Grammy Nominations

Beyoncé is the top nominee for the 2022 Grammy Awards, which were announced on Tuesday (Nov. 15). Bey received nine nods, followed by Kendrick Lamar with eight, and Adele and Brandi Carlile with seven each. This is the sixth time Beyoncé has led (or co-led) the annual Grammy nominations.
This brings Beyoncé’s career total of nominations to 88, which puts her in a tie with her husband Jay-Z for the most Grammy nominations in history. Jay received five nods this year. Paul McCartney (81 nods) and Quincy Jones (80 nods) are next in line.

Beyoncé and Adele are competing in each of the Big Three categories – album, record and song of the year — just as they did six years ago. Three other artists — Lamar, Lizzo and Harry Styles — are also nominated in each of those categories.

ABBA, Mary J. Blige, Carlile and Steve Lacy are each nominated in two of the Big Three categories.

Beyoncé moves ahead of Frank Sinatra to become the artist with the most career record of the year nods. Beyoncé and Sinatra had been tied for that record with seven nods each

Beyoncé is the first woman of color to receive four album of the year nominations (as a lead artist). She had been tied with Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and H.E.R. with three nods each in the category.

There are more history-makers among the nominations. Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti is the first Spanish-language album to receive an album of the year nomination. Latin crossover pioneer José Feliciano was nominated in 1968 for Feliciano!, but that album consisted of English-language tracks. Related factoid: Un Verano Sin Ti is the first album to receive album of the year nods at both the Grammys and the Latin Grammys.

Lamar’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is his fourth studio album to be nominated for album of the year, which puts him in a tie with Ye (a.k.a. Kanye West) as the rapper with the most nods in this category (as a lead artist). And unlike Ye, Lamar’s nominations are for four consecutive studio albums. Furthermore, Lamar is the first artist from any genre to be nominated with four consecutive studio albums since Billy Joel (1979-83).

Taylor Swift ties the all-time record for most song of the year nods (six) with the nomination of the expanded version of “All Too Well.” Paul McCartney and Lionel Richie had long been the songwriters with the most song of the year nods. They now have company.

This is Adele’s third time being nominated for record of the year, album of the year, song of the year, best pop solo performance and best pop vocal album in the same year. She won in all of these categories at the awards for 2011 and 2016.

Doja Cat is just the third female artist to receive record of the year nods three years running. She was nominated in this marquee category for “Say So” (2020) and “Kiss Me More” (featuring SZA, 2021). She makes it this year with “Woman,” which enables her to tie Roberta Flack (1972-74) and Billie Eilish (2019-21) as the only female artists to appear in this category in three consecutive years.

Coldplay received its third album of the year nomination for Music of the Spheres. Coldplay is one of just five pop or rock groups or duos to receive three or more nominations in that category. The Beatles lead with five, followed by U2 with four, and Steely Dan and Radiohead, also with three. Moreover, this is Coldplay’s second album of the year nomination in the past three years. The veteran band is one of just two artists – along with Swift – to receive two album of the year nods in the first three years of the 2020s.

Trailing Beyoncé, Lamar, Adele and Carlile in number of nominations are six people with six nods each – Blige, The-Dream, DJ Khaled, Future, Styles and mastering engineer Randy Merrill. Merrill received three album of the year nods, for his work on Adele’s 30, Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres and Styles’ Harry’s House.

Bonnie Raitt lands her first song of the year nomination for “Just Like That,” which she wrote by herself. It’s the first song written by a solitary songwriter to be nominated in this category since Swift’s “Lover” two years ago.

At the other extreme, nine songwriters are credited as co-writers of DJ Khaled’s “GOD DID.” That’s not quite a record. Eleven songwriters joined forces to create Justin Bieber’s jam “Peaches,” a nominee last year. “GOD DID” is in a tie with Beyoncé’s “Black Parade” as the song of the year nominee with the second-most credited songwriters.

