2016 GRAMMY Awards: Adam Predicts The Winners

And the winner is…

It’s almost time for the 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards, airing live on CBS tonight at 8PM Eastern. We’ll witness greatness from a whole lot of acts, superstars and newcomers, all in the hunt for their chance to take home the big prize. Alabama Shakes, Chris Stapleton, Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift and The Weekend are among the performers for the big show, and rank among the nominees in a number of categories, many of which you’ll see below. From “Blank Space” to “Can’t Feel My Face”, this race is a cool chase. (I’ll leave the rhyming to them next time.)

At the same time that we’ll be celebrating the artists and music of the last year, it’s also been a rough year in terms of losses within the music community. Since December, those acts include names like Lemmy Kilmister, Natalie Cole, David Bowie, Glenn Frey and Maurice White. Remember, that’s just in the last seven weeks. Many more musicians have passed since the last award show. It’ll be interesting to see how the committee responds with tribute performances and the In Memoriam section. I imagine it will be an especially sad one.

So, without further ado, here’s what I’m thinking for this year’s potential winners. Note that the choices I’ve predicted are in bold, with a spot marked “WINNER” below each category. Those blank slots will be updated once the actual winners are revealed in the Premiere Ceremony (3:30 – 6:30 Eastern, watch here) or on the CBS telecast. Though I’m not making a prediction for every single category, let’s hope I get some right…

THE BIG FOUR (with commentary)

Record Of The Year
“Really Love”, D’Angelo & The Vanguard
“Uptown Funk”, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
“Thinking Out Loud”, Ed Sheeran
“Blank Space”, Taylor Swift
“Can’t Feel My Face”, The Weeknd

Four out of the five nominees in this category were mass appeal hits that topped both domestic and international charts, while it’s still a surprise to “Really Love” up for the award, even if it did have some success on the Urban AC listing. “Uptown Funk” seemed to cross over seamlessly from format to format, and its U.S. sales total is approaching seven million copies. Needless to say, a few members on the voting panel aren’t going to stop the majority of them from feeling totally funky during this GRAMMY season.

WINNER: “Uptown Funk”, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars

Album Of The Year
Alabama Shakes, Sound & Color
Kendrick Lamar, To Pimp A Butterfly
Chris Stapleton, Traveller
Taylor Swift, 1989
The Weeknd, Beauty Behind The Madness

1989 and Beauty Behind The Madness are safe choices to win the award given how many hit singles each set has pumped out thus far. Swift’s effort, in particular, saw its first five singles go to #1 on the pop radio chart, and is currently certified 5x Platinum. It is entirely possible for them to pull off a win, but I’m more interested in the other three sets. I’ve gone back and forth between all of them, but Stapleton’s three wins at the CMA Awards and his momentum (at both radio and retail) since then give him my vote.

WINNER: Taylor Swift, 1989

Song Of The Year
“Alright”, Kendrick Lamar (Kendrick Duckworth, Mark Anthony Spears & Pharrell Williams)
“Blank Space”, Taylor Swift (Max Martin, Shellback & Taylor Swift)
“Girl Crush”, Little Big Town (Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna & Liz Rose)
“See You Again”, Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth (Andrew Cedar, Justin Franks, Charles Puth & Cameron Thomaz)
“Thinking Out Loud”, Ed Sheeran (Ed Sheeran & Amy Wadge)

If Record Of The Year has a strong chance of going “Uptown Funk”, this category will likely go to “Thinking Out Loud” (though it’s possible that Sheeran’s song could take home both.) It’s a well-crafted torch song, and one that continues to be bought and played on many different platforms. “Girl Crush” may also be in the running, as it won the same category at the CMA Awards, but it has a much better chance of scooping up a win in the Country field (where I am predicting at least one win for the Alabama quartet.)

WINNER: “Thinking Out Loud”, Ed Sheeran (Ed Sheeran & Amy Wadge)

Best New Artist
Courtney Barnett
James Bay
Meghan Trainor
Sam Hunt
Tori Kelly

This category is a tough one this year… well, for me, at least. Many people seem to think Trainor is a shoo-in for this category; I’m not one of them. She’s actually been nominated in similar categories on other U.S. shows and hasn’t won at all. If that does change for the GRAMMY Awards, it’ll be a good look for her new single in March and upcoming album later this year. However, I’m going to give this to Kelly. She’s not had the biggest radio airplay or single sales, but she’s liked by many audiences and does well live.

