The 61st Annual Grammy Awards will be broadcast at 8 p.m. Sunday, February 10, on CBS. The live show is being held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
Before the main show got underway, former President Jimmy Carter was announced as a winner. He received his Grammy for best spoken word album for "Faith – A Journey for All." That now makes him the first president to win three in his lifetime.
Carter competed with a diverse lineup of nominees —Courtney B. Vance, David Sedaris, Questlove and Tiffany Haddish.
Another album with Georgia ties was a winner — in three categories.
"American Dreamers: Voices of Hope, Music of Freedom" is a jazz album featuring immigrants living in Georgia among the performers from 17 states and 17 countries.
The Rev. Rey Pineda of the Atlanta area and Israel Arce of Marietta also performed on the album; both were brought to America as young children from Mexico. Kabir Sehgal, 35, a best-selling author who splits his time between Atlanta and New York, co-produced the album and played bass on it. Click here for the full story behind the album.
John Daversa, jazz musician, composer and chairman of the Studio Music and Jazz Department at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, said, "When we recorded this album, I traveled around America and I recorded 53 Dreamers in 17 states and there was one word that kept coming up, and that was freedom. The solo is in the style of free jazz, which is a metaphor for the freedom we all cherish."
Here are the other nominees for the music awards with ties to the Peach State.
Childish Gambino (aka Donald Glover): Record of the year, song of the year, best rap/sung performance and best music video ("This Is America"); best R&B song ("Feels Like Summer")
Janelle Monae: Album of the year ("Dirty Computer" — Atlanta's Nate "Rocket" Wonder is a producer/engineer and Nathaniel Irvin III a songwriter); best music video ("Pynk")
Chloe x Halle : Best new artist; best urban contemporary album ("The Kids Are Alright")
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Cardi B: Album of the year and best rap album ("Invasion of Privacy"); record of the year ("I Like It" — Atlanta's Leslie Brathwaite is an engineer/mixer and Colin Leonard mastering engineer); best pop duo/group performance with Maroon 5 ("Girls Like You"); best rap performance ("Be Careful")
Future: Best rap performance ("King's Dead" with Kendrick Lamar, Jay Rock and James Blake); best rap song "King's Dead," (songwriter)
Backstreet Boys (member Brian Littrell is an Alpharetta resident): Best pop duo/group performance ("Don't Go Breaking My Heart")
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Swae Lee of Rae Sremmurd (featured): Best rap performance ("Sicko Mode" with Travis Scott, Drake and Big Hawk) and best rap song ("Sicko Mode" – Atlanta's Cydel Young is a songwriter)
Mike.Will.Made.It: Best rap song ("King's Dead" — songwriter)
6lack (with J. Cole): Best rap/sung performance ("Pretty Little Fears")
21 Savage (featured): Record of the year and best rap/sung performance (Post Malone's "Rockstar")
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Florida Georgia Line: Best country duo/group performance ("Meant to Be" with Bebe Rexha)
Little Big Town: Best country duo/group performance ("When Someone Stops Loving You")
Freddy Cole: Best jazz vocal album ("My Mood Is You")
April and Steven Lance Ledbetter, William Ferris: Best historical album ("Voices of Mississippi: Artists and Musicians Documented By William Ferris")
Skylark: Best choral performance (Matthew Guard, conductor, "Seven Words From the Cross"), best immersive audio album ("Seven Words From the Cross")
Whitney Houston: Best music film ("Whitney")
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