59th annual Grammy Awards set to take place tomorrow
February 11, 2017
The Recording Academy will host its 59th annual Grammy Awards tonight. The show honors musical achievements during the eligibility year, which was from Oct. 1, 2015 to Sept. 30, 2016. R&B singer Beyoncé is this year’s nominee to beat, with nine nominations total.
Although there are over 80 categories ranging from Best Reggae Album to Best Engineered Album, I’ve looked at four of them and selected my picks to win this year.
For Best New Artist, the nominees are Kelsea Ballerini, the Chainsmokers, Anderson .Paak, Chance the Rapper and Maren Morris. My best bet for this category is the Chainsmokers, mostly due to their two inescapable hits this year, “Closer” and “Don’t Let Me Down.”
This year’s nominations for Song of the Year are “Formation” by Beyoncé, “Hello” by Adele, “I Took a Pill in Ibiza” by Mike Posner, “Love Yourself” by Justin Bieber and “7 Years” by Lukas Graham. “Hello” has the best chance here, due to Adele’s numerous Grammys she’s already won, as well as the song’s classic pop influences.
Next, for Record of the Year, the nominees are Beyoncé’s “Formation,” Lukas Graham’s “7 Years,” Adele’s “Hello,” Rihanna’s “Work” and Twenty One Pilots’ “Stressed Out.” Beyoncé has the best shot here, mainly due to the song’s strong production and its balance of personal and political lyrics.
And finally, for Album of the Year, the nominations are “Purpose” by Justin Bieber, “Views” by Drake, “25” by Adele, “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth” by Sturgill Simpson and “Lemonade” by Beyoncé. My pick for this one is Lemonade, due to Beyoncé’s numerous previous Grammys as well as the album’s lyrics concerning herself and her marriage. But, it wouldn’t be shocking Album of the Year was given to Sturgill Simpson, due to recent Album of the Year awards given to similarly folky underdog albums.
The awards will be shown on CBS tonight, where we will see who will take the prize and who will walk away with arms empty.