The Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female was a competitive category presented by the Recording Academy (formerly the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences) as part of the annual Grammy Awards. The award recognized outstanding vocal jazz recordings by female artists.
History
- Inception: The category was introduced for the 20th Grammy Awards ceremony, which honored recordings released in 1977.
- Duration: It was presented annually from 1978 through the 33rd Grammy Awards ceremony in 1991, covering recordings released in the preceding year.
- Discontinuation: After the 1990 award year, the Recording Academy restructured its jazz categories, merging the gender‑specific awards into a single, gender‑neutral category titled Best Jazz Vocal Performance (later evolving into Best Jazz Vocal Album and, more recently, Best Jazz Vocal Performance again).
Eligibility and Criteria
- Eligible recordings were vocal jazz performances by a female artist, released as a single track, album, or part of a larger work within the eligibility year.
- The award considered artistic merit, vocal technique, and contribution to the jazz genre, as judged by voting members of the Recording Academy with expertise in jazz music.
Notable Recipients
- 1978: Ella Fitzgerald – "Ella Fitzgerald Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival 1975"
- 1979: Diane Schuur – "Diane Schuur"
- 1980: Sarah Vaughan – "The Duke Ellington Songbook, Vol. 1"
- 1981: Anita Baker – "The Song of the Open Road" (Note: Awarded for a jazz‑styled track within a broader R&B album)
- 1984: Natalie Cole – "Unforgettable… with Love" (awarded for the title track)
- 1990: Betty Carter – "Look What I Got!" (the final recipient before category consolidation)
Impact
The award highlighted the contributions of female jazz vocalists during a period when gender‑specific categories were common in the Grammy Awards. Recipients often experienced increased commercial exposure and critical recognition, contributing to the preservation and evolution of vocal jazz traditions.
Successor Category
Following the category’s discontinuation, female jazz vocalists have been recognized within the unified Best Jazz Vocal Album and subsequently Best Jazz Vocal Performance categories, which do not distinguish by gender.
References
- Recording Academy. “Grammy Awards Past Winners.” Official Grammy.com archive.
- The Grammy Book (1999), Shields, David, et al., ISBN 978-1474115404.
- Historical Grammy ceremony programs, 1978–1991.
No additional speculative or unverified information is included.
