TheGrammy Award for Best Progressive R&B Album is an honor presented at theGrammy Awards to recording artists for high quality works on albums in theurban contemporary subgenre within theR&B field. Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by theRecording Academy 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".[1]
This category was one of the three newly created categories for the55th Annual Grammy Awards asBest Urban Contemporary Album.[2] In June 2020, the Recording Academy announced a renaming and redefining of the category.[3] Its new name wasBest Progressive R&B Album, with immediate effect, "to appropriately categorize and describe this subgenre. This change includes a more accurate definition to describe the merit or characteristics of music compositions or performances themselves within the genre of R&B."[4]Adding to this, the description of this category is now as follows: "[t]his category is intended to highlight albums that include the more progressive elements of R&B and may include samples and elements of hip-hop, rap, dance, and electronic music. It may also incorporate production elements found in pop, euro-pop, country, rock, folk, and alternative."[4]
According to Recording Academy presidentHarvey Mason Jr. in the same press release, these changes reflected "the current state of the music industry and how it's evolved over the past 12 months." In the weeks leading up to this decision, the label "urban" to indicate music made by African American musicians, songwriters and producers had come under fire.[5]
The award goes to the artist, producer and engineer/mixer, provided they are credited with more than 50% of playing time on the album. A producer and engineer withless than 50% of playing time, as well as the mastering engineer, can apply for a "Winners Certificate".[6]
SomeAfrican American musicians have disputed the use of the term "urban contemporary", seen as a "catchall for music created by Black artists, regardless of genre".[7] In a backstage interview given after his first Grammy win (forBest Rap Album), artistTyler, the Creator stated that "[i]t sucks that whenever we — and I mean guys that look like me — do anything that's genre-bending or that's anything, they always put it in a rap or urban category", adding that "I don't like that 'urban' word — it's just a politically correct way to say then-word to me".[8]
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