Kendrick Lamar leads Grammy nods with eight
Women make resurgence in major categories for 2019
The music of “Black Panther,” with Kendrick Lamar in its starring role, dominated the 2019 Grammys nominations, with women also heavily represented in the major four categories, a year after their presence was barely felt at the awards.
The Recording Academy announced Friday that Lamar is the top contender with eight nominations, including seven for his musical companion to the Marvel Studios juggernaut starring Chadwick Boseman and Michael B. Jordan. “Black Panther: The Album” is up for album of the year, a category where women make up five of the eight nominees. Cardi B, Kacey Musgraves, Janelle Monae, H.E.R. and Brandi Carlile also are up for the top prize, along with Drake and Post Malone.
For the first time, the Grammys have expanded the top four categories from five nominees to eight.
Lamar’s top 10 hit, the Sza-assisted “All the
Stars,” is nominated for record and song of the year (a songwriting award).
Five other songs scored nominations in both categories, including Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s “Shallow” from “A Star Is Born”; Childish Gambino’s “This Is America”; Drake’s “God’s Plan”; Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey’s “The Middle”; and Carlile’s
“The Joke.”
Ella Mai’s “Boo’d Up” and Shawn Mendes’ “In My Blood” earned song of the year nods, while Post Malone’s “Rockstar” and Cardi B’s “I Like It,” featuring Bad Bunny and J Balvin, round out the nominees for record of the year.
Drake — the year’s most successful artist — earned seven nominations. Though nominated for album of the year, he was surprisingly shut out of best rap album, where his rival Pusha T earned a nomination.
Drake’s frequent collaborator, producer Boi-1da, earned six nods, as did Carlile, who also scored nominations in the American roots category.
The nominees for the
2019 Grammys mark a departure from this year’s show, where women were underrepresented in the top four categories. Of the eight best new artist nominees, six are women, including H.E.R., Chloe x Halle, Dua Lipa, Margo Price, Bebe Rexha and Jorja Smith. Rock band Greta Van Fleet and country singer Luke Combs also earned nominations.
Recording Academy
CEO Neil Portnow was criticized earlier this year at the Grammys when he said women need to “step up” when asked about the lack of women in the top categories, which he later acknowledged was a “poor choice of words.” It prompted the academy to launch a task force focused on inclusion and diversity; Portnow also announced he would be leaving the academy in 2019.
Another milestone for women is in the nonclassical producer category, where songwriter extraordinaire Linda Perry earned a nomination. She’s just the seventh woman ever nominated for the prize and the first since 2004. Perry will compete with Pharrell Williams, Boi1da, Larry Klein and Kanye West, the only nomination he earned.
Taylor Swift, a twotime album of the year winner, also earned only one nomination — her “Reputation” album is up for best pop vocal album.
Beyonce and Jay-z, billed as the Carters, didn’t earn any of the big nominations, nor did Ariana Grande. The Carters earned two nods in the R&B category along with best music video, while Grande picked up two nods in pop.
Artists who were completely snubbed include Carrie Underwood, Sam Smith, Migos, Kane Brown, Nicki Minaj, Xxxtentacion and Juice WRLD, whose “Lucid Dreams” was one of the year’s biggest hits.
The 2019 Grammys will be Feb. 10 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.