Thoughts on 2020 Grammy Nominations (Big Categories) 🏆

Another year, another opportunity for The Musical Hype to scrutinize the Grammy nominations which are particularly odd in 2020.

In a year that’s been turbulent to the nth degree, did anyone really expect the 🏆2020 Grammy nominations to buck the trend? If you did, you must have a lot more faith than I do in the Grammys, which continue to have their fair share of problems when it comes to nominations and awarding the most deserving artists. Just as America has been ravaged by the hell that is COVID-19, suspect leadership/political ineptness (*cough 45), and a disturbing resurgence of racism among other issues, the Grammy nominations seemed, more often than not, to miss the mark.  No, not all of the nominations are off base – there are some W’s – but the minute I laid eyes on the field for Record of the Year, I had some questions and definitely some 💩 to say.

RECORD OF THE YEAR

RECORD OF THE YEAR has become arguably the most coveted award at the Grammys. Skewing lately with slightly more popular ‘records,’ I’m not shocked to see 🎵 “Rockstar” (🎙 DaBaby featuring 🎙 Roddy Ricch), 🎵 “Say So” (🎙 Doja Cat), 🎵 “Don’t Start Now” (🎙 Dua Lipa), 🎵 “Circles” (🎙 Post Malone) or 🎵 “Savage” (🎙 Megan Thee Stallion featuring 🎙 Beyoncé).  I was surprised, however, to see 🎵 “Black Parade” (Beyoncé) nominated here, and even 🎵 “Everything I Wanted” (🎙 Billie Eilish).  The biggest stunner, however, was 🎵 “Colors” by 🎙 Black Pumas, a record and a retro soul duo mostly likely few folks are familiar with.  I can attest to the fact that “Colors” is a great record, but I’m surprised it gets the nod over say, 🎵 “Blinding Lights” (🎙 The Weeknd), 🎵 “Watermelon Sugar” (🎙 Harry Styles), or even 🎵 “Rain on Me” (🎙 Lady Gaga).

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

The ALBUM OF THE YEAR category was the most bizarre and disappointing for me.  While it’s an honor for 🎙 Jhené Aiko (💿 Chilombo), Black Pumas (💿 Black Pumas [Deluxe Edition]), 🎙 Jacob Collier (💿 Djesse Vol. 3), and 🎙 HAIM (💿 Women in Music Pt. III) to earn this nomination, it’s quite surprising.  I realize that Women in Music Pt. III, for example, got rave reviews.  Even so, it definitely wasn’t the most ‘popular’ album compared to many of last year’s stacked list of nominees.  Perhaps even more questionable is the 🎙 Coldplay nomination for 💿 Everyday Life which was a good album, but definitely a total flop for the band. Honestly, it would be a shame if Everyday Life somehow won AOTY after a better, more appreciated work, Viva La Vida didn’t.  Ugh. Snubbed here are superb albums by The Weeknd (💿 After Hours), 🎙 Fiona Apple (💿 Fetch the Bolt Cutters), 🎙 Childish Gambino (💿 3.15.20), Lady Gaga (💿 Chromatica) and 🎙 Bad Bunny (💿 YHLQMDLG) to name a few. I’m onboard with nominations for Dua Lipa (💿 Future Nostalgia), Post Malone (💿 Hollywood’s Bleeding), and 🎙 Taylor Swift (💿 Folklore).

SONG OF THE YEAR

SONG OF THE YEAR.  SOTY has its pros and cons as far as nominations.  Beyoncé (“Black Parade”), Billie Eilish (“Everything I Wanted”), Post Malone (“Circles”), and Dua Lipa (“Don’t Start Now”) reappear from the Record of the Year category.  Fair enough. Taylor Swift also nabs a nomination for 🎵 “Cardigan,” a no. 1 hit from Folklore, though the album actually has better songs in my opinion.  Roddy Ricch gets the nod for 🎵 “The Box,” which you might argue fits better in the ROTY but whatever.  🎙 Julia Michaels and 🎙 JP Saxe also get a nod for the beautiful 🎵 “If the World Was Ending,” something of a pleasant surprise.  Once again, 🎙 H.E.R. seems to be a total darling when it comes to the Grammys as 🎵 “I Can’t Breathe” is by far the biggest shock of the category. It’s a woke, socially relevant record mind you, but I highly doubt many predicted it would be a SOTY nominee.  Missing? The Weeknd (“Blinding Lights”) and Harry Styles (“Watermelon Sugar”) are pretty glaring omissions, don’t you think?

BEST NEW ARTIST

BEST NEW ARTIST.  This was another list with some unexpected names.  Non-surprises were Doja Cat and Megan Thee Stallion, who both had breakout years.  🎙 Phoebe Bridgers isn’t far-fetched either.  All three of these artists have released more than one EP, mixtape, or albums prior to this nomination.  Beyond those three, I wasn’t expecting 🎙 Ingrid Andress, 🎙 Chika, 🎙 Noah Cyrus, 🎙 D Smoke, or 🎙 Kaytranada. Noah Cyrus is definitely shocking…

Final Thoughts 💭 

Ultimately, the biggest categories within the 2020 Grammy nominations are, well, different honestly.  There are some hard snubs and some lofty nods. Particularly in AOTY, some smaller, categorical nominations would’ve been sufficient for some of the nominees – just saying!