The 60th Grammy Awards are here! The Recording Academy will take its turn doling out awards today, honoring various achievements in the world of music. Jay-Z leads the field going into the day’s festivities with eight nominations. Compton’s own Kendrick Lamar follows with seven nods while Bruno Mars has six nominations. The top nominees also include Childish Gambino (a.k.a. Donald Glover), Khalid and No I.D. with five nominations each. The majority of the winners of the Grammys’ 84 categories will be announced during the pretelecast ceremony that kicks off at noon. Winners of the marquee categories including record of the year, album of the year, song of the year and new artist will be announced during the performance-heavy main event that starts at 4:30 p.m. The live telecast hosted by James Corden will air on CBS. Stay tuned for The Times’ full coverage of Grammys 2018 including live updates from the red carpet, all the winners, reactions and more.
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The Grammys, like most awards shows, have been wrestling for years with issues of diversity: ethnic, gender and, in the Grammys’ case, musical. Not so long ago, the show drew eye rolls for over-rewarding elder heroes at the expense of pop’s younger, more vital mainstream. (Think Ray Charles beating Green Day and Kanye West in 2005, or Herbie Hancock defeating Amy Winehouse and, ahem, Mr. West in 2008.)
The Grammys have generally gotten much better at recognizing the pulse of contemporary music. A diverse crop of nominees this year means it is very likely that the winners of the four most prestigious categories — album, record and song of the year, and best new artist — will not be white men.
At the same time, gender is very much still an issue. Lorde is the only woman up for album of the year, facing Jay-Z, Bruno Mars, Kendrick Lamar and Childish Gambino. Julia Michaels and Alessia Cara have credits in the song of the year category (which recognizes songwriters). Ms. Michaels, Ms. Cara and the R&B singer SZA are nominated for best new artist. Otherwise, the top nominees are predominantly male. As a new report indicated, gender diversity at the Grammys — and in the music industry at large — has been abysmal.
Here are some other story lines to pay attention to at this year’s Grammys.
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The marquee categories have big stars.
The top categories are stacked with popular and critically respected releases. Jay-Z, who has won 21 Grammys in his career — but never in the major fields — has a chance to sweep with his album “4:44,” a reflective and confessional work that may finally give him an edge with more traditional voters. But for album, record and song of the year, Jay-Z also faces Mr. Mars (“24K Magic”), whom the industry admires as an all-around, lovable entertainer.
For both record and song of the year, Jay-Z and Mr. Mars also face competition from “Despacito,” the flirty ballad from Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee (in a remix featuring Justin Bieber) that set streaming records; a win would be perceived as a triumph for the once-again-burgeoning world of Spanish-language pop.
Don’t forget Kendrick Lamar, the most respected rapper of his generation. Still, the dark horse may be Lorde, who emerged as a Grammy winner four years ago (“Royals”) and still has broad support in the Recording Academy, the organization that bestows the awards.
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A #MeToo moment?
The #MeToo movement holding men accountable for sexual harassment and assault has come to Hollywood, politics and the news media, but its impact on the music world has been minimal. As the Grammys approached, it became clear that aside from a performance by Kesha — whose acrimonious battle with her longtime producer Dr. Luke has drawn considerable attention inside and outside of the business — the industry had no organized response planned along the lines of the Time’s Up campaign that was front and center at the recent Golden Globes.
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That changed just days ago, when a small group of midlevel female music executives called for artists to wear a white rose to the show, as a sign of “hope, peace, sympathy and resistance.” By Thursday, a handful of stars including Lady Gaga and Kelly Clarkson had pledged their support. But it remains to be seen how strong of a statement the campaign will make.
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Performances are the focus.
All but around 10 of the 84 awards this year will be given out in a nontelevised ceremony before the show. That will keep the show focused on perhaps its true purpose: being a big-tent TV variety program chock-full of performances.
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This year’s show will feature Elton John playing with Miley Cyrus; Kendrick Lamar with U2; Lady Gaga; Bruno Mars with Cardi B; Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee performing “Despacito”; the rapper Logic performing his suicide-prevention hit “1-800-273-8255,” which is up for song of the year; the country singers Maren Morris, Eric Church and the Brothers Osborne in a tribute to victims of gun violence; and the best new artist nominees Khalid, Alessia Cara, SZA and Julia Michaels in various permutations.
For a year that saw the losses of Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Tom Petty, Chris Cornell, Chester Bennington of Linkin Park, Malcolm Young of AC/DC and Walter Becker of Steely Dan, expect some notable “in memoriam” tributes.
Absent from the stage.
While many stars will pack the stage, the Grammys will also be notable for who isn’t there. Ed Sheeran, who was shut out of the top awards despite having one of the year’s biggest hits, is not expected to appear. Neither are Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber.
Jay-Z and Lorde should be in the audience but are not expected to perform.
Scheduling, limitations of time and space, and the whims of performers and producers may well account for many of these absences. But in recent years, the Grammys have also faced boycotts from some artists who feel that not enough of the top prizes go to black artists. Frank Ocean stated that in regards to last year’s show.