WINNER: Meghan Trainor

POP

Best Pop Solo Performance
“Heartbeat Song”, Kelly Clarkson
“Love Me Like You Do”, Ellie Goulding
“Thinking Out Loud”, Ed Sheeran
“Blank Space”, Taylor Swift
“Can’t Feel My Face”, The Weeknd

WINNER: “Thinking Out Loud”, Ed Sheeran

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
“Ship To Wreck”, Florence + The Machine
“Sugar”, Maroon 5
“Uptown Funk”, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
“Bad Blood”, Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar
“See You Again”, Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth

WINNER: “Uptown Funk”, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars

Best Pop Vocal Album
Kelly Clarkson, Piece By Piece
Florence + The Machine, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
Mark Ronson, Uptown Special
Taylor Swift, 1989
James Taylor, Before This World

WINNER: Taylor Swift, 1989

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
Tony Bennett and Bill Charlap, The Silver Lining: The Songs Of Jerome Kern
Bob Dylan, Shadows In The Night
Josh Groban, Stages
Seth MacFarlane, No One Ever Tells You
Barry Manilow with various artists, My Dream Duets

WINNER: Tony Bennett and Bill Charlap, The Silver Lining: The Songs Of Jerome Kern

DANCE/ELECTRONIC

Best Dance Recording
“We’re All We Need”, Above & Beyond featuring Zoë Johnston
“Go”, The Chemical Brothers
“Never Catch Me”, Flying Lotus featuring Kendrick Lamar
“Runaway (U & I)”, Galantis
“Where Are Ü Now”, Skrillex and Diplo with Justin Bieber

WINNER: “Where Are Ü Now”, Skrillex and Diplo with Justin Bieber

Best Dance/Electronic Album
Caribou, Our Love
The Chemical Brothers, Born In The Echoes
Disclosure, Caracal
Jamie xx, In Colour
Skrillex and Diplo, Skrillex and Diplo Present Jack Ü

WINNER: Skrillex and Diplo, Skrillex and Diplo Present Jack Ü

ROCK

Best Rock Performance
“Don’t Wanna Fight”, Alabama Shakes
“What Kind Of Man”, Florence + The Machine
“Something From Nothing”, Foo Fighters
“Ex’s & Oh’s”, Elle King
“Moaning Lisa Smile”, Wolf Alice

WINNER: “Don’t Wanna Fight”, Alabama Shakes

Best Rock Song
“Don’t Wanna Fight”, Alabama Shakes (Alabama Shakes)
“Ex’s & Oh’s”, Elle King (Dave Bassett and Elle King)
“Hold Back The River”, James Bay (Iain Archer and James Bay)
“Lydia”, Highly Suspect (Richard Meyer, Ryan Meyer and Johnny Stevens)
“What Kind Of Man”, Florence + The Machine (John Hill, Tom Hull and Florence Welch)

WINNER: “Don’t Wanna Fight”, Alabama Shakes (Alabama Shakes)

Best Rock Album
James Bay, Chaos And The Calm
Death Cab For Cutie, Kintsugi
Highly Suspect, Mister Asylum
Muse, Drones
Slipknot, .5: The Gray Chapter

WINNER: Muse, Drones

ALTERNATIVE

Best Alternative Music Album
Alabama Shakes, Sound & Color
Björk, Vulnicura
My Morning Jacket, The Waterfall
Tame Impala, Currents
Wilco, Star Wars

WINNER: Alabama Shakes, Sound & Color

R&B

Best R&B Performance
“If I Don’t Have You”, Tamar Braxton
“Rise Up”, Andra Day
“Breathing Underwater”, Hiatus Kaiyote
“Planes”, Jeremih featuring J. Cole
“Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey)”, The Weeknd

WINNER: “Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey)”, The Weeknd

Best Traditional R&B Performance
“He Is”, Faith Evans
“Little Ghetto Boy”, Lalah Hathaway
“Let It Burn”, Jazmine Sullivan
“Shame”, Tyrese
“My Favorite Part Of You”, Charlie Wilson

WINNER: “Little Ghetto Boy”, Lalah Hathaway

Best R&B Song
“Coffee”, Miguel (Brook Davis & Miguel Pimentel)
“Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey)”, The Weeknd (Ahmad Balshe, Stephan Moccio, Jason Quenneville & Abel Tesfaye)
“Let It Burn”, Jazmine Sullivan (Kenny B. Edmonds, Jazmine Sullivan & Dwane M. Weir II)
“Really Love”, D’Angelo & The Vanguard (D’Angelo & Kendra Foster)
“Shame”, Tyrese (Warryn Campbell, Tyrese Gibson & DJ Rogers Jr.)

