It’s that time of year again! As the leaves fall and the air thins, my favorite season starts once more. No, not the Christmas season. It’s award show season! Kicking it off, The Recording Academy has released the official nominees for the 2024 Grammy Awards. The Recording Academy is infamous for snubbing artists and giving out surprise awards. In 2022, Jon Batiste’s We Are won the coveted Album of the Year Award which was a huge surprise to all as he beat out that year’s huge successes such as Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo. In 2016, Taylor Swift’s 1989 won the same award, controversially beating out Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly.
All in all, it is safe to say that The Recording Academy’s credibility has been uncertain in recent years as its winners and nominations always seem to upset people. Before nominations began to roll out this year, I was anxious to see if they’d follow similar trends. For this year’s round of nominations, projects released from October 1, 2022, to September 15, 2023, were eligible. In this period, many artists have had monumental success. SZA released her wildly successful album SOS with the hit single, “Kill Bill”. Miley Cyrus had a great comeback year with her single, “Flowers”. Seeing that the competition would be stiff, the nominations came and for once, they did not disappoint. SZA leads the list with nine nominations, with Victoria Monét, Phoebe Bridgers, and Serban Ghenea trailing her at seven nominations. The nominations are overwhelmingly female artists, as they’ve dominated the music industry this year.
“Seeing the women nominees this year, and the number of them, was not a surprise but it was something that made me happy,” the Recording Academy CEO and President, Harvey Mason jr, said in an interview with The Associated Press.
I’ve always been a highly opinionated person when it comes to music and pop culture. As there are 91 categories, I will only be predicting the winners for the general field in which all genres are eligible. Given the fact that I will always be biased towards my favorites, I will be splitting my nominations list into three categories: what should win, who I want to win, and who will win. I’m very excited to see the final results on February 4, but until then, let the prediction commence!
- Album of the Year
World Music Radio Jon Batiste
the record Boygenius
Endless Summer Vacation Miley Cyrus
Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd Lana Del Rey
The Age Of Pleasure Janelle Monae
GUTS Olivia Rodrigo
Midnights Taylor Swift
SOS SZA
The Album of The Year award is the most coveted award of the night and typically The Recording Academy snubs many artists. However, this year I was pleased to see my favorite artists nominated. Unfortunately, it is a double-edged sword, as making my choices is not easy.
What Should Win.
Through the many great albums on this list, one stands out to me greatly, as her work has gone unrewarded by the Grammys in the past. She’s one of the most influential artists in music and her work on Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd is one of the best in her career. Del Rey is on top of her game with this album as her pen game truly hits its mark. On the track entitled “Margaret (Featuring Bleachers),” Del Rey sings a fresh yet familiar-sounding tune with her producer and his band. It is a standout and that alone should earn the album the award.
What I Want To Win.
It’s no surprise that my pick for this award is Midnights by Swift. Although she’s my favorite artist, the album speaks for itself. It broke many awards and records and it was impossible to escape the Swift mania around it. Though it is not my favorite album by her, Swift has some hidden bejeweled gems on this album with songs such as “Maroon” and “Labyrinth.” Swift has already won this award three times (in three different genres), the most for any female artist. If she wins it again this year, Swift will be the first artist in history to win it four times.
What Will Win.
Out of all of the fantastic nominees this year, I believe that SZA’s SOS will win Album of the Year. It has gained critical acclaim and is a stellar follow-up to her last album Ctrl. SOS has amazing tracks with production, vocals, and pen game on point! 2023 was a major year in her young career and I think that she has rightfully earned this award.
- Record of the Year
“Worship,” Jon Batiste
“Not Strong Enough,” Boygenius
“Flowers,” Miley Cyrus
“What Was I Made For?” from “Barbie,” Billie Eilish
“On My Mama,” Victoria Monét
“Vampire,” Olivia Rodrigo
“Anti-Hero,” Taylor Swift
“Kill Bill,” SZA
Record of the Year is an award for a singular song, not an album. It is based on the overall recording of the track and the award is given to any person credited on the track. It is often confused with the Song of the Year Award. However, SOTY is given to only the writers of the song.
What Should Win.
The trio Boygenius released their album the record and it’s a masterpiece in its own right. Its single “Not Strong Enough” is an indie track that is truly one of the best songs released this year. It is emotionally raw with a rock indie sound. The trio featuring Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker, and Phoebe Bridgers only creates magic and they deserve a win and this incredible track would be perfect.
