The 60th Grammy awards was held on Jan. 28 and featured performances from numerous high profile celebrities such as Kendrick Lamar, Bruno Mars, Lady Antebellum, P!nk and Childish Gambino and honored various musicians, artists and producers with titles like “Best New Artist,” “Album of the Year” and “Record of Year.”
Among Grammy winners this year was ETSU’s own Martin Walters, who mixed and mastered the album, “Shaka Zulu Revisted: 30th Anniversary” by Ladysmith Black Mambazo, taking home the Grammy for Best World Music Album.
Walters, a lecturer in Jazz studies, is a leading professional in the music industry and is actually no stranger to the Grammy Awards, having either been nominated for an award or won since his first nomination and award, also with Ladysmith Black Mambazo in 2005.
“The music label I was working for at the time took an interest in music from South Africa and South African jazz and I was able to meet Ladysmith through that experience and they asked me to mix their album, ‘Raise Your Spirit Higher’ – a tribute to Nelson Mandela and we ended up winning a Grammy for ‘Best Contemporary World Music Album’ and we were also nominated for ‘Best Surround Sound Album,'” said Walters.
“Ever since that time I’ve been doing most of the mixing and recording work for Ladysmith.”
Walters, owner of his own recording studio, Big Time Audio in Dallas, Texas, has had the opportunity to work with elite artists like Patti Labelle, Grover Washington Jr., Melissa Etheridge, Richard Elliot, Esperanza Splading and Philip Bailey of Earth Wind and Fire.
“I never expect to be nominated or expect to win but it is quite an honor and a blessing to work with such amazing artists,” Walters said.
Among Grammy winners this year was also ETSU Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Program alumni Brent Burke and Hunter Berry–members of Rhonda Vincent and The Rage taking home the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album.
