What a weird year for the Grammys. Pop music ruled this year as every nominee for Record of the Year is part of the genre. Jay-Z earned the most nominations but that’s not a huge surprise – he’s the biggest rap star in the world! Same with Justin Timberlake – if the two of them didn’t collaborate for “Suit & Tie” I would think they were competing for biggest stars in the entire universe!
Album of the Year is also mainly pop music with the exception of country artist Taylor Swift. Actually, at this point she is more pop than country so that’s another major category dominated by pop music!
Glad to see Lorde nominated – love that song “Royals” as it’s unlike anything I’ve ever heard. Not surprised to see “Blurred Lines” everywhere as it was inescapable this summer and fall. Good for Robin Thicke – he’s been in the business way longer than he’d like to admit without much recognition.
I love that Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” is nominated for Best Rock Performance considering the song was originally released in 1975! The 2014 version is from their concert film Celebration Day which was recorded at the Ahmet Ertegun Tribute Concert in December 2007 at London’s O2 Arena.
The Best Rock Album category might as well be called the Classic Rock Album category as Black Sabbath, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin and Neil Young are all nominated. Nice!
Glad to see Eminem and Jay-Z duking it out in the Best Rap Performance category. Two big emcees with big albums – hard to tell who will pull out the win.
Fun to see a metal category for the first time ever – especially since one of the metal originators, Black Sabbath, is nominated.
As usual I always wonder where the powers that be in Grammy Land come up with some of these category titles. What’s the difference between Record of the Year and Song of the Year? What’s the difference between Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song?
Anyway, here is the list of the big awards a.k.a. the categories I care about most:
Record of the Year
Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams – “Get Lucky”
Imagine Dragons – “Radioactive”
Lorde – “Royals”
Bruno Mars – “Locked Out of Heaven”
Robin Thicke Featuring T.I. & Pharrell Williams – “Blurred Lines”
Album of the Year
Sara Bareilles – The Blessed Unrest
Daft Punk – Random Access Memories
Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – The Heist
Taylor Swift – Red
Song of the Year
Pink feat. Nate Ruess – “Just Give Me a Reason”
Bruno Mars – “Locked Out of Heaven”
Katy Perry – “Roar”
Lorde – “Royals”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – “Same Love”
Best Pop Solo Performance
Sara Bareilles – “Brave”
Lorde – “Royals”
Bruno Mars – “When I Was Your Man”
Katy Perry – “Roar”
Justin Timberlake – “Mirrors”
Best Pop Vocal Album
Justin Timberlake – The 20/20 Experience: The Complete Experience
Lorde – Pure Heroine
Lana Del Rey – Paradise
Robin Thicke – Blurred Lines
Bruno Mars – Unorthodox Jukebox
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams – “Get Lucky”
Pink Featuring Nate Ruess – “Just Give Me A Reason”
Rihanna Featuring Mikky Ekko – “Stay”
Robin Thicke Featuring T.I. & Pharrell Williams – “Blurred Lines”
Justin Timberlake & Jay Z – “Suit & Tie”
Best Rock Performance
Alabama Shakes – “Always Alright”
David Bowie – “The Stars (Are Out Tonight)”
Imagine Dragons – “Radioactive”
Led Zeppelin – “Kashmir” (Live)
Queens Of The Stone Age – “My God Is The Sun”
Jack White – “I’m Shakin'”
Best Rock Album
Black Sabbath – 13
David Bowie – The Next Day
Kings of Leon – Mechanical Bull
Led Zeppelin – Celebration Day
Queens Of The Stone Age – …Like Clockwork
Neil Young With Crazy Horse – Psychedelic Pill
Best Rock Song
Paul McCartney, Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, Pat Smear – “Cut Me Some Slack”
Gary Clark Jr. – “Messin’ Around”
The Rolling Stones – “Doom and Gloom”
Muse – “Panic Station”
Black Sabbath “God Is Dead?”
Best Alternative Music Album
Neko Case – The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You
The National – Trouble Will Find Me
Nine Inch Nails – Hesitation Marks
Tame Impala – Lonerism
Vampire Weekend – Modern Vampires Of The City
Best Rap Performance
Drake – “Started From The Bottom”
Eminem – “Berzerk”
Jay Z – “Tom Ford”
Kendrick Lamar – “Swimming Pools (Drank)”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis Featuring Wanz – “Thrift Shop”
Best Rap Song
ASAP Rocky Featuring Drake, 2 Chainz & Kendrick Lamar – “Fuckin’ Problem”
Jay Z featuring Justin Timberlake – “Holy Grail”
Kanye West – “New Slaves”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – “Thrift Shop”
Drake – “Started From the Bottom”
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
J.Cole Featuring Miguel – “Power Trip”
Jay Z Featuring Beyoncé – “Part II (On The Run)”
Jay Z Featuring Justin Timberlake – “Holy Grail”
Kendrick Lamar Featuring Mary J. Blige – “Now Or Never”
Wiz Khalifa Featuring The Weeknd – “Remember You”
Best Rap Album
Drake – Nothing Was The Same
Jay Z – Magna Carta…Holy Grail
Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, M.A.A.D City
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis – The Heist
Kanye West – Yeezus
Best Country Album
Jason Aldean – Night Train
Tim McGraw – Two Lanes Of Freedom
Kacey Musgraves – Same Trailer Different Park
Blake Shelton – Based On A True Story
Taylor Swift – Red
Best Metal Performance
Anthrax -“T.N.T.”
Black Sabbath – “God Is Dead?”
Dream Theater – “The Enemy Inside”
Killswitch Engage – “In Due Time”
Volbeat Featuring King Diamond – “Room 24”
See ya in January at Music’s Biggest Night!
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