Jay-Z leads all contenders with eight nominations at the 60th annual Grammy Awards.
But will the hip-hop titan reign supreme on “Music’s Biggest Night?” Or will another megastar — such as Kendrick Lamar or Bruno Mars — end up dominating the show?
We’ll find out when the Grammys are televised live on CBS from New York’s Madison Square Garden at 4:30 p.m. Jan. 28. It’s the first time the ceremony has been held in the Big Apple in 15 years.
This year’s performers include Rihanna, U2, Sam Smith, Eric Church, Bruno Mars, Childish Gambino, Lady Gaga, Little Big Town, Pink, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, SZA, Kesha, Alessia Cara, Khalid and Logic. The evening’s host is the ever-hilarious James Corden, who also held court at last year’s fandango.
Here’s a look at who should win the evening’s biggest categories — album, record and song of the year, as well as best new artist. The races should be close. But only makes predicting the outcomes that much more fun.
(Note: In order to be eligible for this year’s Grammy consideration, recordings must have been released between Oct. 1, 2016, and Sept. 30, 2017.)
Album of the Year
Nominees: “Awaken, My Love!,” Childish Gambino; “4:44” Jay-Z; “DAMN.,” Kendrick Lamar; “Melodrama,” Lorde; “24K Magic,” Bruno Mars
The Breakdown: The hit single has ruled for the record business for years, thanks to the public’s move toward single-song downloads and streaming services. Yet, somehow, this remains the most prestigious of all Grammy categories.
So, who will win the biggest prize on “Music’s Biggest Night”?
Well, it probably won’t be Lorde, unfortunately. Her sophomore effort is nothing short of brilliant (and, indeed, it’s our pick for the finest platter of 2017). Yet, it also stands in the deep shadow of its predecessor, 2013’s “Pure Heroine,” which, simply put, ranks among the greatest debuts of all time.
Then there’s Mars, who must be considered a serious threat in all six of the categories he’s nominated in. But his hit-heavy album just feels a little too lightweight to take home the big prize in 2018.
And surprise nominee “Awaken, My Love!” appears to be the longest shot of the bunch. So, “Atlanta” TV star Donald Glover (who performs as Childish Gambino) likely won’t have to worry about making room in his already-crowded trophy case for this one.
That leaves the two hip-hop entrees, competing in a category that has been infamously unkind to the genre over the years. The last hip-hop album to take home the prize was OutKast’s “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” in 2004.
That should change this year.
But will it be Jay or Kendrick to accomplish the feat? It’s easy to make compelling cases for both men. Yet, hopefully it will just boil down to who made the better album. And then the choice should be clear.
Prediction: “DAMN.”
Record of the Year
Nominees: “Redbone,” Childish Gambino; “Despacito,” Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber; “The Story of O.J.,” Jay-Z; “HUMBLE.,” Kendrick Lamar; “24K Magic,” Bruno Mars
The Breakdown: Really? This is the best that Grammy voters could come up with? It’s hard to comprehend how they could leave out the likes of Sam Hunt’s “Body Like a Backroad,” Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” and, especially, Portugal. The Man’s “Feel It Still.”
The result is a batch of nominees that don’t really represent the best of 2017.
The frontrunner, however, appears to be Mars, a guy who makes topping the charts seem almost too easy. And “24K Magic” is certainly catchy, albeit a bit boring. Yet, that’s often a winning combination at the Grammys.
Of course, it’s nice to see hip-hop get the attention, but neither “The Story of O.J.” or “HUMBLE.” rank among their creator’s best work. Still, we’d rather listen to either of those offerings than Gambino’s overrated “Redbone.”
The last entrée is the remix of the Puerto Rican smash “Despacito,” which became the first Spanish-language song since “Macarena” in 1996 to top the pop charts in the U.S.
Wouldn’t it be cool if it achieved another milestone — like becoming the first — ever Spanish-language song to win record of the year?
Prediction: “Despacito”
Song of the Year (awarded to songwriters)
Nominees: “Despacito,” Ramon Ayala Rodriguez, Justin Bieber, Jason Boyd, Erika Ender, Luis Fonsi and Marty James Garton Jr (performed by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber); “4:44,” Shawn Carter and Dion Wilson (performed by Jay-Z); “Issues,” Benny Blanco, Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Julia Michaels and Justin Drew Tranter (performed by Julia Michaels); “1-800-273-8255,” Alessia Caracciolo, Sir Robert Bryson Hall II, Arjun Ivatury, Khalid Robinson and Andrew Taggart (performed by Logic featuring Alessia Cara and Khalid); “That’s What I Like,” Christopher Brody Brown, James Fauntleroy, Philip Lawrence, Bruno Mars, Ray Charles McCullough II, Jeremy Reeves, Ray Romulus and Jonathan Yip (performed by Bruno Mars)
The Breakdown: Once again, it’s easy to take issue with the list, given the omission of so many better choices. But at least voters showed they weren’t simply flying on autopilot and made the wise decision to pass on “Look What You Made Me Do” (by longtime Grammy favorite Taylor Swift) for both record and song of the year.
Mars is probably the guy to beat here, with a song that was seemingly spun on pop radio about every five minutes this past year. (Radio programmers would occasionally break from “That’s What I Like” in favor of Mars’ “24K Magic.”)
It’s hard to imagine much of a challenge from “4:44,” “Issues” or “Despacito,” which, as a remix, should stand a better chance in the record category.
Mars’ strongest competition should come from “1-800-273-8255,” a powerful offering that doubles as a public service announcement by using the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline phone number as its title.
Prediction: “1-800-273-8255”
Best New Artist
Nominees: Alessia Cara, Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert, Julia Michaels, SZA
The Breakdown: As in recent years, this is one of the most fascinating and highly competitive categories of the night. All five of the nominees have a fighting chance to take home the title, which has previously gone to the likes of Chance the Rapper, Sam Smith, Adele, Carrie Underwood and John Legend.
Michaels will definitely draw strong support, having made sizable strides as a solo artist after years of writing songs for others. And have you heard SZA? What an amazing voice. We’ll surely be hearing much of her in the years to come.
The same could be said for Lil Uzi Vert, who ranks among hip-hop’s brightest young stars. Then there’s Cara, who’s already well on her way to superstar status and maybe shouldn’t even be eligible (since her debut came out in 2015).
Yet, there’s one talent that manages to stand out even among this high-caliber cast. Just listen to “American Teen” — aka the best R&B album of 2017 — and you’ll hear what we mean.
Prediction: Khalid