The-Dream is also nominated for song of the year for co-writing Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul” and in the newly added songwriter of the year, non-classical category. The other nominees in the latter category are Amy Allen, Nija Charles, Tobias Jesso Jr. and Laura Veltz.

In the analogous producer of the year, non-classical category, Jack Antonoff and Dan Auerbach each received their fourth nods. Boi-1da landed his second. Dahi and Dernst “D’Mile” Emile II landed their first.

The Recording Academy reports that a total of 16,741 eligible entries were submitted for Grammy consideration this year.

The Academy also reports that six of the 10 nominees for record of the year are by female solo artists, while five of the 10 albums nominated for album of the year are by female solo artists. Best new artist nominees include five female solo artists. (The last five winners for best new artist have been female solo artists.)

The Academy’s new membership class consists of nearly 2,000 voting and professional members. The Academy reports that 44% of the 2022 membership class are from “traditionally underrepresented” communities; 47% are under the age of 40.

The final-round voting window extends from Dec. 14 through Jan. 4, 2023. Winners will be announced on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, at Crypto.com Arena (formerly known as Staples Center) in Los Angeles. This will mark the show’s return to its longtime home after two years away.

Academy statisticians are already looking ahead to the awards ceremony. If Beyoncé wins three of her nine nominations, she will tie the late classical conductor Sir Georg Solti for the most Grammy wins ever. If she wins four, she will claim the record outright.

The 65th annual Grammy Awards will be produced by Fulwell 73 Productions for the Academy. Ben Winston, Jesse Collins and Raj Kapoor are executive producers, with Kapoor also serving as showrunner.

Winston and Kapoor are also first-time Grammy nominees. Both are nominated for best music film as video producers of Adele’s Adele: One Night Only. Winston and Kapoor won Primetime Emmys in September as executive producers of Adele’s special.

It’s hardly a surprise that Adele and Beyoncé are squaring off in the Big Three Grammy categories again, or that Harry Styles, Kendrick Lamar and Lizzo are joining them. But there were plenty of snubs and surprises elsewhere on the ballot for the 65th annual Grammy Awards.

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Snub: Nicki Minaj: Minaj was vocal about her displeasure with the Academy moving “Super Freaky Girl” from rap to pop. Minaj would have had a far easier time being nominated in rap than in pop. Of course, the Academy’s role is not to put records in the category where the artist is most likely to best nominated or win, but to put them in the category in which they fit best. We’ll never know if Minaj would have been nominated in rap, but we do know she wasn’t nominated in pop.

Surprise: ABBA: The Swedish group received its first nomination in any category last year when “I Still Have Faith in You” was up for record of the year. Still, it felt to some like a fluke. It was no fluke. The group is back in that category this year with “Don’t Shut Me Down” — and also rated an album of the year nod for Voyage.

Snub: Morgan Wallen: Wallen is one of the best-selling recording artists of the past couple of years, but he has yet to land a Grammy nomination. Wallen was radioactive at awards shows for a year or more following his videotaped use of the N-word in early 2021. But he was nominated for two key awards at the CMA Awards on Nov. 9 – entertainer of the year and male vocalist of the year. He was entered and eligible for nominations in several key Grammy categories, including record and song of the year, best country solo performance and best country song, all for “Wasted on You,” but was skipped over in every category.

Surprise: Mary J. Blige: The queen of hip-hop soul has broad appeal, but few thought she had a good chance of landing nods for both record of the year (her second) and album of the year (her first). Blige’s performance at this year’s Super Bowl halftime show, for which she won a Primetime Emmy, reminded people how much they like her.

Snub: Em Beihold, Dove Cameron, GAYLE, Tate McRae and Lauren Spencer-Smith: Five promising young pop stars, all of whom have landed top 20 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, were all passed over for best new artist nominations. In past years, they would have likely been shoo-ins for nominations. (GAYLE did rate a song of the year nod for her delightful “abcdefu.”)

