Grammys 2024 Predictions: Who Could Beat Taylor Swift?

tThe Grammys manage to upset music fans most years, but last year’s ceremony caused a particularly big scandal. This was mainly due to British pop star Harry Styles taking home the biggest award of the night, beating Adele and Beyoncé for the Album of the Year award in what should have been a rematch after the controversial win of the “Hello” artist over his fellow chart-topper in 2017. .

This year is shaping up to be less provocative in many ways, with female artists dominating all four major categories (recently reduced to eight nominees instead of 10), including Song of the Year and Album of the Year. SZA leads the pack with nine nominations, while boygenius (who recently announced they were going on hiatus for an acoustic show earlier in the week) and Victoria Monét close behind. Recording Academy darling Taylor Swift is also in the mix, and on the verge of becoming the first four-time Grammy winner for Album of the Year.

Ahead of Sunday’s (February 4) ceremony, which will take place live from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, here’s a look at who will likely win and who. ought win: the Big Four.

the song of the year

Billie Eilish – “What was I made for?”

Dua Lipa – “Dance the Night”

Jon Batiste – “Butterfly”

Lana Del Rey – “A&W”

Miley Cyrus – “Flowers”

Olivia Rodrigo – “vampire”

SZA – “Kill Bill”

Taylor Swift – “Antihero”

Should win: “Kill Bill” – SZA

Will win: “What was I made for?” – Billie Eilish

SZA’s languid, muddled “Kill Bill” unfolds like Nancy Sinatra’s revenge. The artist’s genre-bending boom bap-inspired song, reminiscent of Sinatra’s “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down),” is almost shocking in its nonchalance. And if Song of the Year is supposed to recognize lyrics and melody, SZA takes first place in both. His lyrics acknowledge his own messiness with deadpan humor: “Now I’m in the basement, planning a raid on my house / Now, lying face down, you’ve got me singing to a beat.” His voice is mellifluous and caresses each word with a hypnotic croon. As the song title suggests, there’s a cinematic quality to the whole thing: you imagine SZA back home, taking off her fur coat and calmly washing the blood off her hands. That isolated voice at the end, as he sings “I’d rather be in hell than alone,” says it all.

That said, Eilish is already an awards season favorite thanks to her low-key contribution to the Barbie soundtrack, a stark contrast to their previous Song of the Year winners, “bad guy” and “Happier Than Ever.” With another Oscar for Best Song on the horizon, Eilish seems destined to take it by storm.

Best New Artist

Coco Jones

Graciela Abrams

fred again

ice spice

jelly roll

Noah Kahan

Victoria Monet

The war and the treaty

should win:Victoria Monet

Will win: Noah Kahan

The Best New Artist category has been perplexing in previous years, often featuring nominee lists packed with familiar names. This year, there are only a few truly new faces competing for the award, including breakout star Noah Kahan, who found fame as a viral song and a performance spot on Saturday night live thanks to his single “Stick Season” and Nashville-born singer-songwriter Jelly Roll, who, at 39, did a reverse Post Malone and transitioned from hip-hop to country music. The War and Treaty, Coco Jones and Gracie Abrams are considered the underdogs (despite Abrams’ pedigree as the daughter of Hollywood director JJ Abrams), and we can safely rule out the always overrated British producer DJ Fred Again.

Ice Spice might have been the favorite a year ago, but has struggled to find anything of note since its Barbie song “Barbie World” with Nicki Minaj, overshadowed by contributions to the soundtrack from Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish and, erm, Ryan Gosling. Meanwhile, although Monét has been consistently releasing some of the best R&B tracks for the better part of a decade, it wasn’t until last year that she released her sublime debut album. Jaguar II. However, Kahan may very well be awarded Best New Artist, as “Stick Season” easily emerges as one of the biggest singles of the past 12 months.

Record of the year

Billie Eilish – “What was I made for?”

boygenius – “Not strong enough”

Jon Batiste – “Adoration”

Miley Cyrus – “Flowers”

Olivia Rodrigo – “Vampire”

SZA – “Kill Bill”

Taylor Swift – “Antihero”

Victoria Monet – “About my mother”

Should win: “Not strong enough” – boygenius

will win: “Antihero” – Taylor Swift

Record of the Year is supposed to celebrate the performance and production achievements of its nominees, but most people (voters, too, apparently) can’t discern any significant difference between this category and Song of the Year. If we go by those qualifiers, then boygenius deserves the trophy for “Not Strong Enough,” the triumphant country-pop anthem from her debut album. The record.

The track begins with a strong acoustic guitar strum, with synths slowly flickering in the darkness like a headlight beam. From there, it’s a gorgeous build up to the layered harmonies of the chorus – “Always an angel, never a god” – and the climax of the final chorus. A win for boygenius would also be a historic and rare triumph for production companies at the Grammys, with the trio of Phoebe Bridgers, Julien Baker and Lucy Dacus, accompanied at the helm by Australian producer and engineer Catherine Marks.

It’s doubtful, however, that Swift will return home without the award for her widely acclaimed single “Anti-Hero,” produced with her longtime collaborator and Grammy favorite, Jack Antonoff. The brilliant synth-pop track, which delves into the mechanics of our deepest insecurities, is performed by Swift at the height of her powers: joyful, confident and self-aware.

Album of the year

genius boy – The record

Janelle Monáe – The era of pleasure

Jon Batista – world music radio

King’s wool – Did you know there is a tunnel under Ocean Blvd?

Miley Cyrus – Endless summer vacation

Olivia Rodrigo – VISCERA

SZA – CALL FOR HELP

Taylor Swift – midnight

should win: SZA – CALL FOR HELP

will win: Taylor Swift – midnight

It’s hard to imagine there will be much bad feeling no matter who wins this category, unless Jon Batiste, the only male nominee among eight contenders, takes it home. The works of SZA, Del Rey and Monáe are arguably the most immersive: their three albums invite listeners to immerse themselves and soak in their respective explorations of sexuality, anguish, euphoria and revenge.

Rodrigo, who already has three statuettes to his name, has a brilliant offering in the shape of VISCERA – their stunning second album – but arguably lacks the finesse or artistry of their peers. boygenius could possibly be considered a touch too “alternative” for the famously populist Recording Academy, which brings us inevitably to Swift and her record-breaking tenth studio album. midnight. It’s a great LP, adored by critics and fans alike.

This is also, inarguably, Swift’s year: next week, her appearance at the Super Bowl to support her boyfriend Travis Kelce will likely generate more interest than the game itself, while her commercial successes of the past 12 months should be more than enough to impress voters. . Plus, giving Swift that last record (more Album of the Year wins than any other artist) would be the kind of television (read: ratings) gold the Grammys are desperate for.