If you’re in the market for a conniption, just watch the 67th Annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 2, 2025. We’re only kidding, sort of. After years of disappointment, we’ve gotten better at managing my expectations of which artists should win.
On Nov. 8, 2024, Harvey Mason Jr. announced the nominations for the ever-divisive ceremony. Below are our predictions for the general field categories: Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist.
Grammy Award for Album of the Year
Nominees: “New Blue Sun” by André 3000 | “COWBOY CARTER” by Beyoncé | “HIT ME HARD AND SOFT” by Billie Eilish | “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” by Chappell Roan | “BRAT” by Charli xcx | “Djesse Vol. 4” by Jacob Collier | “Short n’ Sweet” by Sabrina Carpenter | “THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT” by Taylor Swift
Will win: “BRAT”
Should win: “BRAT”
Snubbed: “eternal sunshine” by Ariana Grande
Charli xcx has not been up for Grammy gold since her feature on Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” (2014). It’s no secret that “BRAT” dominated 2024, culminating in seven nominations. However, it wasn’t until my 82-year-old grandmother asked me “what is ‘Brat’?” that I truly understood the magnitude of its reach. A win would be highly deserved and long overdue.
While Swift’s “THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT” is an impressive project, its close proximity to incumbent “Midnights” (2022) could render her victory redundant. As for Beyoncé, if the Recording Academy cared about properly honoring Queen B in this category, they would have done so when “Lemonade” (2016) was in contention.
However, Grande’s exclusion from the list of nominees cannot be ignored. In an interview with Zane Lowe, Grande reflected on how recording “eternal sunshine” renewed her love for music, disentangling it from industry optics. Fans and critics alike celebrated “eternal sunshine,” which generated two Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 singles and earned a rare five-star review from Rolling Stone. Therefore, Grande’s absence here is just insulting, especially when one spot went to André 3000’s 90-minute, non-vocal flute solo, “New Blue Sun.”
— Colin Ference
Grammy Award for Record of the Year
Nominees: “Now And Then” by The Beatles | “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” by Beyoncé | “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish | “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan | “360” by Charli xcx | “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar | “Espresso” by Sabrina Carpenter | “Fortnight (feat. Post Malone)” by Taylor Swift
Will win: “Good Luck, Babe!”
Should win: “Good Luck, Babe!” or “Espresso”
Snubbed: “Too Sweet,” Hozier
“Good Luck, Babe!” and “Espresso” are sonically reminiscent of Lizzo’s quippy and confident “About Damn Time” (2022), which won Record of the Year in 2023. Although “Espresso” and Carpenter’s other singles from “Short n’ Sweet” have enjoyed more radio play, Roan has the advantage of “Good Luck, Babe!” spearheading her Grammy campaign, while Carpenter’s Song of the Year nomination is for “Please, Please, Please.” Both deserve the accolade, but dual nominations often enhance a song’s visibility and perceived merit.
However, “Now And Then” is a dark horse by sheer virtue of it being the final song in The Beatles’ discography — does anyone remember that underground boy band?
It would have been sweet to see Hozier’s whiskey blues jam “Too Sweet” make the cut, but I have no complaints about the current lineup. There are only so many spots.
— Colin Ference
Grammy Award for Song of the Year
Nominees: “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM” by Beyoncé | “BIRDS OF A FEATHER” by Billie Eilish | “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan | “Not Like Us” by Kendrick Lamar | “Die With A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars | “Please Please Please” by Sabrina Carpenter | “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey | “Fortnight (feat. Post Malone)” by Taylor Swift
Will win: “Not Like Us”
Should win: “Not Like Us”
Snubbed: “we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” by Ariana Grande
“Not Like Us” is the most iconic and unflinchingly provocative diss track in recent memory. Lamar has yet to win a Grammy in a major category, and he is finally armed with a chart-topping song and subsequent storm of lyrical analysis on X.
Still, keep an eye out for “Die With A Smile.” Not only did Gaga and Mars top the Billboard Global 200 chart for eight consecutive weeks, but their soft rock ballad might resonate with Grammy voters even more post-presidential election: “If the world was ending / I’d wanna be next to you.”
However, the exclusion of “we can’t be friends (wait for your love)” from both the major and pop categories is an indefensible oversight by the Recording Academy. The emotional intelligence Grande instills in the song’s lyrics is raw and resonant, and deserved a nomination at least.
— Colin Ference
Grammy Award for Best New Artist
Nominees: Benson Boone; Doechii; Chappell Roan; Khruangbin; RAYE; Sabrina Carpenter; Shaboozey; Teddy Swims
Will win: Sabrina Carpenter
Should win: Chappell Roan
Snubbed: Beabadoobee
Ironically, the two frontrunners for Best New Artist — Carpenter and Roan — have been toiling away in the music industry since 2013 and 2017, respectively. However, 2024 was the year they both broke into the mainstream, making them new in that regard. Nevertheless, Carpenter did enter the entertainment industry at only 15 years old, gaining a leading role in the Disney Channel Original “Girl Meets World” (2014). Roan’s delay in entering the spotlight should ensure her spot as Best New Artist, but it won’t. Considering Carpenter has not complained about this uptick in stardom or the prospect of winning a Grammy, I think the Recording Academy will be more inclined to give her the trophy.
Released on Aug. 16, “This Is How Tomorrow Moves” just barely made the Aug. 30 deadline for Grammy considerations. Like her fellow female stars, Beabadoobee has trudged through the music industry since 2017. However, her recent project stands out as a definitive declaration of confidence, style and maturity. Although “This Is How Tomorrow Moves” did not achieve commercial success akin to Roan and Carpenter’s projects, Beabadoobee nonetheless deserves a nomination.
— Catherine Goodman and Colin Ference