What I Want To Win.
She’s my girl and of course, I have to pick “Anti-Hero” by Swift. The lyrically raw song is met with an upbeat and fun backing track. Swift’s pen game is unreal on this track and the delivery is perfect. Swift has been nominated for six awards and if she wins one more, she will have 13 Grammys. Any Swiftie knows that 13 is her lucky number, so another win would be amazing.
What Will Win.
The song from the Barbie soundtrack, “What Was I Made For?” by Eilish, has been everywhere, with fans of both Eilish and the movie, loving it. The raw delivery of vocals and piano pulls the heartstrings of any listener with its all-too-relatable message. Eilish is a Grammy’s darling and given her history, it would be no surprise if she went home with this award.
- Song of the Year
“A&W” Jack Antonoff, Lana Del Rey & Sam Dew
“Anti-Hero” Jack Antonoff & Taylor Swift
“Butterfly” Jon Batiste & Dan Wilson
“Dance the Night” Caroline Ailin, Dua Lipa, Mark Ronson & Andrew Wyatt
“Flowers” Miley Cyrus, Gregory Aldae Hein & Michael Pollack
“Kill Bill” Rob Bisel, Carter Lang & SZA
“Vampire” Daniel Nigro & Olivia Rodrigo
“What Was I Made For?” Billie Eilish & Finneas O’Connell
The Song of the Year award is one of my favorites, as it awards the songwriters of a perfect song. Unlike Record of the Year, Song of the Year is only given to the people involved with writing the lyrics and/or composition of the song.
What Should Win.
“What Was I Made For?” perfectly describes the emotions of feeling lost and not knowing where you belong. Given that this award is for the songwriters, Eilish and O’Connell perfectly deliver the message in the heartbreaking lyrics.
“When did it end? All the enjoyment,” Eilish sings.
The lyrics are exactly fitting for the Barbie movie and its placement in the movie is pristine. However, the song also stands out on its own.
What I Want To Win.
Yes, I am putting Swift’s “Anti-Hero” as my pick. However, I am not just putting it because it’s Swift. “Anti-Hero” is an amazing pop track but underneath it all, the lyricism is insane. Swift sings about her insecurities and her fears.
“Did you hear my covert narcissism I disguise as altruism like some kind of congressman?” Swift asks.
She’s regarded as one of the best songwriters of our generation and holds the record for most nominations in this category. However, she’s somehow never walked home with this award and it is time!
What Will Win.
“Anti-Hero” is the strongest contender for this award in my opinion. As I’ve mentioned, her pen game on this track is a standout compared to the rest of the nominees. It would be shocking if The Recording Academy chose to snub her again in this category. However, after her loss with “All Too Well (10-minute version)” almost nothing shocks me now.
- Best New Artist
Gracie Abrams
Fred Again
Ice Spice
Jelly Roll
Coco Jones
Noah Kahan
Victoria Monét
The War and Treaty
The Best New Artist award is very important to the career of a rising star. It has been given to current superstars such as Billie Eilish and Dua Lipa. This year’s competition is quite stiff and I could see it being given to any of the nominees.
Who Should Win.
Singer Gracie Abrams has had a great year in her early career. Abrams released her debut album Good Riddance with collaborator Aaron Dessner. It was marked with critical acclaim and Abram’s immaculate voice has been praised alongside her beautiful lyricism. She embarked on the “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” as an opener for many cities, gaining a larger following than ever before. Abrams is a shining new star and I think she wholeheartedly deserves this award.
Who I want to win.
Abrams has been the soundtrack to my life ever since her second EP was released back in 2021. She has proved herself to be multifaceted, with a beautiful voice and lyricism along with playing several instruments. Abrams has a bright future ahead of her and I think it would be great if The Recording Academy commemorated her with this award.
Who Will Win.
Ice Spice will most definitely win this award. She’s been on top of her game and is only growing in popularity. She’s a rising star in the pop world and has been on many of the most successful songs this year. It would be no surprise if she won this award. Spice has been featured with huge artists such as Nicki Minaj and Swift. She’s very deserving of this award and I believe that The Recording Academy will pick her for it.
All in all, the Grammys are just a celebration of music. Though cliche, to be nominated is an honor in itself. Though Swift is my favorite to win, all of the artists nominated this season are brilliant and arguments could be made for each and every one of them.
