The War and the Treaty Discuss Grammy Nominations and Staying Grateful

When the nominations for the 66th Annual Grammy Awards were announced in November, The war and the treaty did not wait anxiously to hear their names; they were just trying to catch a plane.

“We were so used to being overlooked year after year, and we just didn’t pay attention to it,” Michael Trotter Jr.one half of the soulful husband-wife duo, told exclusively We weekly in a recent interview.

As we discussed The War and Treaty’s partnership with George Dickel – and the launch of Dickel Bourbon, 18 years old — Michael said that he and his wife and bandmate, Tanya Trotter (née Blount), only learned that they had secured two nominations when his phone blew up. “We were in the airport and my phone was going crazy,” he remembers. “I’m like, ‘What’s happening?’ And I looked down and saw all these congratulations. I opened one and it’s about two Grammy nominations. And I immediately burst into tears.”

Michael said he not only expressed joy at being nominated – he also cried because it was a humbling moment.

“My tears weren’t just tears of joy,” he explained. “It was a mix of [joy and], ‘I can’t believe I was so self-centered that I was actually just put off by the fact that I wasn’t nominated the year before or the year before that.’ And I had to be brought back under control and realize, ‘Listen, it’s not about awards. It’s not about accolades. It’s not about the Grammys. It’s literally about being a servant. And this is the answer to your service.’”

Since its founding in the mid-2010s, The War and Treaty has changed the perception of what country and Americana music could be – and who can make it. The duo released their debut album on a major label, The lover’s game, in March. “Blank Page,” a track from the LP, received a nomination for Best Americana Roots Song at the upcoming Grammys, and the duo is also nominated for Best New Artist. They share this last category with fellow nominees Jelly Roll, Ice Spice, Gracie Abrams, Fred Again, Coco Jones, Noah Kahan And Victoria Monet.

“Someone somewhere said, ‘Hey, you know what? War and Treaty did something this year that deserved a certain kind of recognition,” noted a very grateful Michael. “And to be nominated alongside Jelly Roll, I will say that’s just another testimony in itself.”

Although Michael noted that The War and Treaty and Jelly Roll “are both considered part of the country music genre,” neither act seems to be “the poster child for the [genre].” That in itself, he notes, is a triumph.

“This whole best new artist category is just filled with artists who have conquered stories,” he adds. ‘Ice Spice, Coco Jones, you name it, and they’re there. And Noah. And so I’m really excited about the Grammys.”

Michael and Tanya speak with such warmth and comfort in their voices that their collaboration with George Dickel to celebrate the launch of the limited edition Dickel Bourbon Aged 18 Years is a perfect fit.

The War and Treaty performed at the historic Cascade Hollow Distilling Co. in Tennessee as part of the launch, and even previewed a new song from their upcoming album. Tanya – who appeared in Sister Act 2: Back in the habit and released her solo album, Natural thingshortly afterwards – described the evening as ‘amazing’.

“Cascade Hollow, it reminds me of growing up and visiting my grandparents in the Carolinas,” she said Us. “And you get the feeling of what it’s all about and the family atmosphere they have. We all enjoyed the tasting [Dickel Bourbon Aged 18 Years] For the first time. It was really magical.”

“It also felt like we were coming together to celebrate the birth of something special and something very unique,” ​​Michael added. “And I will say I’ve been a fan of the brand, but this moment and this particular tasting that Tanya and I had before we performed, it got me excited, man. I see George Dickel, 18 years old, in many different stages of life and I can celebrate that.”

He added: “Tanya looked absolutely fantastic, as always.”

This was a banner year for The War and Treaty, who won Duo/Group of the Year at the 2023 Americana Music Honors & Awards. They were also nominated for Vocal Duo of the Year at the Country Music Association Awards, Duo of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards, and their song “That’s How Love Is Made” earned them a Duo/Group Video of the Year nomination. at the CMT Music Awards.

Amid all that success, The War and Treaty remains centered, grateful and positive. “Life is a balance,” Tanya said Us. “You have to be able to combine the good with the bad. And it sounds so simple, but we [as a people] We really spend our energy doing more bad things because we spend too much time on the internet. Or we don’t spend enough time with people who are positive. Or maybe people don’t celebrate all the good things that happen. So we kind of made it our goal to celebrate every milestone in our lives.”

She explains that the philosophy extends to working with George Dickel. “It was important for us to continue to emphasize that this is a celebration,” she said Us. “This is George Dickel 18, it’s limited. Not everyone can get it, things like that. And that’s a parallel with life, because a lot of people won’t understand why you’re happy.

“A lot of people won’t understand why you’re celebrating because they get so bogged down in the complexity of what life can bring,” Tanya continued. “But life is a balance between celebration and sorrow, between life and death, between being born and dying. It is the constant attempt to find your balance, being happy and being depressed. You can’t always be happy, and you can’t always be depressed.”

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“I will say additionally that for me, I have learned how not to compare setbacks,” Michael added. “And what I mean by that is you hear a lot of people say, ‘Well, there’s always someone who’s worse off.’ Well, that’s no way to celebrate. What we can celebrate, however, are our victories. What we can celebrate are the moments when we didn’t give up. And what we can do is remind each other that there are victories. Yes, there are losses, but there are victories.

Michael concluded by emphasizing the importance of keeping “togetherness” at the forefront. “We must always be reminded of the flourishing spirit of humanity,” he said. “And that’s something we can’t afford to lose.”