Did The Grammys Get it Right This Year?

Taylor Swift pictured after winning multiple Grammys. Credit: On his goodbye note via Flickr

Nominations for the 66th annual Grammy Awards were announced on Nov. 10, and like with most big awards shows announcing nominations, social media discourse has begun.

Last year when the nominations for the 2023 ceremony were announced, I said that the Recording Academy always makes a decision that everyone agrees is objectively bad, and hopefully, there will be an upswing in quality and decision-making in the future with the hiring of new CEO Harvey Mason Jr. in 2021.

That may be the case because, for the first time in a while, I think the Grammys may have got it right. Here are some of the noteworthy categories:

Record of the Year

  • “Worship” by Jon Batiste

  • “Not Strong Enough” by boygenius

  • “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus

  • “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish

  • “On My Mama” by Victoria Monét

  • “Vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo

  • “Anti-Hero” by Taylor Swift

  • “Kill Bill” by SZA

For one, much like the entirety of the Grammys this year, the category is heavily dominated by women. I think this is actually a pretty strong crop of songs for it being a group of 8. 

There are some stinkers, like “Flowers,” a catchy but soulless hit that took over the charts this past year, and Jon Batiste’s “Worship,” which I think is only nominated because of a hangover from Batiste winning Album of the Year two years ago.

I would love to see this go to either SZA, Olivia Rodrigo, or boygenius, but I also wouldn’t be mad at Billie Eilish winning. But please don’t give it to Taylor. We know the Recording Academy has a crush on her, but there are 4-5 songs here leagues better than “Anti-Hero.”

Album of the Year

  • “World Music Radio” by Jon Batiste

  • “the record” by boygenius

  • “Endless Summer Vacation” by Miley Cyrus

  • “Did You Know That There’s A Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” by Lana Del Rey

  • “The Age of Pleasure” by Janelle Monáe

  • “GUTS” by Olivia Rodrigo

  • “Midnights” by Taylor Swift

  • “SOS” by SZA

Over the course of the 2010s, the Grammys have basically turned into filler events that occur in order to fill space between Taylor Swift album drops. Swift is nominated for her massive, albeit okay, new record “Midnights.” Once again, this category is really good. 

Although, what is Jon Batiste doing here? I get it they can’t shut him out after giving him Album of the Year a few years ago, but getting nominated for a subpar record is a miss in my opinion. Also, we get it, “Endless Summer Vacation” was a super popular record, but it is forgettable at best compared to these other records. 

Outside of Swift, Batiste, and Cyrus, I would love to see any of these records take it home. Will it be Taylor? Probably. But I would give it to SZA or Lana Del Rey, who both dropped incredible records this past year.

Song of the Year

Christian rapper Lecrae pictured after winning a Grammy for his song "Messengers" in 2015. Credit: University of North Texas via Flickr

  • “A&W” by Lana Del Rey

  • “Anti-Hero” by Taylor Swift

  • “Butterfly” by Jon Batiste

  • “Dance The Night” by Dua Lipa

  • “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus

  • “Kill Bill” by SZA

  • “Vampire” by Olivia Rodrigo

  • “What Was I Made For?” By Billie Eilish & Finneas O’Connell

If you are under 60 and knew who Bonnie Rait was before she won Song of the Year last year, congrats because I sure didn’t. But that made me realize that a blues legend winning over some of the biggest musicians in the world is the first sign of a great new era for the Grammys and the Recording Academy that Mason Jr. is ushering in.

This year, the category is stacked. Once again, there’s Taylor Swift, another odd Jon Batiste nom, and a head-scratching Miley Cyrus nom, but the rest is great. I would love to see this go to “A&W” or “Kill Bill.”

Best New Artist

  • Gracie Abrams

  • Fred again..

  • Ice Spice 

  • Jelly Roll

  • Coco Jones

  • Noah Kahan

  • Victoria Monét

  • The War and Treaty

Last year, just like Song of the Year, we were totally shocked when Samara Joy upset Omar Apollo and Latto. And, of course, there is the obligatory Grammy mishap in this category that they will continue to make until the end of time, nominating someone who has been around for like 8-10 years, in this case Victoria Monét.

I would like to see this go to Fred again.. or Noah Kahan. It will probably go to Ice Spice though.

Best Pop Dance Recording

  • “Baby Don’t Hurt Me” by David Guetta, Anne-Marie and Coi Leray

  • “Miracle” by Calvin Harris featuring Ellie Goulding

  • “Padam Padam” by Kylie Minogue

  • “One in a Million” by Bebe Rexha and David Guetta

  • “Rush” by Troye Sivan

Remember how I said the Grammys got it right this year? Well, right, outside of this category, because I’m only pointing it out due to it being laughably bad. If Troye Sivan doesn’t walk away from this category with a Grammy in his hands the electronic/dance field will continue to not be taken seriously.

All in all, the Grammys got pretty much everything right this year. There are some hiccups here and there, but that’s to be expected. It looks like the Recording Academy is starting to go for quality over popularity, sales and streams, and there is a lot to look forward to in the coming years on music’s biggest night.

Kyle EsoianGrammys, Nominations, MusicComment