Surprise: DOMi & JD Beck, Samara Joy, Tobe Nwigwe: These best new artist nominees are probably going to be sending a lot of people to Wikipedia. It won’t do much good in the case of Joy, a jazz vocalist who doesn’t have a Wiki page just yet.

Snub: Country music: No country artists cracked the Big Four categories, which happens all too often. Lainey Wilson, who won the CMA Award for new artist of the year, was passed over for a best new artist nod. Morgan Wallen’s “Wasted on You” and Cody Johnson’s “‘Til You Can’t” were passed over for song of the year nods. Zach Bryan’s American Heartbreak, Luke Combs’ Growin’ Up and Miranda Lambert’s Palomino were passed over for album of the year nods. No country album has received an album of the year nod since Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour four years ago (which went on to win the award). Country is a major genre and should get more attention from Grammy voters. The Academy could do better here.

Surprise: Coldplay: The group landed its third album of the year nomination; its second in the past three years. No one is surprised at the group’s continued success, but who expected Coldplay to be one of only two acts (along with Taylor Swift) to land two album of the year nods in the first three years of the 2020s?

Snub: “Encanto”: Encanto dominated pop culture in the opening months of 2022 but it didn’t get any love in the Big Four categories. Encanto is up for three awards in the music for visual media field, but was passed over up top. For Lin-Manuel Miranda, winning a Pulitzer Prize was easier than landing a Grammy nod in a Big Four category.

Not a snub: Sam Smith and Kim Petras: The pair’s “Unholy” was nominated for best pop duo/group performance but was passed over for record and song of the year nods. But you couldn’t call that a snub. The arresting single, which was released just eight days before the Sept. 30 eligibility cut-off date, didn’t have enough time to really register before voting in the nominations round closed on Oct. 23. This is Smith’s first nomination in any category since he won four Grammys, including record and song of the year for “Stay With Me,” eight years ago.

Surprise: Randy Rainbow: Everybody loves Rainbow’s song parodies, but who knew he would land his first Grammy nomination for best comedy album? He’s facing past category champs Dave Chappelle, Louis C.K. and Patton Oswalt, and seven-time nominee Jim Gaffigan.

The Recording Academy revealed the nominations for the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Tuesday (Nov. 15) via a livestream on live.Grammy.com and on the Academy’s Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok channels.

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They announced all 91 categories on the livestream, including the Big Four categories – song of the year, record of the year, best new artist and album of the year.

Here are the nominees in each of the Big Four categories – together with our instant analysis.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Award to Artist(s) and to Featured Artist(s), Songwriter(s) of new material, Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s), Mixer(s) and Mastering Engineer(s).

Voyage, ABBABenny Andersson, producer; Benny Andersson & Bernard LOhr, engineers/mixers; Benny Andersson & Bjorn Ulvaeus, songwriters; Bjorn Engelmann, mastering engineer

30, AdeleShawn Everett, Ludwig Goransson, Inflo, Tobias Jesso, Jr., Greg Kurstin, Max Martin, Joey Pecoraro & Shellback, producers; Julian Burg, Steve Churchyard, Tom Elmhirst, Shawn Everett, Serban Ghenea, Sam Holland, Michael Ilbert, Inflo, Greg Kurstin, Riley Mackin & Lasse Marten, engineers/mixers; Adele Adkins, Ludwig Goransson, Dean Josiah Cover, Tobias Jesso, Jr., Greg Kurstin, Max Martin & Shellback, songwriters; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer

Un Verano Sin Ti, Bad BunnyRauw Alejandro, Buscabulla, Chencho Corleone, Jhay Cortez, Tony Dize, Bomba Estereo & The Marias, featured artists; Demy & Clipz, Elikai, HAZE, La Paciencia, Cheo Legendary, MAG, MagicEnElBeat, Mora, Jota Rosa, Subelo Neo & Tainy, producers; Josh Gudwin & Roberto Rosado, engineers/mixers; Raul Alejandro Ocasio Ruiz, Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, Raquel Berrios, Joshua Conway, Mick Coogan, Orlando Javier Valle Vega, Jesus Nieves Cortes, Luis Del Valle, Marcos Masis, Gabriel Mora, Elena Rose, Liliana Margarita Saumet & Maria Zardoya, songwriters; Colin Leonard, mastering engineer

RENAISSANCE, BeyonceBeam, Grace Jones & Terns, featured artists; Jameil Aossey, Bah, Beam, Beyonce, Bloodpop, Boi-lDa, Cadenza, AI Cres, Mike Dean, Honey Dijon, Kelman Duran, Harry Edwards, Terius “The-Dream” Gesteelde-Diamant, Ivor Guest, Guiltybeatz, Hit-Boy, Jens Christian Isaksen, Leven Kali, Lil Ju, MeLo-X, No I.D., NovaWav, Chris Penny, P2J, Rissi, SlaO, Raphael Saadiq, Neenyo, Skrillex, Luke Solomon, Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, Jahaan Sweet, Syd, Sevn Thomas, Sol Was & Stuart White, producers; Chi Coney, Russell Graham, Guiltybeatz, Brandon Harding, Hotae Alexander Jang, Chris McLaughlin, Delroy “Phatta” Pottinger, Andrea Roberts, Steve Rusch, Jabbar Stevens & Stuart White, engineers/mixers; Denisia “@Biu June” Andrews, Danielle Balbuena, Tyshane Thompson, Kevin Marquis Bellrnon, Sydney Bennett, Beyonce, Jerel Black, Michael Thcker, Atia Boggs p/k/a Ink, Dustin Bowie, David Debrandon Brown, S. Carter, Nija Charles, Sabrina Claudio, Solomon Fagenson Cole, Brittany “@Chi_Coney” Coney, Alexander Guy Cook, Lavar Coppin, Almando Cresso, Mike Dean, Saliou Diagne, Darius Dixson, Jocelyn Donald, Jordan Douglas, Aubrey Drake Graham, Kelman Duran, Terius “The-Dream” Gesteelde-Diamant, Dave Giles II, Derrick Carrington Gray, Nick Green, Larry Griffin Jr, Ronald Banful, Dave Hamelin, Aviel Calev Hirschfield, Chauncey Hollis, Jr., Ariowa Irosogie, Leven Kali, Ricky Lawson, Tizita Makuria, Julian Martrel Mason, Daniel Memmi, Cherdericka Nichols, Ernest “No I.D.” Wilson, Temilade Openiyi, Patrick Paige II From The Internet, Jimi Stephen Payton, Christopher Lawrence Penny, Michael Pollack, Richard Isong, Honey Redmond, Derek Renfroe, Andrew Richardson, Morten Ristorp, Nile Rodgers, Oliver Rodigan, Freddie Ross, Raphael Saadiq, Matthew Samuels, Sean Seaton, Skrillex, Corece Smith, Luke Francis Matthew Solomon, Jabbar Stevens, Christopher A. Stewart, Jahaan Sweet, Rupert Thomas, Jr. & Jesse Wilson, songwriters; Colin Leonard, mastering engineer

Good Morning Gorgeous (Deluxe), Mary J. BligeDJ Khaled, Dave East, Fabolous, Fivio Foreign, Griselda, H.E.R., Jadakiss, Moneybagg Yo, Ne-Yo, Anderson .Paak, Rerny Ma & Usher, featured artists; Alissia, Tarik Azzouz, Bengineer, Blacka Din Me, Roget Chahayed, Cool & Dre, Ben Billions, DJ Cassidy, DJ Khaled, D’Mile, Wonda, Bongo Bytheway, H.E.R., Hostile Beats, Eric Hudson, London On Da Track, Leon Michels, Nova Wav, Anderson.Paak, Sl!Mwav, Streetrunner, Swizz Beatz & J White Did It, producers; Derek Ali, Ben Chang, Luis Bordeaux, Bryce Bordone, Lauren D’Elia, Chris Galland, Serban Ghenea, Akeel Henry, Jaycen Joshua, Pat Kelly, Jhair Lazo, Sharnele Mackie, Manny Marroquin, Dave Medrano, Ari Morris, Parks, Juan Pefia, Ben Sedano, Kev Spencer, Julio Ulloa & Jodie Grayson Williams, engineers/mixers; Alissia Beneviste, Denisia “Blu June” Andrews, Archer, Bianca Atterberry, Tarik Azzouz, Mary J. Blige, David Brewster, David Brown, Shawn Butler, Roget Chahayed, Ant Clemons, Brittany “Chi” Coney, Kasseern Dean, Benjamin  Diehl, DJ Cassidy, Jocelyn Donald, Jerry Duplessis, Uforo Ebong, Demst Emile II, John Jackson, Adriana Flores, Gabriella Wilson, Shawn Hibbler, Charles A. Hinshaw, Jamie Hurton, Eric Hudson, Jason Phillips, Khaled Khaled, London  Holmes, Andre “Dre” Christopher Lyon, Reminisce Mackie, Leon Michels, Jerome Monroe, Jr., Kim Owens, Brandon Anderson, Jerernie “Benny The Butcher” Pennick, Bryan Ponce, Demond “Conway The Machine” Price, Peter Skellem, Shaffer Smith, Nicholas Warwar, Deforrest Taylor, Tiara Thomas, Marcello “Cool” Valenzano, Alvin “Westside Gunn” Worthy, Anthony Jerrnaine White & Leon Youngblood, songwriters

In These Silent Days, Brandi CarlileLucius, featured artist; Dave Cobb & Shooter Jennings, producers; Brandon Bell, Dave Cobb, Torn Elrnhirst, Michael Harris & Shooter Jennings, engineers/mixers; Brandi Carlile, Dave Cobb, Phil Hanseroth & Tim Hanseroth, songwriters; Pete Lyman, mastering engineer

Music of the Spheres, ColdplayBTS, Jacob Collier, Selena Gomez & We Are KING, featured artists; Jacob Collier, Daniel Green, Oscar Holter, Jon Hopkins, Max Martin, Metro Boomin, Kang Hyo-Won, Bill Rahko, Bart Schoudel, Rik Simpson, Paris Strother & We Are KING, producers; Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, Jacob Collier, The Dream Team, Duncan Fuller, Serban Ghenea, Daniel Green, John Hanes, Jon Hopkins, Michael I!bert, Max Martin, Bill Rahko, Bart Schoudel, Rik Simpson & Paris Strother, engineers/mixers; Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Denise Carite, Will Champion, Jacob Collier, Derek Dixie, Sam Faison, Stephen Fry, Daniel Green, Oscar Holter, Jon Hopkins, Jung Ho-Seok, Chris Martin, Max Martin, John Metcalfe, Leland Tyler Wayne, Bill Rahko, Kim Narn-Joon, Jesse Rogg, Davide Rossi, Rik Simpson, Amber Strother, Paris Strother, Min Yoon-Gi, Federico Vindver & Olivia Waithe, songwriters; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer

Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, Kendrick  LamarBaby Keem, Blxst, Sam Dew, Ghostface Killah, Beth Gibbons, Kodak Black, Tanna Leone, Taylour Paige, Amanda Reifer, Sampha & Summer Walker, featured artists; The Alchemist, Baby Keem, Craig Balrnoris, Beach Noise, Bekon, Boi-lda, Cardo, Dahi, DJ Khalil, The Donuts, FNZ, Frano, Sergiu Gherrnan, Emile Haynie, J.LBS, Mario Luciano, Tyler Mehlenbacher, OKLAMA, Rascal, Sounwave, Jahaan Sweet, Tae Beast, Duval Timothy & Pharrell Williams, producers; Derek Ali, Matt Anthony, Beach Noise, Rob Bisel, David Bishop, Troy Bourgeois, Andrew Boyd, Ray Charles Brown Jr., Derek Garcia, Chad Gordon, James Hunt, Johnny Kosich, Manny Marroquin, Erwing Olivares, Raymond J Scavo III, Matt Schaeffer, Cyrus Taghipour, Johnathan Turner & Joe Visciano, engineers/mixers; KhalilAbdul-Rahman, Hykeem Carter, Craig Balrnoris, Beach Noise, Daniel Tannenbaum, Daniel Tannenbaum, Stephen Lee Bruner, Matthew Burdette, Isaac John De Boni, Sam Dew, Anthony Dixon, Victor Ekpo, Sergiu Gherrnan, Dennis Coles, Beth Gibbons, Frano Huett, StuartJohnson, Bill K. Kapri, Jake Kosich, JohnnyKosich, Daniel Krieger, Kendrick Lamar, Ronald LaTour, Mario Luciano, Daniel Alan Maman, Timothy Maxey, Tyler Mehlenbacher, Michael John Mule, D. Natche, OKLAMA, Jason Pounds, Rascal, Amanda Reifer, Matthew Samuels, Avante Santana, Matt Schaeffer, Sampha Sisay, Mark Spears, Homer Steinweiss, Jahaan Akil Sweet, Donte Lamar Perkins, Duval Timothy, Summer Walker & Pharrell Williams, songwriters;Michelle Mancini, mastering engineer

Special, LizzoBenny Blanco, Quelle Chris, Daoud, Omer Fedi, ILYA, Kid Harpoon, Ian Kirkpatrick,  Max Martin, Nate Mercereau, The Monsters & Strangerz, Phoelix, Ricky Reed, Mark Ronson, Blake Slatkin & Pop Wansel, producers; Benny Blanco, Bryce Bordone, Jeff Chestek, Jacob Ferguson, Serban Ghenea, Jeremy Hatcher, Andrew Hey, Sam Holland, ILYA, Stefan Johnson, Jens Jungkurth, Patrick Kehrier, Ian Kirkpatrick, Damien Lewis, Bill Malina, Manny Marroquin & Ricky Reed, engineers/mixers; Amy Allen, Daoud Anthony, Jonathan Bellion, Benjamin Levin, Thomas Brenneck, Christian Devivo, Omer Fedi, Eric Frederic, Ilya Salrnanzadeh, Melissa Jefferson, Jordan K Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Kid Harpoon, Ian Kirkpatrick, Savan Kotecha, Max Martin, Nate Mercereau, Leon Michels, Nick Movshon, Michael Neil, Michael Pollack, Mark Ronson, Blake Slatkin, Peter Svensson, Gavin Chris Tennille, Theron Makiel Thomas, Andrew Wansel & Emily Warren, songwriters; Michelle Mancini, mastering engineer

Harry’s House, Harry StylesTyler Johnson, Kid Harpoon & Sammy Witte, producers; Jeremy Hatcher, Oli Jacobs, Nick Lobel, Spike Stent & Sammy Witte, engineers/mixers; Amy Allen, Tobias Jesso, Jr., Tyler Johnson, Kid Harpoon, Mitch Rowland, Harry Styles & Sammy Witte, songwriters; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer

Analysis:

Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti is the first Spanish-language album to receive an album of the year nomination. Latin crossover pioneer José Feliciano was nominated in 1968 for Feliciano!, but his album consisted of English-language tracks. Related factoid: Un Verano Sin Ti is the first album to receive album of the year nods at both the Grammys and the Latin Grammys.

Lamar’s Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers is his fourth studio album to be nominated for album of the year, which puts him in a tie with Ye (a.k.a. Kanye West) as the rapper with the most nods in this category (as a lead artist). And unlike Ye, Lamar’s nominations are for four consecutive studio albums. Furthermore, Lamar is the first artist from any genre to be nominated with four consecutive studio albums since Billy Joel (1979-83).

Beyoncé is the first woman of color to receive four album of the year nominations (as a lead artist). She had been tied with Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston and H.E.R. with three nods each in the category.

Coldplay received its third album of the year nomination for Music of the Spheres. Coldplay is one of just five pop or rock groups or duos to receive three or more nominations in that category. The Beatles lead with five, followed by U2 with four, and Steely Dan and Radiohead, also with three. Moreover, this is Coldplay’s second album of the year nomination in the past three years. The veteran band is one of just two artists – along with Swift – to receive two album of the year nods in the first three years of the 2020s.

Five of these album of the year nominees (ABBA, Adele, Coldplay, Lizzo and Styles) are also nominated for best pop vocal album. The other five albums are also nominated in five far-flung album categories – Bad Bunny (best música urbana album), Beyoncé (best dance/electronic album), Blige (best R&B album), Carlile (best Americana album) and Lamar (best rap album).

Mastering engineer Randy Merrill received three album of the year nods, for his work on Adele’s 30, Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres and Styles’ Harry’s House.

Previously announced:

BEST NEW ARTIST

This category recognizes an artist whose eligibility-year release(s) achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and notably impacted the musical landscape.

Nominees:

Anitta

Omar Apollo

DOMi & JD Beck

Muni Long

Samara Joy

Latto 

Måneskin

Tobe Nwigwe

Molly Tuttle

Wet Leg

Analysis:

There are many surprises in this category, and many surprising omissions. Lainey Wilson, the CMA winner for new artist of the year, is missing. So are Dove Cameron, who won best new artist at the MTV Video Music Awards in August, and GloRilla, who won best breakthrough hip-hop artist at the BET Hip Hop Awards in October.

Other acts that were entered and eligible but not nominated include Em Beihold, Breland, Zach Bryan, Becky G, GAYLE, Conan Gray, Joji, Tate McRae, Lauren Spencer-Smith, Rina Sawayama and Bailey Zimmerman.

Four nominees were born outside of the U.S. — Anitta (Brazil), Måneskin (Italy), Wet Leg (Britain), and Domi Louna, the keyboardist in DOMi & JD Beck (France).

There are three groups or duos (DOMi & JD Beck, Måneskin and Wet Leg), the highest number in a decade. The 2012 nominees included Alabama Shakes, fun. and The Lumineers.

Previously announced:

RECORD OF THE YEAR

Award to the Artist and to the Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s) and/or Mixer(s) and mastering engineer(s), if other than the artist.

Nominees:

“Don’t Shut Me Down,” ABBABenny Andersson, producer; Benny Andersson & Bernard Lohr, engineers/mixers; Bjorn Engelmann, mastering engineer

“Easy on Me,” AdeleGreg Kurstin, producer; Julian Burg, Torn Elmhirst & Greg Kurstin, engineers/mixers; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer

“BREAK MY SOUL,” BeyoncéBeyoncé, Terius “The-Dream” Gesteelde-Diarnant, Jens Christian Isaksen & Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, producers; Brandon Harding, Chris McLaughlin & Stuart White, engineers/mixers; Colin Leonard, mastering engineer

“Good Morning Gorgeous,” Mary J. BligeD’Mile & H.E.R., producers; Bryce Bordone, Serban Ghenea & Pat Kelly, engineers/mixers

“You and Me on the Rock,” Brandi Carlile feat. LuciusDave Cobb & Shooter Jennings, producers; Brandon Bell, Torn Elrnhirst & Michael Harris, engineers/mixers; Pete Lyman, mastering engineer

“Woman,” Doja CatCrate Classics, Linden Jay, Aynzli Jones & Yeti Beats, producers; Jesse Ray Ernster & Rian Lewis, engineers/mixers; Mike Bozzi, mastering engineer

“Bad Habit,” Steve LacySteve Lacy, producer; Neal Pogue & Karl Wingate, engineers/mixers; Mike Bozzi, mastering engineer

