has received a Best Reggae Album nomination before. Their inclusion in this year's entry field gives supporters something to watch, but with 119 albums reportedly submitted, simply being one of the genre's most recognisable artists does not guarantee a place among the eventual nominees.
Perhaps that is the real message reggae and dancehall listeners should take from Antaeus's comments. When a favourite artist fails to win, or does not even reach the nominations, the conversation does not necessarily begin and end with whether the music was good enough. The Grammy process involves a much wider system, and stronger participation and visibility could be an important part of ensuring Jamaican music has the representation its supporters believe it deserves.
Alkaline has carved out his own lane in modern dancehall, and NPT has now put the Jamaican artist in the 2027 Grammy conversation. The album debuted at No. 10 on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart, with Alkaline now seeking what would be his first Best Reggae Album nomination.With first-round voting running from 12 to 22 October 2026 and the 69th Annual Grammy Awards nominations scheduled to be announced on 16 November, fans of Masicka, Alkaline, Vybz Kartel and the rest of Jamaica's contenders will soon discover who has made it through the crowded field. The ceremony itself is scheduled for 7 February 2027.
So, if your favourite reggae or dancehall artist has never won a Grammy, maybe the question should not simply be,"Why didn't they win?" The bigger discussion raised by Alexx Antaeus is whether reggae and dancehall are doing enough within the Grammy system to make sure Jamaican artists are heard, represented and seriously considered before that famous golden gramophone is handed to anyone.
Source: World Music Views, citing the Recording Academy's 69th Grammy Entry List for Best Reggae Album.
