TikTok, authenticity and self-care: The 2023 Grammy roundtable
LOS ANGELES — Midwestern chili comes with spaghetti. Giving oneself a manicure is harder than it looks. And husbands should get their wives a "re-up ring" around the seventh year of marriage.
These were some of the many tidbits of wisdom traded among the five musicians who gathered at the Los Angeles Times' studio on a recent afternoon for a lively discussion of the work that led them to nominations for the 65th Grammy Awards.
Our panelists:
—Singer, songwriter and producer Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds, 64, who's up for traditional R&B performance — his 50th Grammy nod in a career that stretches back to the mid-1970s — with his song "Keeps On Fallin'."
—Singer and songwriter Muni Long, 34, nominated for best new artist, as well as R&B performance and R&B song for "Hrs & Hrs."
—Singer and songwriter Kim Petras, 30, whose "Unholy" duet with Sam Smith is in the pop duo/group performance category.
—Songwriter Nija Charles, 25, nominated for the Grammys' inaugural songwriter of the year prize for her work with Beyoncé ("Cozy"), Summer Walker ("Ex for a Reason," "Throw It Away") and Megan Thee Stallion and Dua Lipa ("Sweetest Pie"), among others.
—Songwriter and producer Blake Slatkin, 25, who co-wrote and co-produced "Unholy" and whose work on Lizzo's "About Damn Time" and her "Special" LP earned him nods for record, song and album of the year.
As the five got acquainted, Slatkin eagerly peppered Babyface with questions about what it was like to be in the studio with Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston back in the day; Petras, who's from Germany, told everyone about her addiction to horror
