St. Vincent will still have her chance to compete in the rock categories, as “Broken Man” will go up against stalwarts like the Black Keys and the Beatles for best rock song and best rock performance, respectively.
What about rock music that's supposed to be a little lighter, more creative, or less, you know, standard? Right, now this is it where women fit: by kim gordon The CollectiveBrittany Howard's What now?Clairo's Charmand the aforementioned All Born Screaming are all set for the best alternative music album, with Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds wild God on the run as a little treat. At least they're all in great company.
– Nina Corcoran
He's not like Kendrick
Even when they're not nominating Taylor Swift, they're still nominating “Tailor Swift”—the A$AP Rocky song, that is—and for best music video of all things. But while the Recording Academy's beloved pop star is very much here and present on this year's long list of nominations, she's actually behind two rappers in terms of total nods: Kendrick Lamar and Post Malone. (Malone, who was nominated mostly in the country categories, may not consider himself a rapper anymore, but who can forget how many saucini he made?) Plus, Lamar won most of his nominations thanks to an inescapable, wild song : “Not like us.” What does it mean for a vicious diss track to become a five-time Grammy-nominated single? For starters, that rap fans want to have fun watching drama again, as it's the only rap song to be nominated for song or record of the year. It also means Lamar just slipped in a bonus on Drake, who loathes the Grammys.
The Recording Academy must have been paying too much attention to the Drake-Kendrick beef because voters recognized Future and Metro Boomin We Don't Trust You (along with “Like That” and “We Still Don't Trust You”) and even J. Cole's surprise It may be deleted later mixtape. This is pretty patient revenge for all the years Drake snubbed their.
– Nina Corcoran
Album of the year: A Hand of Safe Bets and One Thrilling Wildcard
Every year, the Recording Academy compiles the list for Album of the Year the way a fun aunt puts together an outfit: sensible shirt, shoes and trousers, with just a few quirky accessories to spark a conversation. This season, the practice, inevitable Kudos went to Grammy MVP Taylor Swift (Department of Tormented Poets), Billie Eilish (Hit hard and soft), and Beyoncé (Cowboy Carter)—the latter of which now boasts 99 career nominations. And then there's Jacob Collier (Djesse Vol. 4), the YouTuber–turned–Recording Academy Fee with six golden gramophones under his belt. In an attempt to be a Brat (or maybe, so Julia), Charli XCX (Brat) is on the ticket, as is Sabrina Carpenter (Short n' Sweet) and newcomer Chappell Roan (The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess). But the most surprising—and delightful—of all the AOTY nominees is André 3000, nominated for his dazzling jazz flute LP New Blue Sun. It seems unlikely that a 90-minute new-age magic lesson would be the best for a group of industry darlings and pop divas, but her ranking among them is cause for celebration nonetheless.
