Grammy Award for Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album

According to Cody Daigle of The Daily Advertiser, advocates lobbied for nearly seven years in an attempt to create a Grammy category specifically for zydeco and cajun music. The effort was led by musician Terrance Simien, along with his wife and manager Cynthia. Mitch Landrieu, Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana at the time, also supported the effort. Cynthia, a trustee of the Memphis chapter of the Recording Academy, claimed hundreds of dollars and hours were invested in the lobbying effort she described as an "uphill battle". ==Recipients==

of the 2008 award-winning band Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience, performing in 2008 For the 50th Annual Grammy Awards (2008), Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album nominees included Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie for Le Cowboy Creole, Lisa Haley for King Cake, The Lost Bayou Ramblers for Live: Á La Blue Moon, the French language cajun band Pine Leaf Boys for their second album Blues de Musicien, Racines for Racines, Roddie Romero and the Hub City All-Stars for The La Louisianne Sessions, and Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience for Live! Worldwide. Of the seven nominees, only one was based outside Lafayette, Louisiana. Blues de Musician included a French adaptation of the country music song "The Wild Side of Life". Live! Worldwide contained recordings of live performances from around the world during Simien's 25-year career, including "The Star-Spangled Banner" and traditional songs such as "Zydeco Boogaloo" and Boozoo Chavis' "Uncle Bud". of BeauSoleil, performing in 2008 2009 nominees included BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet for Live at the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Michael Doucet for From Now On, Pine Leaf Boys for Homage Au Passé, Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys for Live at the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and Cedric Watson for Cedric Watson. Doucet, the founder, lead singer and fiddler of BeauSoleil, is the only artist to receive more than one nomination for Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album within the same year. According to Doucet, From Now On was recorded "live in three sessions with no rehearsals, overdubs, or song lists." The album contains original tracks, covers by Hoagy Carmichael and Allen Toussaint, and standards such as "St. Louis Blues" and "You Gotta Move". The award was presented to BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet. Recipients included Doucet, band members Tommy Alesi, Jimmy Breaux, David Doucet, Mitchell Reed, Billy Ware, and Ben Williams, along with Eli Kelly and Woods Drinkwater as engineers. BeauSoleil's set was recorded in April 2008 and released with the group's approval without further involvement. According to Michael Doucet, the album "was on iTunes, and then all of a sudden it was nominated for a Grammy." Lay Your Burden Down reunited Dural with producer Steve Berlin and contained versions of Captain Beefheart's "Too Much Time", Jimmy Cliff's "Let Your Yeah Be Yeah", Gov't Mule's "Lay Your Burden Down", Memphis Minnie's "When the Levee Breaks", and Bruce Springsteen's "Back in Your Arms". Members of The Magnolia Sisters, an all-female cajun group of multi-instrumentalists, included Anya Burgess, Ann Savoy, Lisa Trahan and Jane Vidrine. The award was presented to Buckwheat Zydeco, members of which included Reginald Dural, Stanley "Buckwheat" Dural, Michael Melchione, Kevin Menard, Olivier Scoazec, Curtis Watson, and Lee Allen Zeno. David Farrell and Steven Maxwell Berlin were also honored as the engineer/mixer and producer of the album, respectively. For the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards (2011), the nominees were Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band for Zydeco Junkie, Feufollet for En Couleurs, D. L. Menard for Happy Go Lucky, the Pine Leaf Boys for Back Home, and Cedric Watson et Bijou Créole for Creole Moon: Live at the Blue Moon Saloon. 2011 marked the fourth consecutive nomination for the Pine Leaf Boys. Group member Wilson Savoy was unable to attend the award ceremony, but admitted the nominations have "acted as vindication" of their "new-traditionalist sound". Geno Delafose and Jamie Bergeron made guest appearances on the album. ==Category retirement==

In 2011, the category Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album was eliminated along with thirty others due to a major overhaul by the Recording Academy. Four additional categories in the American Roots Music field were eliminated (Best Contemporary Folk Album, Best Hawaiian Music Album, Best Native American Music Album, Best Traditional Folk Album). Zydeco and cajun works became eligible for the Best Regional Roots Music Album category. Carrier stated: "This category inspired musicians to fight for the music. It strengthened us. I'd say to all the young zydeco musicians out there; don't give up this fight." Simien also expressed sadness and called the elimination "a disappointment for local music". Showing signs of optimism, Terrance Simien said: "The category might be gone today, but we'll get it back." ==See also==