WINNER: “Really Love”, D’Angelo & The Vanguard (D’Angelo & Kendra Foster)

Best Urban Contemporary Album
The Weeknd, Beauty Behind The Madness
Lianne La Havas, Blood
Miguel, Wildheart
Kehlani, You Should Be Here
The Internet, Ego Death

WINNER: The Weeknd, Beauty Behind The Madness

Best R&B Album
Leon Bridges, Coming Home
D’Angelo & The Vanguard, Black Messiah
Andra Day, Cheers To The Fall
Jazmine Sullivan, Reality Show
Charlie Wilson, Forever Charlie

WINNER: D’Angelo & The Vanguard, Black Messiah

RAP

Best Rap Performance
“Apparently”, J. Cole
“Back To Back”, Drake
“Trap Queen”, Fetty Wap
“Alright”, Kendrick Lamar
“Truffle Butter”, Nicki Minaj featuring Drake and Lil Wayne
“All Day”, Kanye West featuring Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom and Paul McCartney

WINNER: “Alright”, Kendrick Lamar

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
“One Man Can Change The World”, Big Sean featuring Kanye West & John Legend
“Glory”, Common featuring John Legend
“Classic Man”, Jidenna featuring Roman GianArthur
“These Walls”, Kendrick Lamar featuring Bilal, Anna Wise & Thundercat
“Only”, Nicki Minaj featuring Drake, Lil Wayne & Chris Brown

WINNER: “These Walls”, Kendrick Lamar featuring Bilal, Anna Wise & Thundercat

Best Rap Song
“All Day”, Kanye West featuring Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom and Paul McCartney (Ernest Brown, Tyler Bryant, Sean Combs, Mike Dean, Rennard East, Noah Goldstein, Malik Yusef Jones, Karim Kharbouch, Allan Kyariga, Kendrick Lamar, Paul McCartney, Victor Mensah, Charles Njapa, Che Pope, Patrick Reynolds, Allen Ritter, Kanye West, Mario Winans and Cydel Young)
“Alright”, Kendrick Lamar (Kendrick Duckworth, Mark Anthony Spears and Pharrell Williams)
“Energy”, Drake (Richard Dorfmeister, A. Graham, Markus Kienzl, M. O’Brien, M. Samuels and Phillip Thomas)
“Glory”, Common featuring John Legend (Lonnie Lynn, Che Smith and John Stephens)
“Trap Queen”, Fetty Wap (Tony Fadd and Willie J. Maxwell)

WINNER: “Alright”, Kendrick Lamar (Kendrick Duckworth, Mark Anthony Spears and Pharrell Williams)

Best Rap Album
J. Cole, 2014 Forest Hills Drive
Dr. Dre, Compton
Drake, If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
Kendrick Lamar, To Pimp A Butterfly
Nicki Minaj, The Pinkprint

WINNER: Kendrick Lamar, To Pimp A Butterfly

COUNTRY

Best Country Solo Performance
“Burning House”, Cam
“Traveller”, Chris Stapleton
“Little Toy Guns”, Carrie Underwood
“John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16”, Keith Urban
“Chances Are”, Lee Ann Womack

WINNER: “Traveller”, Chris Stapleton

Best Country Duo/Group Performance
“Stay A Little Longer”, Brothers Osborne
“If I Needed You”, Joey + Rory
“The Driver”, Charles Kelley, Dierks Bentley & Eric Paslay
“Girl Crush”, Little Big Town
“Lonely Tonight”, Blake Shelton featuring Ashley Monroe

