Women Who Rock Goes to the GRAMMYs

BY LAURA HARPER/WWR Staff Writer

The GRAMMY Awards ceremony is one of the most prestigious events in the music industry, and this year, Women Who Rock Founder Melinda Colaizzi was able to be a part of the action.

Colaizzi is a member of the GRAMMY Recording Academy, which allows her to vote, submit projects for GRAMMY consideration, advocate for music rights, and much more. This year, it also gave her the opportunity to attend the first in-person GRAMMY Awards ceremony in two years.

“There was such a buzz the night of the GRAMMYs throughout the venue with the return of the in-person award show,” Colaizzi said. “I applaud the Recording Academy for using the power of their platform and music to make a call to action to music lovers across the world to Stand Up for Ukraine and raise their voices against violence.”

Being that this was her first time attending the show, Colaizzi says it was a truly memorable experience. She especially loved that the show featured a lot of executives and behind-the-scenes workers in the music industry, many of which were women, that created a sense of community that permeated the atmosphere.

“As the Founder of Women Who Rock, it was inspiring to see how many women were represented,” Colaizzi said. “It’s a continued step in the right direction.”

Another highlight of the night were the performances. For Colaizzi, the standouts of the evening were H.E.R. and Lenny Kravitz.

“The energy of every biggest star in music being in the same room was electrifying,” Colaizzi said.

The greatest highlight of all, however, was seeing the increased representation of women in the music industry, including both musicians and industry workers. Recently, Colaizzi was also part of a study conducted by the Recording Academy and Berklee College of Music called Women in the Mix, which focused on the gender gaps that continue to present challenges for women in the music industry. The data collected showed that women on all sides of the industry are generally underrepresented while also being overworked and underpaid.

As part of the Women in the Mix Study, Colaizzi was also featured on the Recording Academy’s official Instagram page on International Women’s Day as part of their Amplify Women campaign alongside other top women in the music industry. You can check out that post here.

Although there is still progress to be made, showcasing women and their incredible accomplishments at prestigious events such as the GRAMMYs is a great place to start and one of the best ways to amplify women’s voices to end gender disparities across the board.