The nominations for the 66th annual Grammy Awards have been recently announced on Friday, November 10th. Although the nominations for the Grammy Awards were quite diverse, this round of awards is called to be “dominated” by young women stars. Even though this so-called “dominance” was somewhat anticipated, what surprised the Grammy fans was SZA’s nine different nominations across ninety-three different categories. Her latest albums “SOS” and “Kill Bill” were the two things that mainly got her a grand total of nine nominations, making her “massive year” continue in 2024 as well.

Following SZA, Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo are also two of the top nominees for the 66th annual session of the Grammy Awards. Both Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo received 7 nominations in similar categories, meaning both artists will compete with each other to win in the same categories. Taylor’s most recent album The Midnights and Olivia’s GUTS, also her recent single “Vampire”, were their top albums, nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album and Album of the Year categories.

Another aspect with a great influence on the Grammy nominations this year was Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie. Although movie critics previously highlighted how the frequent inclusion of popular songs disrupted the flow of the movie and deviated from the message of the film, all three songs in the Barbie film were nominated for various categories. Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?”, and Dua Lipa’s “Dance The Night” both received nominations in the Song of The Year category. Similarly, Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice’s “Barbie World” will be competing for the Best Rap Song. Even though three of these songs were popular before the release of the Barbie movie, their Grammy nominations originated mainly from the recognition they received after the Barbie movie.

In addition to the dominating number of nominations, other fellow female artists also received recognition for their work. Lana Del Rey’s “Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” and Janelle Monáe’s “The Age of Pleasure” were also recognized for the “Album of the Year” Category. Furthermore, regarding the Record of the Year, Victoria Monét’s “On My Mama and Del Rey’s “A&W,” were both recognized for the Song of the Year category, meaning they will be competing for winning in the same category with the aforementioned Barbie films.
The award ceremony will take place on February 4, 2024, on Cryto.com Arena, which will be broadcast from coast to coast, meaning that Grammy fans on the West Coast won’t have to watch a tape-delayed broadcast. Another important date, the date for the final voting, is January 4, 2024, a month before the announcement of the winners. This year, Record Academy sent 2,800 invitations to new voting members, and 850 invitations to non-voting members. If the invitees were willing to participate in the 66th annual session of the Grammy Awards, they must have accepted their invitations on July 14th, 2023 the latest.
Overall, this year’s Grammys are said to be heavily influenced by the popular culture outside the music industry. Because the Barbie movie had remarkable effects on the nominations this year, the inclusion of female artists, specifically younger ones, correlates with what was anticipated even before nominations were announced. Altogether, Grammy fans are quite excited to see how this year’s results will turn out. If you are one of them, don’t forget to save the dates.
Works Cited
Caramica, Jon, et al. "Grammy Snubs and Surprises: boygenius Thrives, Country and Rap Wither." The New York Times, A. G. Sulzberger, 10 Nov. 2023, Accessed 11 Nov. 2023.
Grein, Paul. "Here's When Grammy Nominations Will Be Announced, Plus More Key Dates for 2024 Grammy Awards." The New York Times, A. G. Sulzberger, 29 Sept. 2023, Accessed 11 Nov. 2023.
Sisario, Ben. "SZA, 'Barbie' Songs and Young Women Lead 2024 Grammy Nominees."
The New York Times, A. G. Sulzberger, 10 Nov. 2023, Accessed 11 Nov. 2023.