For Christian and Gospel music fans, the restructuring will mean two less awards in 2012. Rather than expand the field to truly represent the vast expanse of Christian music styles, they have further boxed the genre in by failing to acknowledge that Christian music offers Bluegrass, Country, Metal, Inspirational, Pop, Praise and Worship, Rap, Rock, Southern Gospel and Urban/R&B Gospel.
While all of the Christian and Gospel styles have one thing in common - they all honor our faith and our Savior - the differences between styles like Bluegrass, Rap and Urban Gospel are night and day. If the GRAMMY Awards were painting all of the fields with such a wide brush, it would be easier to swallow. However, they seem to recognize that styles within certain fields require a narrow brush to cover the whole wall. In Classical music, for example, they understand that Orchestral Performances, Opera Recordings, Choral Performances, Small Ensemble Performances, Instrumental Solos and Vocal Solos are different enough to require their own category, yet they don't offer Christian and Gospel music the same consideration or acknowledgement.
The full list of category changes can be found on the official GRAMMY site.
GRAMMY 2011 vs. 2012 Categories
| GOSPEL FIELD (2011) | GOSPEL/CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN MUSIC FIELD (2012) |
| Best Gospel Performance | Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance |
| Best Gospel Song | Best Gospel Song |
| Best Rock Or Rap Gospel Album | Best Contemporary Christian Music Song |
| Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album | Best Gospel Album |
| Best Southern, Country Or Bluegrass Gospel Album | Best Contemporary Christian Music Album |
| Best Traditional Gospel Album | --Category Deleted-- |
| Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album | --Category Deleted-- |
