Since the Polka and Cajun/Zydeco categories were eliminated from the Grammys, it’s been a greater challenge for accordionists to win Grammy awards. But that didn’t stop some of them from achieving success this year. Accordionists are still represented in the winners circle for the 2014 Grammy Awards.

La Santa Cecilia from Los Angeles won Best Latin Rock/Urban/Alternative Album for their major label debut, Treinta Días. Their music is unique and a mixture of rock, jazz, and latin rhythm with the incredible voice of Marisol Hernandez. Over the past few years they have become more popular. See the video, “NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert” in this article.

Jose “Pepe” Carlos is the accordion player for the group. His parents, illegal immigrants, brought him to the USA when he was six years old. The group was formed in 2005 by lead singer, Marisol Hernandez and Miguel Ramirez to “blend ethnicities and identities uniquely forged in multicultural Los Angeles,” and has used pop culture to push for comprehensive immigration reform. They even wrote a song against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Other musicians in the group are Miguel Ramírez on percussion and Alex Bendana on bass. La Santa Cecilia, which performed at an amnesty rally in Washington, D.C. in 2013, dedicated the award to all of the illegal immigrants in the country.

Louisiana’s Terrance Simien & The Zydeco Experience won Best Regional Roots Music Album for their Dockside Sessions. Not only is Simien a fantastic musician, he was a key figure in the creation of the short-lived Best Cajun/Zydeco Album Grammy back in 2008 (which he laterPR Muswon).

Zydeco legend Clifton Chenier was also honored posthumously with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. If you watched the prime-time show perhaps you noticed that The Beatles received the same award!

Photo above: La Santa Cecilia
Photo left: Terrance Simien