And while Drake has said that the reason he is not performing is that the Grammys asked him to cancel one of his own shows to appear, he also did not submit his latest “playlist” album, “More Life,” for award consideration.
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New York, New York.
The Grammys have not been in New York since 2003, when the city was still struggling to attract business and tourism after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Since then, the awards’ home has been the Staples Center in Los Angeles, where its deep connections are visible from the bronze plaques on sidewalks around the complex commemorating past winners.
The New York mayor’s office lobbied hard to bring back the Grammys, which, according to some estimates, can yield as much as $200 million in economic benefits for their host city. But tensions have flared in recent weeks, with the Recording Academy accusing the city of not making good on millions of dollars in promised fund-raising.
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The show — which for a second time is being hosted by James Corden — is likely to make some use of New York as a backdrop, but the awards have already committed to the Staples Center for the next four years.
The Grammys are coming early this year. And moving from one coast to the other. Usually held in mid-February in Los Angeles, the Grammy Awards will take place this Sunday in New York City. The Grammys scoot up a few weeks every four years to avoid competing with the Winter Olympics. And for the first time since 2003, the Grammys will take place not in Los Angeles but New York City.
Who's hosting?
James Corden will host. This is Corden's second year hosting the Grammy Awards, following LL Cool J's four-year run. James Corden is the well-loved host of "The Late Late Show with James Corden," featuring his popular segment, "Carpool Karaoke."
Who are the nominees?
If "Despacito" is still looping in your head, you won't be surprised it's up for song of the year, alongside Jay-Z's "4:44," "Issues," "1-800-273-8255" and "That's What I Like." Album of the year include albums from artists Childish Gambino, Lorde, Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar and Bruno Mars. Those are the nominees for some of the big categories. For the full list, check out this post from our parent company, CBS.
Who's performing?
Among the many artists performing are Childish Gambino, Kesha, Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar, Pink and SZA. Other performances include Elton John with Miley Cyrus, Sam Smith, Alessia Cara, Logic and Little Big Town. If you don't have a cable or satellite TV subscription, you can still watch all of the performances and see who takes home the hardware with one of many live streaming options.
When do the Grammy Awards start?
The 60th annual Grammy Awards start Sunday, Jan. 28 at 4:30 p.m. PT/7:30 p.m. ET. This year, the show will take place in New York City, rather than Los Angeles. It airs on CBS.
How to watch the Grammys online
To watch the Grammy Awards, you'll need to find a streaming service that not only offers CBS, but a live feed of CBS and not just on-demand content. In many markets, you can watch on-demand but not live content from CBS and the other local networks.
CBS All Access
You can watch the Grammys on CBS All Access if you live in one of these 185 markets where the service offers live TV. CBS All Access costs $5.99 a month (or $9.99 a month for no commercials during on-demand shows), but there is a 7-day free trial for new subscribers. It's available on a wide variety of streaming devices, including Apple TV ($179.00 at Apple), Amazon Fire TV ($69.99 at Amazon.com), Google Chromecast and Roku. You can also get it on game consoles like the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One ($248.72 at Amazon.com) and phones and tablets running Android or iOS. (For the record: CNET is a division of CBS.)
PlayStation Vue
The $40 Access plan of Sony's live streaming service includes CBS. Channel lineups vary by region, so check out which live, local networks you get on the PlayStation Vue Plans page.
DirecTV Now
DirecTV Now's basic, $35-a-month Live a Little package includes CBS. You can use its channel lookup tool to see if you get a live feed of CBS and the other local networks in your zip code.
Hulu with Live TV
Hulu with Live TV costs $40 a month and includes CBS, but check to see which live channels Hulu offers in your area.
YouTube TV
YouTube TV costs $35 a month and includes live local channels, including CBS. It's available in dozens of major metro markets, with more being added all the time.
Free over-the-air TV
If you live in an area with good reception, you can watch for free on over-the-air broadcast channels just by attaching an affordable (under $30) indoor antenna to nearly any TV to watch the major networks, including CBS.
Grammy awards 2018 The Observer Grammys 2018: not a rock guitar solo to be heard as awards embrace women and hip-hop More inclusive voting means a woman could win best rap album for only the second time since Lauryn Hill won with the Fugees in 1997 Cardi B is nominated in the 2018 Grammys for best rap song and best rap performance for her song, Bodak Yellow. Photograph: Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images
For years, the Grammys have been criticised for being out of touch but the music industry’s pre-eminent music awards will attempt a culturally relevant reset tonight in New York.
Many of these hopes rest on the shoulders of three women. One is the Bronx-born, Trinidadian-Dominican former stripper Cardi B, whose hit Bodak Yellow (Money Moves) is nominated for best rap song and best rap performance. The other two are Rapsody, a lyrically and melodically adept 34-year-old North Carolina native who is up for best rap song for Sassy and best album for Laila’s Wisdom, and Missouri born Solána Imani Rowe, aka SZA, who is up for best new artist.