WINNER: “Girl Crush”, Little Big Town

Best Country Song
“Chances Are”, Lee Ann Womack (Hayes Carll)
“Diamond Rings And Old Barstools”, Tim McGraw featuring Catherine Dunn (Barry Dean, Luke Laird & Jonathan Singleton)
“Girl Crush”, Little Big Town (Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna & Liz Rose)
“Hold My Hand”, Brandy Clark (Brandy Clark & Mark Stephen Jones)
“Traveller”, Chris Stapleton (Chris Stapleton)

WINNER: “Girl Crush”, Little Big Town (Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna & Liz Rose)

Best Country Album
Sam Hunt, Montevallo
Little Big Town, Pain Killer
Ashley Monroe, The Blade
Kacey Musgraves, Pageant Material
Chris Stapleton, Traveller

WINNER: Chris Stapleton, Traveller

MUSICAL THEATER

Best Musical Theater Album
An American in Paris
Fun Home
Hamilton
The King And I
Something Rotten!

WINNER: Hamilton

MUSIC FOR VISUAL MEDIA

Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For Visual Media
Empire: Season 1
Fifty Shades Of Grey
Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me
Pitch Perfect 2
Selma

WINNER: Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me

Best Song Written For Visual Media
Fifty Shades Of Grey: “Earned It”, The Weeknd (Ahmad Balshe, Stephan Moccio, Jason Quenneville & Abel Tesfaye)
Selma: “Glory”, Common featuring John Legend (Lonnie Lynn, Che Smith & John Stephens)
Fifty Shades Of Grey: “Love Me Like You Do”, Ellie Goulding (Savan Kotecha, Max Martin, Tove Lo, Ali Payami & Ilya Salmanzadeh)
Furious 7: “See You Again”, Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth (Andrew Cedar, Justin Franks, Charlie Puth & Cameron Thomaz)
The Hunting Ground: “Til It Happens To You”, Lady Gaga (Lady Gaga & Diane Warren)

WINNER: Selma: “Glory”, Common featuring John Legend (Lonnie Lynn, Che Smith & John Stephens)

PRODUCER

Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical
Jeff Bhasker
Dave Cobb
Diplo
Larry Klein
Blake Mills

WINNER: Jeff Bhasker

REMIXER

Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical
“Berlin By Overnight (CFCF Remix)”, Daniel Hope
“Hold On (Fatum Remix)”, JES, Shant & Clint Maximus
“Runaway (U & I) (Kaskade Remix)”, Galantis
“Say My Name (RAC Remix)”, Odesza featuring Zyra
“Uptown Funk (Dave Audé Remix)”, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars

WINNER: “Uptown Funk (Dave Audé Remix)”, Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars

MUSIC VIDEO/FILM

Best Music Video
“LSD”, A$AP Rocky
“I Feel Love (Every Million Miles)”, The Dead Weather
“Alright”, Kendrick Lamar
“Bad Blood”, Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar
“Freedom”, Pharrell Williams

WINNER: “Bad Blood”, Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar

Best Music Film
James Brown, Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown
Foo Fighters, Sonic Highways
Nina Simone, What Happened, Miss Simone?
Roger Waters, The Wall
Amy Winehouse, Amy

WINNER: Amy Winehouse, Amy

Once again, the GRAMMY Awards air live at 8PM Eastern (5PM Pacific) on CBS. Enjoy the show and check back for the results!

GRAMMY WATCH: Adam’s Final Predictions for the 57th Annual Grammys

Who wins on Sunday?

Sunday night marks the 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards, honoring the best in music from the past year, and the artists will be out and about as they hope to earn enough votes to win their respective category. Back in October, I did alright at predicting some of the nominees for the Big Four categories: Album Of The Year, Best New Artist, as well as Record and Song Of The Year. Now, I’ve compiled a list of 40 categories I’ll be watching on GRAMMY Night to see who gets a prize and who walks empty. Hey, if I can do a top 40 every week, then predicting 40 categories should be easy enough to figure out, right? Ha, that was a good one…

Some fields were more difficult than others to decide, but my crystal ball isn’t 100% accurate, so anything can happen with these competitive races. I’m sure you’ll find that we differ on winners, and perhaps I will look pretty foolish when a winner comes in that I did not see coming. It happens! So, enough of me blabbering, here’s what I’m thinking for this year’s winners at the big show:

Note:
BOLD = my choice for the winner
ITALICS = the actual GRAMMY winner (check back on Sunday night, 2/8, for updates)

