Last year, Beyoncé made history at the Grammy Awards, winning the best dance/electronic album for “Renaissance” and setting the record as the artist with the most Grammy wins in the event’s nearly seven-decade history. Now, she’s also become the most-nominated artist in Grammy history.
On Friday, the Recording Academy announced that Beyoncé leads the nominations for the 67th Grammy Awards with 11, including in major categories such as Album of the Year (for her expansive roots-music album “Cowboy Carter”) and Record and Song of the Year (for her hit “Texas Hold ’Em”). These new nominations bring her career total to 99, pushing her past her husband, Jay-Z, who now ranks second with 88 nominations. To date, Beyoncé has won 32 Grammys.
Other nominations for “Cowboy Carter” include Country Solo Performance (“16 Carriages”), Americana Performance (“Ya Ya”), and Melodic Rap Performance (“Spaghettii”), showcasing her musical versatility, as previous nominations were primarily in dance and R&B categories.
Beyoncé joins a competitive group of Grammy regulars vying for the top awards. Taylor Swift, who became the first artist to win Album of the Year four times with “Midnights,” is back with “The Tortured Poets Department” and her electro-pop duet “Fortnight” with Post Malone, nominated for Record and Song of the Year. Billie Eilish also received an Album of the Year nomination for “Hit Me Hard and Soft,” her third LP to earn a nod for this top award; she’s also nominated for Record and Song of the Year with “Birds of a Feather.”
This Grammy year also highlights fresh talent making waves in 2024. Newcomers Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter are competing in multiple categories, including Album, Record, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist. Roan is nominated with her album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” and her single “Good Luck, Babe!” while Carpenter has her album “Short n’ Sweet” and the single “Espresso” for Record of the Year and “Please Please Please” for Song of the Year. Charli XCX, a pop sensation long known for her underground acclaim, has seven nominations with her album “Brat” and single “360,” marking a new level of recognition for her.
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. said these nominations represent the academy’s ongoing efforts to modernize and diversify its voter base, adding that two-thirds of the voting members have joined since 2019. “It feels very representative of what’s going on in music,” Mason said.
Some Grammy nominees this year are surprising, yet in keeping with the academy’s tradition of honoring unique talent. For Album of the Year, André 3000’s experimental jazz LP “New Blue Sun” and Jacob Collier’s “Djesse Vol. 4” are reminiscent of previous Grammy wins for jazz-leaning albums by artists like Jon Batiste and Herbie Hancock. “Voters respect the musicianship and craftsmanship that go into these records,” Mason explained, noting that while commercial success is valued, artistic creativity is equally celebrated.
A notable Record of the Year nomination went to the Beatles for “Now and Then,” a single created using machine learning to isolate a vocal recording of John Lennon. The nomination highlights how AI-assisted music can enhance creativity, allowing human artistry to shine through, according to Mason.
In the Best New Artist category, Carpenter and Roan are joined by acts such as Texas psych-rock trio Khruangbin, Benson Boone, Doechii, Raye, Teddy Swims, and country singer Shaboozey, who is also up for Song of the Year with “A Bar Song (Tipsy),” a Billboard Hot 100 mainstay. Other nominees in the Song of the Year category include Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With a Smile.”
More than 20,000 recordings were submitted for the 67th Grammys, which include 94 categories, such as Audio Book and Storytelling Recording, where Barbra Streisand will compete against George Clinton.
Country star Morgan Wallen received his first Grammy nominations, following past controversy. His duet with Post Malone, “I Had Some Help,” is up for Country Song and Country Duo/Group Performance. Other nominees for Country Album include Malone’s “F-1 Trillion,” Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter,” Kacey Musgraves’ “Deeper Well,” Chris Stapleton’s “Higher,” and Lainey Wilson’s “Whirlwind.”
Beyoncé, who was notably absent from this year’s Country Music Association Awards, garnered Grammy nominations in country categories, including Country Duo/Group Performance with her Miley Cyrus duet “II Most Wanted” and Country Song with “Texas Hold ’Em.” This marks her fifth nomination for Album of the Year, a category she has yet to win. Jay-Z openly criticised the academy at last year’s ceremony, highlighting this discrepancy, saying, “Think about it: the most Grammys — never won Album of the Year. That doesn’t work.”
In the Rap Album category, nominees include J. Cole’s “Might Delete Later,” Common and Pete Rock’s “The Auditorium, Vol. 1,” Doechii’s “Alligator Bites Never Heal,” Eminem’s “The Death of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce),” and Future and Metro Boomin’s “We Don’t Trust You.” Rock Album contenders are the Black Crowes’ “Happiness Bastards,” Fontaines D.C.’s “Romance,” Green Day’s “Saviors,” Idles’ “Tangk,” Pearl Jam’s “Dark Matter,” the Rolling Stones’ “Hackney Diamonds,” and Jack White’s “No Name.”
Next year’s Grammys — the last to be broadcast on CBS before moving to ABC in 2027 — are set for Feb. 2 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. Mason hinted at the possibility of a Beatles performance by Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, calling it “amazing” if it were to happen.
Mason also reflected on the legacy of Quincy Jones, the 28-time Grammy-winning producer who recently passed at age 91. Remembering Jones as a significant influence, Mason said, “Anything I’m doing, I’m doing because I saw Quincy do it. If it’s up to me, I’m gonna take like 45 minutes in the show, because he was that important.”
