Holden Miller
This year marks the 61st year of the most popular music awards ceremony in the world, the Grammys. The Grammys are set to air on February 10th, live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, celebrating the best pieces of music from October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2018. The official nominations were unveiled on December 7, and they included some of the biggest names in the business, like Travis Scott, Janelle Monae, Kendrick Lamar and many more.
The two artists with the most nominations–Kendrick Lamar and Drake–are both from hip-hop. Lamar has had a big year with the release of his soundtrack that accompanies the highly regarded 2018 film, Marvel’s Black Panther. Lamar currently holds the most nominations with eight for categories including Song, Record, and Album of the Year and others for Best Rap Performance and Rap Song. Drake is right behind Lamar with seven nominations for his album Scorpion. Drake is also riding high from nominations for his feature on Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode,” one of the most popular songs of 2018.
The first category, Record of the Year, includes eight nominations for artists Post Malone, Cardi B, Donald Glover, Brandi Carlile, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, and several more. “This is America,” Donald Glover’s politically-charged tale of living in America as an African-American should be the front runner in the race for this Grammy. The groovy beat and smooth vocals do not disappoint, with guest appearances from rappers 21 Savage, Young Thug, and Blocboy Jb. The next category, Album of the Year, includes more or less the same artists except with the addition of Kacey Musgraves and Janelle Monae for their outstanding albums–Golden Hour and Dirty Computer, respectively– this year. However, Kendrick Lamar stands out in this category with his Black Panther collaboration album, the sure winner of at least several Grammys. The album debuted and spent many weeks in the #1 spot of the Billboard 200.
Another artist with several nominations, rock band Greta Van Fleet makes its Grammy debut with nominations for categories like Best New Artist, Best Rock Album, Best Rock Performance, and a few more. Greta Van Fleet released its first album this past year, which gained much traction based on their strong resemblance to Led Zeppelin, in their music and image. Their sound comes close to Zeppelin’s but falls short of the energetic and tuned sound that defined early ‘70s rock. The result is an unfinished and unoriginal creation. The Best Rock Album should be awarded to the band who not only can sound original in their music, but can also make their music sound appealing to the ear, more so like Weezer with their more recent album Pacific Daydream.
One nomination that fans were excited to see was the inclusion of the late Mac Miller’s album, Swimming for the Best Rap Album category, one of the more important categories of the night. It is not known whether or not Miller’s album would have been included if not for his unexpected passing but many people are glad that it is. This category will be a close finish between Swimming and Travis Scott’s Astroworld.