1. RECORD OF THE YEAR
“Fancy”, Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX (Def Jam)
“Chandelier”, Sia (RCA)
“Stay With Me [Darkchild Remix]”, Sam Smith (Capitol) (WINNER)
“Shake It Off”, Taylor Swift (Big Machine/Republic)
“All About That Bass”, Meghan Trainor (Epic)

2. ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Morning Phase, Beck (Capitol) (WINNER)
Beyoncé, Beyoncé (Columbia)
X, Ed Sheeran (Atlantic)
In The Lonely Hour, Sam Smith (Capitol)
G I R L, Pharrell Williams (Columbia)

3. SONG OF THE YEAR
“All About That Bass”, Meghan Trainor (Epic)
“Chandelier”, Sia (RCA)
“Shake It Off”, Taylor Swift (Big Machine/Republic)
“Stay With Me [Darkchild Remix]”, Sam Smith (Capitol) (WINNER)
“Take Me To Church”, Hozier (Columbia)

4. BEST NEW ARTIST
Iggy Azalea (Def Jam)
Bastille (Virgin/Capitol)
Brandy Clark (Slate Creek)
Haim (Columbia)
Sam Smith (Capitol) (WINNER)

5. BEST POP SOLO PERFORMANCE
“All Of Me (Live)”, John Legend (Columbia)
“Chandelier”, Sia (RCA)
“Stay With Me [Darkchild Remix]”, Sam Smith (Capitol)
“Shake It Off”, Taylor Swift (Big Machine/Republic)
“Happy (Live)”, Pharrell Williams (Columbia) (WINNER)

6. BEST POP DUO/GROUP PERFORMANCE
“Fancy”, Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX (Def Jam)
“A Sky Full Of Stars”, Coldplay (Parlophone/Atlantic)
“Say Something”, A Great Big World featuring Christina Aguilera (Epic) (WINNER)
“Bang Bang”, Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj (Lava/Republic)
“Dark Horse”, Katy Perry featuring Juicy J (Capitol)

7. BEST TRADITIONAL POP VOCAL ALBUM
Cheek To Cheek, Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga (Streamline/Columbia/RPM/Interscope) (WINNER)
Nostalgia, Annie Lennox (Blue Note/Capitol)
Night Songs, Barry Manilow (Stiletto Ent.)
Sending You A Little Christmas, Johnny Mathis (Columbia)
Partners, Barbra Streisand (Columbia)

8. BEST POP VOCAL ALBUM
Ghost Stories, Coldplay (Parlophone/Atlantic)
Bangerz, Miley Cyrus (RCA)
My Everything, Ariana Grande (Republic)
Prism, Katy Perry (Capitol)
X, Ed Sheeran (Atlantic)
In The Lonely Hour, Sam Smith (Capitol) (WINNER)

9. BEST DANCE RECORDING
“Never Say Never”, Basement Jaxx featuring ETML (Atlantic Jaxx/Play It Again Sam)
“Rather Be”, Clean Bandit featuring Jess Glynne (Big Beat/Atlantic) (WINNER)
“F For You”, Disclosure featuring Mary J. Blige (Cherrytree/Interscope)
“I Got U”, Duke Dumont featuring Jax Jones (Astralwerks/Capitol)
“Faded”, ZHU (Mind Of A Genius/TH3RD BRAIN/Columbia)

10. BEST DANCE/ELECTRONIC ALBUM
Syro, Aphex Twin (Warp)  (WINNER)
While(1<2), Deadmau5 (Astralwerks/Capitol)
Nabuma Rubberband, Little Dragon (Loma Vista/Republic)
Do It Again, Röyksopp & Robyn (Cherrytree/Interscope)
Damage Control, Mat Zo (Astralwerks/Capitol)

12. BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE
“Gimme Something Good”, Ryan Adams (Blue Note/Capitol)
“Do I Wanna Know?”, Arctic Monkeys (Domino)
“Blue Moon”, Beck (Capitol)
“Fever”, The Black Keys (Nonesuch/Warner Bros.)
“Lazaretto”, Jack White (Third Man/Columbia) (WINNER)

13. BEST METAL PERFORMANCE
“Neon Knights”, Anthrax (Rhino)
“High Road”, Mastodon (Reprise)
“Heartbreaker”, Motörhead (Udr)
“The Negative One”, Slipknot (Roadrunner)
“The Last In Line”, Tenacious D (Rhino) (WINNER)

