Set for January 31st 2022, the 64th annual Grammy Awards have announced a comprehensive list of their nominations across the show’s 86 categories this year. As per every other year, this selection of nominees is not without its standouts; Olivia Rodrigo seems to be dominating with nominations in all 4 of the main categories, its controversies; with comedians Louis CK and Dave Chapelle both receiving dubious nods, and its snubs; see Miley Cyrus and Machine Gun Kelly be unnecessarily disappointed here.
wtf is wrong with the grammys
— blonde don (@machinegunkelly) November 23, 2021
This year’s more prestigious categories in the general field (best album, best new artist, record of the year and song of the year) see a lot of big names, none of which crop up more regularly than Olivia Rodrigo, who has been nominated for each with her viral sensation ‘drivers license’ from here 2021 album Sour. The usual suspects of Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber, H.E.R., Taylor Swift, and Kanye West also receive nods throughout the categories. Mercury Prize winner Arlo Parks and recent record breakers Glass Animals also get fitting mentions in the Best New Artist bracket.
The Album of The Year, and Best Rap Song categories also bring their fair share of controversy. Kanye West has been nominated for his effort on DONDA, released earlier this year. These days it’s seemingly impossible for Kanye to go through an album cycle without something landing in the headlines. This time, the spotlight has been placed on his expansive feature list. Specifically, the appearance of recently cancelled Marilyn Manson, who also has a nod for Best Rap Song on West’s track “Jail”. His position on the album has led to many questioning whether or not he should be involved in the award ceremony after being accused of sexual assault by multiple women. The academy’s CEO Mason Harvey Jr. said this about his inclusion, “We won’t look back at people’s history, we won’t look at their criminal record, we won’t look at anything other than the legality within our rules of, is this recording for this work-eligible based on date and other criteria,” he added. “If it is, they can submit for consideration.”.
Jay-Z makes history with this announcement, picking up 2 separate nominations in the Best Rap Song category. Featuring on “Jail” with Kanye West, and “Bath Salts” alongside DMX and Nas, takes the rappers total Grammy nominations up to a record-breaking 83. He surpassed Beatles legend Paul McCartney to take the title after he has only gained 81 nominations so far, renowned producer Quincy Jones sits in 3rd place with a meagre 80 Grammy nominations. Of the 83 nominations Jay-Z has bagged so far, he has won 23.
Many other oddities come from this year’s nominees. ABBA was nominated for the first time in their 48 year careers, BTS fans are shocked at the group’s singular mention despite the group themselves seeming incredibly grateful, and notice a distinct lack of British music on the list. Arlo Parks, Major Lazer, and Paul McCartney are basically the only Brits to land in any major categories. See all the nominations here.
This is a huge honor Thanks to everyone who supports our music journey! @RecordingAcad #GRAMMYs #BTS #방탄소년단 pic.twitter.com/l10x0LrDMq
— BTS_official (@bts_bighit) November 24, 2021
