I never thought of her as a country music artist - she is more of an indie/folk/pop artist.
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That raises a question that I don’t know the answer to – do labels like country/pop/rock/r&b apply to the artist or the song? Or to the radio station that plays them? With streaming are those types of labels even relevant anymore? For awards, I think that the artists and their labels submit their music and perhaps they choose their category? There seems to be a lot of overlap between genres. I honestly don’t know. Interested in what others have to say or know about this.
It seems to me that Combs intended to record a song he loves, not to take over a black queer woman’s music. He doesn’t even change the lyrics to reflect his own gender! (Sings of being a “checkout girl”)
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Chapman wouldn’t let anyone cover that song. When she gave him permission it was understood he couldn’t change the song at all.
The music industry isn’t the one we had growing up for sure. I think only a few make money from streams. Mostly it comes from performing live, but then you have split with Ticketmaster/Live Nation. But on the other hand they can make money from Youtube and TikTok.
I know my kids listen only via streaming. We have a family Apple Music plan and can basically listen to anything we want at anytime. I never turn on the radio in the car any more.
According to reports, Luke Combs did not seek permission from Chapman. Nor did he need to. He simply paid the fee via Mechanical License.
It would be more complicated if he chose to change the lyrics and/or melody.
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Fun fact - Tracy Chapman went to Tufts! Apparently she used to busk in Harvard Square and on the red line T platforms.
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I didn’t want to leave this without a response. If by issue you mean how it’s a shame that it takes a white man to make this song more appreciated then, yeah, but it’s a story as old as time (the examples of Elvis and Led Zeppelin barely scratch the surface, as I’m sure you know). I’m choosing to look at the glass as half full – Luke Combs’ respectful remake of this song has perhaps exposed a new generation to Tracy Chapman’s incredible artistry, and I think that that’s a great thing.
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I did not care for Annie Lenox’s performance, it felt like she was really forcing the song. I was disappointed.
I am a huge Annie Lenox fan, and went to her concert many years ago. She was amazing. I hope her original song in the Lord of the Rings is played at my party after I pass away. So beautiful.
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My mind is blown by thinking about the fact that Luke Combs wasn’t even born when Fast Car was originally released.
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Tracy Chapman won 4 Grammys for her work, and Fast Car went to number 6 on the Billboard chart in 1988. She was quite well known at the time — I was in college and remember her album being played everywhere all the time. We all loved her. I agree that Luke Combs (whom I had never heard of before his cover of Fast Car) bringing the song to a new generation is great, and is both a literal and metaphorical bridge in a divided time.
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We must be around the same age. That’s why I remember her Grammy performance in 1989.
The only difference is that I hadn’t heard of Luke Combs until Sunday night! 
Tracy Chapman’s song brings back a lot of memories. One of our local radio stations played Fast Car all the time in the early nineties! I remember sitting in traffic in my (not so fast to begin with) car and singing along… ahh, those were the times!
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The only reason I had heard him before Sunday night was because my daughter loves the song now, and after hearing Luke’s version did some research on Tracy Chapman to find out more about her (daughter plays a variety of music from Spotify in the house and car, as mentioned upthread). When I heard it I thought “who’s the country dude singing Fast Car?” The kids are alright these days with their wide musical taste - she likes the Beatles, Noah Kahan, the Cranberries, Boygenius, to name just a few.
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Well, allow me to introduce everyone to Mr. Luke Combs. Here’s a ballad and an up-tempo, fun song.
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Y’all need to watch SNL. Many artists, including Luke Combs, have been the musical guest before they were stars
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It’s funny you mention SNL. I’ve been saying for years I haven’t heard of the musical guest and now I really feel old because now it’s 50/50 I know the guest host…had to Google Jacob Elordi recently. lol
Edited to add: I too didn’t know Luke Combs before the Grammys, but I’ll make a point to check out his music. His unbridled joy during their performance and genuine admiration for Tracy Chapman was palpable. I love feel-good moments! We need more of them.