14. BEST ROCK SONG
“Ain’t It Fun”, Paramore (Fueled By Ramen/Atlantic) (WINNER)
“Blue Moon”, Beck (Capitol)
“Fever”, The Black Keys (Nonesuch/Warner Bros.)
“Gimme Something Good”, Ryan Adams (Blue Note/Capitol)
“Lazaretto”, Jack White (Third Man/Columbia)

15. BEST ROCK ALBUM
Ryan Adams, Ryan Adams (Blue Note/Capitol)
Morning Phase, Beck (Capitol) (WINNER)
Turn Blue, The Black Keys (Nonesuch/Warner Bros.)
Hypnotic Eye, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers (Reprise)
Songs Of Innocence, U2 (Interscope)

16. BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM
This Is All Yours, Alt-J (Canvasback/Atlantic)
Reflektor, Arcade Fire (Capitol)
Melophobia, Cage The Elephant (RCA)
St. Vincent, St. Vincent (Loma Vista/Republic) (WINNER)
Lazaretto, Jack White (Third Man/Columbia)

17. BEST R&B PERFORMANCE
“Drunk In Love”, Beyoncé featuring Jay Z (Columbia) (WINNER)
“New Flame”, Chris Brown featuring Usher & Rick Ross (RCA)
“It’s Your World”, Jennifer Hudson featuring R. Kelly (RCA)
“Like This”, Ledisi (Verve)
“Good Kisser”, Usher (RCA)

19. BEST R&B SONG
“Drunk In Love”, Beyoncé featuring Jay Z (Columbia) (WINNER)
“Good Kisser”, Usher (RCA)
“New Flame”, Chris Brown featuring Usher & Rick Ross (RCA)
“Options [Wolfjames Version]”, Luke James (Island)
“The Worst”, Jhené Aiko (Def Jam)

20. BEST URBAN CONTEMPORARY ALBUM
Sail Out, Jhené Aiko (Def Jam)
Beyoncé, Beyoncé (Columbia)
X, Chris Brown (RCA)
Mali Is…, Mali Music (RCA)
G I R L, Pharrell Williams (Columbia) (WINNER)

21. BEST R&B ALBUM
Islander, Bernhoft (Big Picnic)
Lift Your Spirit, Aloe Blacc (XIX/Interscope)
Love, Marriage & Divorce, Toni Braxton & Babyface (Def Jam) (WINNER)
Black Radio 2, Robert Glasper Experiment (Blue Note/Capitol)
Give The People What They Want, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings (Daptone)

22. BEST RAP PERFORMANCE
“3005”, Childish Gambino (Glassnote)
“0 To 100/The Catch Up”, Drake (Cash Money/Young Money/Republic)
“Rap God”, Eminem (Aftermath/Interscope)
“i”, Kendrick Lamar (Top Dawg Ent./Interscope Records) (WINNER)
“All I Need Is You”, Lecrae (Reach)

23. BEST RAP/SUNG COLLABORATION
“Blak Majik”, Common featuring Jhené Aiko (Def Jam)
“The Monster”, Eminem featuring Rihanna (Aftermath/Interscope) (WINNER)
“Tuesday”, iLoveMakonnen featuring Drake (OVO/Warner Bros.)
“Studio”, Schoolboy Q featuring BJ The Chicago Kid (Top Dawg Ent./Interscope Records)
“Bound 2”, Kanye West & Charlie Wilson (Def Jam)

24. BEST RAP SONG
“Anaconda”, Nicki Minaj (Cash Money/Young Money/Republic)
“Bound 2”, Kanye West & Charlie Wilson (Def Jam)
“i”, Kendrick Lamar (Top Dawg Ent./Interscope Records) (WINNER)
“We Dem Boyz”, Wiz Khalifa (Rostrum/Atlantic)
“0 To 100/The Catch Up”, Drake (Cash Money/Young Money/Republic)

25. BEST RAP ALBUM
The New Classic, Iggy Azalea (Def Jam)
Because The Internet, Childish Gambino (Glassnote)
Nobody’s Smiling, Common (Def Jam)
The Marshall Mathers LP2, Eminem (Aftermath/Intercope) (WINNER)
Oxymoron, Schoolboy Q (Top Dawg Ent./Interscope Records)
Blacc Hollywood, Wiz Khalifa (Rostrum/Atlantic)

