Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance


The Grammy Award for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to male recording artists for works containing quality vocal performances in the rock music genre. Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences 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".
Originally called the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Male, the award was first presented to Bob Dylan in 1980. Beginning with the 1995 ceremony, the name of the award was changed to Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. However, in 1988, 1992, 1994, and since 2005, this category was combined with the Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance and presented in a genderless category known as Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo. The solo category was later renamed to Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance beginning in 2005. This fusion has been criticized, especially when females are not nominated under the solo category. The Academy has cited a lack of eligible recordings in the female rock category as the reason for the mergers. While the award has not been presented since the category merge in 2005, an official confirmation of its retirement has not been announced.
Lenny Kravitz holds the record for the most wins in this category, with a total of four consecutive wins from 1999 to 2002. Bruce Springsteen has been presented the award three times, and two-time winners include Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Don Henley, and Robert Palmer. Since its inception, American artists have been presented with the award more than any other nationality, though it has been presented to musicians from the United Kingdom four times, from Australia once, and from South Africa once.

Recipients

YearPerforming artistWorkNomineesRef.
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988----
1989
1990
1991
1992----
1993
1994----
1995
1996
1997Beck
  • Bryan Adams – "The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You"
  • Eric Clapton – "Ain't Gone 'N Give Up On Your Love"
  • John Hiatt – "Cry Love"
  • Bruce Springsteen – "Dead Man Walkin'"
1998
1999
  • Jeff Buckley – "Everybody Here Wants You"
  • John Fogerty – "Almost Saturday Night"
  • John Hiatt – "Have a Little Faith in Me"
  • John Mellencamp – "Your Life Is Now"
    • 2000
    2001
  • David Bowie – "Thursday's Child"
  • Bob Dylan – "Things Have Changed"
  • Don Henley – "Workin' It"
  • Nine Inch Nails – "Into the Void"
    • 2002
    2003
    2004
    Each year is linked to the article about the Grammy Awards held that year.

    Award was combined with the Best Female Rock Vocal Performance category and presented in a genderless category known as Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo.