Hello everyone, and welcome back to a very special edition of Pop Addict. On this edition, we will be discussing one of my favorite topics to discuss around this time of year: Grammy nominations. This year’s nominations are very interesting to say the least, so without further ado, let’s get into it!

To better understand what I’m talking about in the article, here is a link to the full list of nominees for the 2020 Grammy Awards: https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/2020-grammy-awards-complete-nominees-list

To begin with, we are going to discuss the nominations in the main general categories.

First, we’re going to discuss the paramount award of the whole event: Album of the Year. Some of the nominations are a little iffy. While Lil Nas X’s 7 EP was enjoyable, an AOTY nom is a stretch. Also, I feel like H.E.R., who is a good artist, nevertheless sneaks her way into this category every year somehow. Most of the other nominations I am more than okay with.

• Who I Think Should Win: “Thank U, Next” by Ariana Grande, “Norman F****** Rockwell” by Lana Del Rey, or “Cuz I Love You” by Lizzo
• Who I Think Will Win: “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” By Billie Eilish or “Thank U, Next” by Ariana Grande

Next, we have Record of the Year. To me, aside from the H.E.R. and Bon Iver nominations, every song was kind of expected. Record of the Year nominations are usually based on how successful the song was, and most of the nominations were the biggest songs of the year.

• Who I Think Should Win: “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X (ft. Billy Ray Cyrus), “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo, or “7 Rings” by Ariana Grande
• Who I Think Will Win: “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X (ft. Billy Ray Cyrus) or “Bad Guy” by Billie Eilish

Song of the Year is the next category, and this award is based on the composition of the song and is given to the songwriters. I’m fine with the nominations, all of the songs are pretty great in my opinion.

• Who I Think Should Win: “Norman F****** Rockwell” by Lana Del Rey, “Lover” by Taylor Swift, or “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo
• Who I Think Will Win: “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo or “Bad Guy” by Billie Eilish

Next, we have the award for Best New Artist, and the competition looks very heated this year. Artists like Lil Nas X, Lizzo, and Billie Eilish have seen mega success in the mainstream, while artists like Rosalía and Maggie Rogers are slowly gaining popularity. The list features a diverse set of artists across many genres, so my only complaint is that I’m very upset that Megan Thee Stallion did not get a nomination because she has had a fantastic year, and her mixtape she released in May was filled with nothing but bangers.

• Who I Think Should Win: Lizzo, Billie Eilish, or Rosalía
• Who I Think Will Win: Lil Nas X or Billie Eilish

Now, I am going to discuss my picks for the categories related to genres, specifically pop, rap, R&B and alternative.

• Best Pop Solo Performance: “7 Rings” by Ariana Grande or “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo
• Best Pop Duo/Group Performance: “Old Town Road” by Lil Nas X (ft. Billy Ray Cyrus)
• Best Pop Vocal Album: “Thank U, Next” by Ariana Grande or “The Lion King: The Gift” by Beyoncé
• Best Alternative Album: “Assume Form” by James Blake
• Best R&B Performance: “Exactly How I Feel” by Lizzo ft. Gucci Mane or “Roll Some Mo” by Lucky Daye
• Best Traditional R&B Performance: “Jerome” by Lizzo
• Best R&B Song: “Could’ve Been” by H.E.R. (ft. Bryson Tiller)
• Best Urban Contemporary Album: Cuz I Love You by Lizzo or Saturn by Nao
• Best R&B Album: Ella Mai by Ella Mai
• Best Rap Performance: “Suge” by DaBaby
• Best Rap/Sung Performance: “Higher” by DJ Khaled (ft. Nipsey Hussle and John Legend) or “Panini” by Lil Nas X
• Best Rap Song: “a lot” by 21 Savage (ft. J. Cole) or “Suge” by DaBaby
• Best Rap Album: “IGOR” by Tyler, the Creator or “i am > i was” by 21 Savage

Before I go, we are going to need to discuss a few snubs that I feel passionately about.:

• Tyler, the Creator’s “IGOR” and “Earfquake” deserved nominations for Album of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Performance respectively.
• Weyes Blood’s “Titanic Rising” deserved an Album of the Year nomination as well, or at least a nomination for Best Alternative Album. Her song “Andromeda” deserved a Song of the Year nomination as well. Despite being one of the most acclaimed albums of the year, it still received no nominations, and that is NOT okay.
• Solange’s “When I Get Home” was robbed of a Best R&B Album or Best Urban Contemporary Album nomination, and it’s unsettling to say the least.
• While Ariana Grande has plenty of nominations, I still feel like “Thank U, Next” deserved Song of the Year nomination and her collaboration with 2 Chains, “Rule the World”, deserved a Best Rap/Sung Performance nomination.
• One of the most acclaimed rap projects of the year, Rapsody’s “Eve” definitely deserved a Best Rap Album nomination.
• “LEGACY! LEGACY!” by Jamila Woods was snubbed of Best R&B Album, yet another high acclaimed project being shut out by the Grammy’s.
• Even though I have never been a fan of Miley Cyrus in the slightest, her collaboration with Mark Ronson titled “Nothing Breaks Like A Heart” was pure perfection and should’ve been nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.

No matter how I feel about these nominations, I want to congratulate every artist for being nominated for one of the most prestigious awards in music. I enjoyed a lot of music this year, so I am grateful for these artists for putting in time, work, and effort to put out quality music.

Written by Torrence Weaver, staff writer. Photo courtesy of the Spectator.