“The Heart Part 5,” Kendrick LamarBeach Noise, producer; Beach Noise, Rob Bisel, Ray Charles Brown Jr., James Hunt, Johnny Kosich, Matt Schaeffer & Johnathan Thrner, engineers/mixers; Michelle Mancini, mastering engineer

“About Damn Time,” LizzoRicky Reed & Blake Slatkin, producers; Patrick Kehrier, Bill Malina & Manny Marroquin, engineers/mixers; Michelle Mancini, mastering engineer

“As It Was,” Harry StylesTyler Johnson & Kid Harpoon, producers; Jeremy Hatcher & Spike Stent, engineers/mixers; Randy Merrill, mastering engineer

Analysis:

This is Beyoncé’s eighth career nod for record of the year, which is more than any other artist in Grammy history. She had been tied with Frank Sinatra for that record with seven nods each.

This is the fourth nomination in the category for Adele; the third for Carlile, Doja Cat and Lamar; the second for ABBA, Blige and Lizzo; and the first for Lacy, Styles and Lucius, Carlisle’s featured artist on “You and Me on the Rock.”

Just one collaboration is in the running for record of the year, the lowest number in five years.

Doja is just the third female artist to receive record of the year nods three years running. She was nominated in this marquee category for “Say So” (2020) and “Kiss Me More” (featuring SZA, 2021). She made it this year with “Woman,” which enables her to tie Roberta Flack (1972-74) and Billie Eilish (2019-21) as the only female artists to appear in this category in three consecutive years.

Five of the 10 nominated singles reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, but two others – ABBA’s “Don’t Shut Me Down” and the Carlile/Lucius collab “You and Me on the Rock” — have yet to crack the chart.

Previously announced:

SONG OF THE YEAR

A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

Nominees:

“abcdefu”Sara Davis, GAYLE & Dave Pittenger, songwriters (GAYLE)

“About Damn Time”Melissa “Lizzo” Jefferson, Eric Frederic, Blake Slatkin & Theron Makiel Thomas, songwriters (Lizzo)

“All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (The Short Film)” Liz Rose & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)

“As It Was”Tyler Johnson, Kid Harpoon & Harry Styles, songwriters (Harry Styles)

“Bad Habit”Matthew Castellanos, Brittany Foushee, Diana Gordon, John Carroll Kirby & Steve Lacy, songwriters (Steve Lacy)

“BREAK MY SOUL” Beyoncé, S. Carter, Terius “The-Dream” Gesteelde-Diamant & Christopher A. Stewart, songwriters (Beyoncé)

“Easy on Me” Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin, songwriters (Adele)

“GOD DID”Tarik Azzouz, E.Blackmon, Khaled Khaled, F. LeBlanc, Shawn Carter, John Stephens, Dwayne Carter, William Roberts & Nicholas Warwar, songwriters (DJ Khaled Featuring  Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, John Legend & Fridayy)

“The Heart Part 5”Jake Kosich, Johnny Kosich, Kendrick Lamar & Matt Schaeffer, songwriters (Kendrick Lamar)

“Just Like That”Bonnie Raitt, songwriter (Bonnie Raitt)

Analysis:

Swift ties the all-time record for most song of the year nods (six) with the nomination of the expanded version of “All Too Well.” Paul McCartney and Lionel Richie had long been the songwriters with the most song of the year nods. They now have company.

Raitt lands her first song of the year nomination for “Just Like That,” which she wrote by herself. It’s the first song written by a solitary songwriter to be nominated in this category since Swift’s “Lover” two years ago.

At the other extreme, nine songwriters are credited as co-writers of DJ Khaled’s “GOD DID.” That’s not quite a record. Eleven songwriters joined forces to create Justin Bieber’s jam “Peaches,” a nominee last year. “GOD DID” is in a tie with Beyoncé’s “Black Parade” as the song of the year nominee with the second-most credited songwriters.

“GOD DID” and “The Heart Part 5” are both also nominated for best rap song.