Ariana Grande Didn’t Get a Major Grammys Category Nomination
The Golden Globes and Grammys nominations were both announced this week, but they couldn’t have gone down more differently. While the Globes were predictably, well, predictable (see: Lady Gaga), the Grammy Awards were … not, to put it lightly.
In the major four categories — Album of the Year, Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Best New Artist — a lot of 2017/2018 chart toppers were absent, including Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, and Travis Scott.
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Ariana Grande managed to pick up two nods for Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album for Sweetener, but she fell short of landing a spot in a main category. It’s somewhat strange that Billboard‘s Woman of the Year is only competing in smaller categories, but it’s still not as strange as some of her fellow shut outs.
Neilson Barnard
Grande fared slightly better than Taylor Swift, a bonafide Grammys darling. With 31 nominations and 10 wins under her belt already, fans thought Swift’s Reputation would surely get the same sort of love from the Recording Academy, but no dice. She is nominated in the Best Pop Vocal Album category, and nowhere else. Rolling Stone points out that this makes Reputation her least-nominated LP since her debut.
For Travis Scott, Astroworld has been a wild success, but it did fall short of getting a big Grammys nomination (though picked up nods for Best Rap Album, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap Performance). The strangest part about that is that he made the album with the award show in mind, coming off of a complete snub a few years back when the Recording Academy did not acknowledge his work with any nominations.
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“A real driver on this album too was when we got snubbed for the Grammys in 2016,” Scott’s A&R told Rolling Stone a few months back. “We were like, man, are they not respecting us? That’s when it was like, ‘No, y’all got it fucked up.’ We went back and wanted to make an album that was undeniable.”
Without artists like Ariana, Taylor, and Travis in the mix, the floor was opened for others — Kendrick Lamar, Cardi B, Childish Gambino, and Lady Gaga included. Recording Academy President Neil Portnow interestingly told People that “it’s all about women this year,” though Lamar and Drake lead in terms of number of nominations.
“To me, great music is great music,” Portnow added. “Great music comes from every possible source. Now, when you get down to evaluating and looking at numbers and things of that nature which, of course, we do, I think it’s gratifying to note that there were so many great records, albums, tracks, songs created by women this year.”
He seems to have changed his tune after his comments about female artists last year, don’t you think?
Agree or disagree, check out the major four Grammys category nominees below.
Album of the Year
H.E.R. – H.E.R.
Brandi Carlile – By the Way, I Forgive You
Drake – Scorpion
Various Artists – Black Panther: The Album
Kacey Musgraves – Golden Hour
Post Malone – Beerbongs & Bentleys
Cardi B – Invasion of Privacy
Janelle Monáe – Dirty Computer
Song of the Year
Kendrick Lamar & SZA – “All the Stars”
Ella Mai – “Boo’d Up”
Drake – “God’s Plan”
Shawn Mendes – “In My Blood”
Brandi Carlile – “The Joke”
Zedd & Maren Morris – “The Middle”
Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – “Shallow”
Childish Gambino – “This Is America”
Record of the Year
Cardi B – “I Like It”
Brandi Carlile – “The Joke”
Childish Gambino – “This Is America”
Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper – “Shallow”
Drake – “God’s Plan”
Kendrick Lamar & SZA – “All the Stars”
Post Malone & 21 Savage – “Rockstar”
Zedd & Maren Morris – “The Middle”
Best New Artist
Chloe x Halle
Luke Combs
Greta Van Fleet
H.E.R.
Dua Lipa
Margo Price
Bebe Rexha
Jorja Smith