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I do a little work with musicians (website design, album design, social media). You don’t need permission to cover a song. You pay royalties (mechanical and performance). It’s pretty complex and there is a pretty robust industry around it. Here’s more info if you’re really interested. Always makes my head spin to think about it too much so I don’t do it for the folks I work with although I have been asked to. I’m good with graphic design, not money numbers.
YouTube pays worse than Spotify!! Most musicians don’t make much money there or on any streaming service. Of course excepting Taylor Swift, who reportedly makes something like $50K a month from Spotify streams alone. If you like an artist, buy their merch! Direct from the artist’s website or in person preferably. If you need to buy elsewhere online, Bandcamp is a great place to buy music, especially on Bandcamp Friday when Bandcamp waives their fees and all money goes to the artists. Taylor doesn’t need your help, though.
She is.
Usually genre labels apply to the artist which can be a little tricky for a genre bending artist like one I work with. Genre labels are still relevant and generally the artist’s record label helps with this. Different genres have different publicity folks behind the scenes, like a special radio publicist for Americana music or pop or country or whatever. Artist also sometimes play different venues according to genre and sometimes appear in different playlists according to genre. It can be tricky with bands who straddle different sounds. Little Steven initially refused to play a band I work with on his radio station, Little Steven’s Underground Garage on Sirius XM, and said it belonged on his Outlaw Country station instead, but then they ended up getting different songs according to genre played both places, but that’s because they do both alt country (not regular pop country) and rock n roll. They are generally more welcomed in rock clubs though.
I’m not sure how the awards nominations work. I have a neighbor a couple of houses down who was nominated in an un-televised category, I could ask him, but I don’t know him more than just to wave at him.
Luke Combs is a huge country star. Those of you who don’t know him just don’t listen to country music. He’s had 15 number 1 hits on country radio. And won the Country Music Awards Entertainer Of The Year two years in a row. He’s had 30 songs on Billboard’s Hot 100. I don’t listen to commercial country either, but I knew who he was. He went to App State if anyone cares.
There’s a great podcast by Andrew Hickey called “A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs” that goes over the whitewashing of black music amongst other things. Great thing to listen to while you are working out or on a long drive. https://500songs.com It’s like taking an in depth college course in rock music. Maybe getting a degree in it. It’s 500 episodes after all, that’s more than the average class meets.
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Thanks for the great explanation. I sent the info about merch purchases to my kids.
Yes, I don’t listen to country music, but he is big enough that I should have known his name. I realize that and the emoji next to my comment was a facepalm. I was texting back and forth with my daughter during the Grammys and I could feel her eyes rolling at me through the phone.
Not only did their performance bring recognition to Tracy Chapman from a generation that hadn’t heard of her, but it introduced those of us who are old and out of it to Luke Combs as well. 
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(Raises hand) Guilty! It’s not my genre.
I’m embarrassed to say it but I still gravitate toward REO Speedwagon (shoutout to UIUC!
) and the like. DS borrows my car when he’s home and laughs if I have the XM 70s station set.
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Mainstream country is not my genre either. I don’t know if I would have known Luke Combs except he’s from NC so we get some extra publicity about him in the news here. He also played a homecoming concert at App State a few years back that crossed my radar.
I do.
Academy members and record companies submit for nomination. If a song / album isn’t submitted for consideration, it can’t be voted on. The entity submitting determines the category(s), which is validated by the Academy for proper placement and eligibility. The Academy will generally only move if the category is an obvious error. boygenius submitting to alternative vs rock - no big deal. Submitting to bluegrass isn’t going to fly.
The ballots for nominations are sent to all Academy voters who can vote in all categories in the general field (Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Album of the Year, Producer of the Year, Non-Classical, Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical, and Best New Artist) plus up to ten categories across max 3 genres. Based on nominations, final ballots are sent out and voting is similar.
Craft categories have different rules that are beyond my scope of knowledge.
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