The anticipation for the release of the Grammy nominations is always a long and anxious wait. It is extremely hard to predict which artists will be nominated for their work because of the large amount work that is submitted each year and how controversial it is to determine what should be considered for nominations. However, after a long wait the 2018 Grammy nominations have finally been released, and there is a lot to talk about regarding the four main categories, especially Album of the Year.

Best New Artist is an award that nominates artists who have recently emerged in the general public’s eye with their music. The nominees are Alessia Cara, Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert, Julia Michaels, and SZA. The winner will most likely be Julia Michaels, which may seem unlikely, but she has been connected to the Grammys for a long time with songwriting. There have been no big surprises for the nominees in this category, except many feel that Alessia Cara has been known by the general audience for too long to get nominated this year, and many believe that Logic and Cardi B should have been recognized in this category, as well.  

Song of the Year solely recognizes the songwriter(s) for their work on the best song. The nominees this year are “Despacito,” “4:44,” “Issues,” “1-800-273-8255,” and “That’s What I Like.” 1-800-273-8255 will likely be the song to win this award for the creative way of spreading a message, something the Grammys love. The nominations for Record of the Year, which recognizes the performance of the artist and the work of the production crew, are “Redbone,” “Despacito,” “The Story of OJ,” “HUMBLE,” and “24K Magic.” Despacito and 24K Magic will likely battle it out for this award. There has been little surprise in this category as well, except that many fans feel that Cardi B’s “Bodak Yellow” should have received a nomination for this award.

Album of the Year is the penultimate Grammy. It recognizes a large body of work making it the hardest to get recognized for. This year the nominees are Childish Gambino’s “Awaken, My Love,” Jay Z’s “4:44,” Kendrick Lamar’s “DAMN,” Lorde’s “Melodrama,” and Bruno Mars’ “24K Magic.” It’s extremely hard to determine which of the albums will take this award, but Melodrama is the least likely.

Many were shocked to see Ed Sheeran’s name missing from the list and feel he was snubbed out of the award. In 2017, Adele’s very controversial win over Beyoncé for Album of the Year sparked a new attitude towards the Grammys. Many artists concluded that the Grammys has a strong bias against urban and hip-hop artists. As a result, well-known artists Frank Ocean, Kanye and Drake have stopped submitting their work to Grammys. However, this year the Grammys have gone beyond expectations by doing what many felt was necessary and creating a much more diverse list of nominees.