Just three artists have achieved won in all three genres.
Clive Davis won four Grammys over the course of his six-decade career. Fittingly, for someone who worked in multiple genres, he won best album honors as a producer in three distinct genres – best rock album (as well as album of the year) for Santana’s comeback album Supernatural in 2000, best pop vocal album for Kelly Clarkson’s sophomore album Breakaway in 2006; and best R&B album for Jennifer Hudson’s eponymous debut album in 2009.
Davis, who died on Monday at age 94, also received a Trustees Award from the Recording Academy in 2000.
Davis was first nominated for best R&B album as a producer of Whitney Houston’s My Love Is Your Love in 1999. In addition, he was twice nominated for record of the year, as a co-producer of a pair of No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: Barry Manilow’s “Mandy” in 1976 and Leona Lewis’ “Bleeding Love” in 2009.
Davis was involved with many other Grammy winners, though he didn’t personally win for those recordings. In 1970-71, while he was president of Columbia Records, Blood, Sweat & Tears’ Blood, Sweat & Tears and Simon & Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water won back-to-back awards for album of the year. In 1994, while he headed Arista Records, Houston’s The Bodyguard soundtrack won in that category. His best new artist winners over the years include Alicia Keys (2002, on J Records), Toni Braxton (1994, on LaFace/Arista) and, ahem, Milli Vanilli (1990, on Arista). (The duo’s award, of course, was revoked in a lip-syncing scandal.)
It is very rare to win Grammys in pop, rock and R&B, three flagship genres of American music — though, to be sure, not the only ones. Just three artists have achieved the feat. Many more artists came close but didn’t win in all three of these genres. Beyoncé has yet to win a rock Grammy, though she was nominated in 2018 for “Don’t Hurt Yourself,” a collab with Jack White. Prince and Donna Summer never won in pop.
Here’s a report on the three artists who won Grammys in pop, rock and R&B.
Jackson won in all three genres in one year, 1984, amid his unprecedented eight-Grammy sweep. He took best male pop vocal performance for Thriller, best male R&B vocal performance and best R&B song for “Billie Jean” and best male rock vocal performance for “Beat It.”
Jackson also won best male R&B vocal performance for “Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough” in 1980.
Jackson received a posthumous lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2010. He had died in 2009 at age 50.
Tina Turner
Turner won best R&B vocal performance by a group in 1972 for “Proud Mary” (as half of Ike & Tina Turner) and the other two awards in 1985. She took best female pop vocal performance for “What’s Love Got To Do With It” and best female rock vocal performance for “Better Be Good to Me.” She might have swept all three awards in one night as Jackson had done the previous year, but Chaka Khan got in her way. Khan’s recording of Prince’s “I Feel for You” took best female R&B vocal performance, beating Turner’s cover of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together,” the song which launched her comeback.
Turner also won best female rock vocal performance for “One of the Living” (1986), “Back Where You Started” (1987) and Tina Live in Europe (1989).
Turner received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2018. She died in 2023 at age 83.
B.B. King
The blues legend won best male R&B vocal performance in 1971 for “The Thrill Is Gone,” best rock instrumental performance in 1997 for “SRV Shuffle,” a multi-artist tribute to the late Stevie Ray Vaughan; and a pair of pop awards – best pop collaboration with vocals for “Is You Is Or Is You Ain’t (My Baby)” (with Dr. John) and best pop instrumental performance in 2003 for “Auld Lang Syne.”
King received a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 1987. He died in 2015 at age 89.