If either Cardi B or Rapsody win best rap album they will be the first woman to do so since Lauryn Hill won with the Fugees in 1997. This would be doubly impressive since Cardi B and Rapsody are going up against seven-time winner Kendrick Lamar and 21-time winner Jay-Z in their respective categories.
The Grammys have gone back and forth on both of the race and gender issue for many years Carol Cooper
The music industry, with the notable exception of Russell Simmons, has been largely spared the torrent of sexual harassment accusations levelled at film business performers and executives, yet it is not without enduring biases, says cultural critic and former music industry executive Carol Cooper.
“The Grammys have gone back and forth on both the race and gender issue for many years. It was slow to validate rap and hip-hop, and you can’t just relegate young female rap or hip-hop artists to one category of best new artist.”
Part of the change comes from the fracturing and reformulation of the music business. In the past, the mainstream business was obliged to support mainstream artists. Now that there is no mainstream, categorisations have begun to open up.
In the past, women were more highly categorised from year to year – singer-songwriters, girl groups, Lilith Fair-type acts. That conformity has now been challenged, Cooper says, in part as a response to the sexism of the Trump presidency and partly a response to the 2013 lawsuit pop superstar Kesha filed against her former producer, Dr Luke, accusing him of physical, sexual and emotional abuse and employment discrimination against her. Dr Luke is currently suing Kesha for defamation over an alleged text Kesha sent to Lady Gaga stating that Dr Luke had raped another woman.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Rapsody has Grammy nominations for best album and best rap song. Photograph: Johnny Nunez/Getty Images for Essence
This year’s hip-hop resurgence comes not a moment too soon, stated the industry trade journal Billboard in November, after nominees were announced. It said “the show finds itself on precarious footing with the artists most closely defining popular music in 2017” and warned of a “full-scale rebellion from the hip‑hop and R&B worlds brewing against the Grammys”.
In 2005, rap music was all-but left out of the awards, prompting anxiety that rap had run out of ideas. Eleven years later, and R&B star and critic’s favourite Frank Ocean refused even to enter his 2016 hit Blonde for consideration, claiming the awards didn’t seem to represent “people who come from where I come from, and hold down what I hold down”.
“You have to realihe Grammys were the establishment organisational award,” says Cooper, “and a lot of people accepted it was dedicated to preserving heritage acts and an old idea of what pop music should be. There was always a form of economic protectionism going on when the music industry was more economically robust.”
New committees were purposed to 'override the popular vote to focus on what is really the best'
Like the Golden Globes three weeks ago and the Oscars to follow in March, this year’s Grammys are likely to become a showcase for expressions of gender and racial equality. Instead of the all-black outfits worn by actors at the Golden Globes in support of the Time’s Up initiative against workplace sexual harassment, nominees and presenters will wear white roses.
But, in many respects, the music industry, which may never have been so ham-fisted or inarticulate as film in areas of overt sexism, preceded the film industry in efforts to reform. Rule changes and the formation of new committees purposed to “override the popular vote to focus on what is really the best”, were made effective last year after Beck beat Beyoncé to album of the year in 2015, which at the time prompted Kanye West to call on Beck to give his award to Beyoncé.
Equally striking is an almost total absence of rock music from the major categories. This year Jay-Z leads all nominees with eight nods, followed by Kendrick Lamar with seven, Bruno Mars with six and Childish Gambino, No I.D, Khalid and SZA all with five – and barely a guitar solo between them.
There may be no better representative of the new spirit than livewire Cardi B, who describes herself as a “regular, degular, shmegular girl from the Bronx” who escaped a life of domestic violence and supported herself working at a strip club. Barely a year since bursting on to the scene, Cardi B (real name Belcalis Almanzar) has become the first woman with five simultaneous Top 10 hits on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. She’s a live wire and currently engaged to rapper Offset from hip-hop act Migos, though that plan has run into complications due to her allegation he was unfaithful to her.
However, she told Rolling Stone magazine: “I used to tell myself I will always be myself. Little by little, I’m feeling like I’m getting trapped and muted.”
Better for everyone Cardi’s wild spirit remains uncontained. Given this force of nature, perhaps the Grammys had little option but to modernise. “Institutions have to reflect the fact that people are not consuming music in the same way,” says Cooper. “They’re not making it in the same way, and they’re not making the same money they used to make.” So now we’re seeing greater diversity. It’s not sudden or mysterious – and you can’t pretend you’re not going to participate.”
Album of the year
Awaken, My Love!
Childish Gambino
4:44
Jay-Z
Damn
Kendrick Lamar
Melodrama
Lorde
24K Magic
Bruno Mars
Will win
Jay Z
Should win
Kendrick Lamar
New artist
Alessia Cara
Khalid
Lil Uzi Vert
Julia Michaels
SZA
Will win
SZA
Should win
SZA
Rap performance
Bounce Back
Big Sean
Bodak Yellow
Cardi B
4:44
Jay-Z
Humble
Kendrick Lamar
Bad and Boujee
Migos feat Lil Uzi Vert
Will win
Bodak Yellow
Should win
Bodak Yellow
Ben Beaumont-Thomas
