Rhiannon Giddens reacts to Grammy nominations for album recorded in Dublin's Hellfire Studio

After picking up a nomination at the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards for their acclaimed collaborative album, They're Calling Me Home – recorded in Dublin's Hellfire Studio – Rhiannon Giddens and Francesco Turrisi have now been nominated for two awards at the 2022 Grammy Awards, for Best Folk Album and Best American Roots Song ('Avalon').

Giddens, who has previously earned a Grammy as a member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, and acclaimed Italian multi-instrumentalist Turrisi both live in Ireland when they aren't on tour. As such, they spent the majority of the Covid-19 pandemic on these shores – during which they recorded They're Calling Me Home in Hellfire Studio. The album was released on Nonesuch Records in April.

Responding to the news, Giddens referenced the recent Kyle Rittenhouse case in the US – in which a teenager was cleared of killing two men and wounding another, during protests and unrest sparked by the shooting of a Black man, Jacob Blake, by a white police officer in Wisconsin.

"I admit it's hard to exist in the reality where Kyle Rottenhouse was acquitted and also being nominated for GRAMMYs... what does anything mean anymore..." Giddens wrote on Twitter.

I admit it’s hard to exist in the reality where Kyle Rottenhouse was acquitted and also being nominated for GRAMMYs…what does anything mean anymore…but very happy for @nonesuch and everybody who helped us put They’re Calling Me Home out…it’s a wonderful team.

— Rhiannon Giddens (@RhiannonGiddens) November 23, 2021

She also toasted the "fab people" who made the record with her and Turrisi – including Dublin sound engineer Ben Rawlins, Irish-Congolese guitarist Niwel Tsumbu, traditional Irish musician Emer Mayock, and audio mastering engineer Kim Rosen.

the best thing bout being nominated is that we get the excuse to toast the fab people who made this record with us — @benrawlinsaudio, @NiwelTsumbu, @MayockEmer, and @kim_rosen #GRAMMYs They’re Calling Me Home w/ @fraturrisi
🪕 Best Folk Album
🪕 American Roots Song, “Avalon” pic.twitter.com/pacru0G3zT

— Rhiannon Giddens (@RhiannonGiddens) November 23, 2021

Mayock took to Twitter to congratulate Giddens and Turrisi: "It was a great pleasure to play music with them on this lovely record."

Turrisi, meanwhile shared the news on social media with the hashtag: "#speechless"

In the Best Folk Album category, the pair are up against Mary Chapin Carpenter's One Night Lonely (Live), Tyler Childers' Long Violent History, Madison Cunningham's Wednesday (Extended Edition), and Sarah Jarosz's Blue Heron Suite. In Best American Roots Song, meanwhile, fellow nominees include Allison Russell, Yola, Jon Batiste and Valerie June.

The 2020 Grammy Awards show is set to take place on Monday, January 31.

Revisit our review of They're Calling Me Home here, and listen to the album below: