This article originally ran December 6th. We’re re-posting in anticipation of this weekend’s 59th Grammy Awards.
If you woke up December 6th to a giant thud, it wasn’t an earthquake or a big truck driving down your street. It was the announcement of the 59th annual Grammy nominations. And, as is the case every year, people were up in arms about what didn’t get nominated as much as they were filled with joy to see their favorites honored.
So what did the Grammys get right? Well, a lot really. Beyoncé and Adele lead the field, in large part because they should. Say what you will about their music, but no two artists have been leading the conversation more in the past year, be it Adele through her commercial accomplishments or Beyoncé with her artistic ones. Beyoncé has nine chances to win this year, putting her within reach of Allison Krauss to become the all-time winningest woman in Grammy history. She’d need eight wins to match her.
Elsewhere, we have some of music’s most beloved rap artists, Kanye West, Drake, and Chance the Rapper, all competing in a number of categories. West and Drake both have eight nominations in total while Chance will hear his name called seven times. These are the artists that music writers love to talk about and music listeners love to think about, so if the Grammys’ job is capture the zeitgeist, it seems like they’ve indeed done that.
Of the snubs, the most surprising is that David Bowie is shut out of all the big categories. This caps off a career of disappointing Grammy recognition for Bowie, something many figured the voters would make up for in light of his death. Many expected Coldplay to be a bigger factor in the rock categories, but the longtime Grammy fave didn’t put out their strongest effort and weren’t rewarded. Some thought Zayn, Justin Timberlake, and Rihanna would figure more prominently, but with only so many spots (and inclusions for less-acclaimed material from Lukas Graham, Twenty One Pilots, and Mike Posner), those pop stars find themselves feeling left out.
So now that we know who is competing, it’s time to guess who will actually win these things.
Best Music Video
Beyoncé – “Formation”
Leon Bridges – “River”
Coldplay – “Up&Up”
Jamie xx – “Gosh”
OK Go – “Upside Down & Inside Out”
Who should win: Beyoncé – “Formation”
Who will win: Beyoncé – “Formation”
With the release of Lemonade as a visual album, Beyoncé has become synonymous with music videos in 2016. This year’s Grammys awards show will figure to be heavy in awarding Bey, and Music Video is likely a category where it would be hard-pressed to pick someone else, regardless of how great OK Go’s video career has been or how cinematic that Jamie xx clip is.
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Best Song Written for Visual Media
Justin Timberlake – “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”
Twenty One Pilots – “Heathens”
P!nk – “Just Like Fire”
Skrillex and Rick Ross – “Purple Lamborgini”
Shakira – “Try Everything”
Who should win: Justin Timberlake – “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”
Who will win: Twenty One Pilots – “Heathens”
Justin Timberlake’s Trolls party starter was figuring to be in play for the night’s biggest categories, so it is a bit of a surprise that Best Song Written for Visual Media is his big shot at Grammy gold this year. The other side of the coin is Twenty One Pilots, a Grammy force this year that no one saw coming (but in hindsight, we all should have seen coming). Maybe you’re like me and weren’t even aware that “Heathens” was from the Suicide Squad OST and not from their hit-factory LP. Regardless, it’s hard to bet against the monster hit that TØP has crafted, even if hearing it makes us physically ill.
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Best Score Soundtrack For Visual Media
Thomas Newman – Bridge of Spies
Ennio Morricone – The Hateful Eight
Alva Noto & Ryuichi Sakamoto – The Revenant
John Williams – Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein – Stranger Things Volume 1
Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein – Stranger Things Volume 2
Who should win: Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein – Stranger Things Volume 1
Who will win: Ennio Morricone – The Hateful Eight
You never want to be competing against yourselves at the Grammys, and that’s the situation that the boys from S U R V I V E find themselves in. Too bad the awards didn’t just combine the albums into one slot like CoS did on our Top Albums. Still, you can’t feel too bad for them when they’re duking it out with a legend like Ennio Morricone, who already has an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his work on The Hateful Eight. Plus, we all love seeing the little, old guy making his way to the stage to make his Italian regards. It’s just good TV (even though this award will probably be handed out in the pre-telecast ceremony).
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Best Comedy Album
David Cross – …America…Great…
Margaret Cho – American Myth
Tig Notaro – Boyish Girl Interrupted
Amy Schumer – Live at the Apollo
Patton Oswalt – Talking for Clapping
Who should win: Patton Oswalt – Talking for Clapping
Who will win: Amy Schumer – Live at the Apollo
Patton Oswalt has been one of this year’s heartbreaking stories following the unexpected death of his wife, and if he ends up releasing an album of the set he’s currently doing about the grieving process, it would be hard to bet against him. Still, Schumer seems like the comedian of the moment, and has to be viewed as a favorite here. One note is that David Cross is currently donating all proceeds for his album to the ACLU, so if anything, that should be the album we’re all pulling for, as it would likely get a solid sales bump from winning.
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Best Urban Contemporary Album
Beyoncé – Lemonade
Gallant – Ology
KING – We Are King
Anderson .Paak – Malibu
Rihanna – Anti
Who should win: Beyoncé – Lemonade
Who will win: Beyoncé – Lemonade
Damn, this is a strong one. Even though Gallant and KING don’t stand a chance in hell, both of those records are solid surprises from the Grammys, demonstrating an unexpected ear to the ground of what critics have been championing. Maybe Anderson .Paak or Rihanna pull a major upset here for equally great work, but the truth is that Beyoncé made the best and most successful album here, so why would we expect any other winner?
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Best Dance/Electronic Album:
Flume – Skin
Jean-Michel Jarre – Electronica 1: The Time Machine
Tycho – Epoch
Underworld – Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future
Louie Vega – Louie Vega Starring…XXVIII
Who should win: Underworld – Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future
Who will win: Underworld – Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future
This is a tough category to call, mixing legends from dance music with a couple of its rising stars. Skrillex has won this award three of the last five years, so it is a good thing he’s not competing. But looking at the history of the award, it tends to go to the most familiar in the genre, with acts like The Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk, and Aphex Twin all holding wins. For that, we’re going to go out on a limb and say Underworld wins for their most deserving recent release, though maybe rising star Flume takes it.