26. BEST COUNTRY SOLO PERFORMANCE
“Give Me Back My Hometown”, Eric Church (EMI Nashville)
“Invisible”, Hunter Hayes (Atlantic)
“Automatic”, Miranda Lambert (RCA Nashville)
“Something In The Water”, Carrie Underwood (Sony Nashville) (WINNER)
“Cop Car”, Keith Urban (Capitol Nashville)

27. BEST COUNTRY DUO/GROUP PERFORMANCE
“Gentle On My Mind”, The Band Perry (Big Machine/Republic) (WINNER)
“Somethin’ Bad”, Miranda Lambert with Carrie Underwood (RCA Nashville)
“Day Drinking”, Little Big Town (Capitol Nashville)
“Meanwhile Back At Mama’s”, Tim McGraw featuring Faith Hill (Big Machine/Republic)
“Raise ‘Em Up”, Keith Urban featuring Eric Church (Capitol Nashville)

28. BEST COUNTRY SONG
“American Kids”, Kenny Chesney (Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville)
“Automatic”, Miranda Lambert (RCA Nashville)
“Give Me Back My Hometown”, Eric Church (EMI Nashville)
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You”, Glen Campbell (Big Machine/Republic) (WINNER)
“Meanwhile Back At Mama’s”, Tim McGraw featuring Faith Hill (Big Machine/Republic)

29. BEST COUNTRY ALBUM
Riser, Dierks Bentley (Capitol)
The Outsiders, Eric Church (EMI Nashville)
12 Stories, Brandy Clark (Slate Creek)
Platinum, Miranda Lambert (RCA Nashville) (WINNER)
The Way I’m Livin’, Lee Ann Womack (Sugar Hill)

47. BEST AMERICANA ALBUM
The River & The Thread, Rosanne Cash (Blue Note/Capitol) (WINNER)
Terms Of My Surrender, John Hiatt (New West)
Bluesamericana, Keb’ Mo’ (Kind Of Blue Music)
A Dotted Line, Nickel Creek (Nonesuch/Warner Bros.)
Metamodern Sounds In Country Music, Sturgill Simpson (High Top Mountain)

55. BEST SPOKEN WORD ALBUM (INCLUDES POETRY, AUDIO BOOKS & STORYTELLING)
Actors Anonymous, James Franco (Brilliance)
A Call To Action, Jimmy Carter (Simon & Schuster)
Carsick: John Waters Hitchhikes Across America, John Waters (Macmillan)
Diary Of A Mad Diva, Joan Rivers (Penguin) (WINNER)
A Fighting Chance, Elizabeth Warren (Macmillan)
We Will Survive: True Stories Of Encouragement, Inspiration, And The Power Of Song, Gloria Gaynor (Brilliance)

56. BEST COMEDY ALBUM
Mandatory Fun, “Weird Al” Yankovic (RCA) (WINNER)
Obsessed, Jim Gaffigan (Comedy Central)
Oh My God, Louis C.K. (Vagrant)
Tragedy Plus Comedy Equals Time, Patton Oswalt (Comedy Central)
We Are Miracles, Sarah Silverman (Sub Pop)

57. BEST MUSICAL THEATER ALBUM
Aladdin (Walt Disney)
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (Ghostlight/Razor & Tie) (WINNER)
A Gentleman’s Guide To Love & Murder (Ghostlight/Razor & Tie)
Hedwig And The Angry Inch (Atlantic)
West Side Story (SFS Media)

58. BEST COMPILATION SOUNDTRACK FOR VISUAL MEDIA
American Hustle (Madison Gate/Legacy Recordings)
Frozen (Walt Disney) (WINNER)
Get On Up: The James Brown Story (Universal)
Guardians Of The Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 1 (Hollywood/Marvel Music)
The Wolf Of Wall Street (Virgin)

59. BEST SCORE SOUNDTRACK FOR VISUAL MEDIA
Frozen (Walt Disney)
Gone Girl (Columbia)
The Grand Budapest Hotel (Abkco Music) (WINNER)
Gravity (WaterTower Music)
Saving Mr. Banks (Walt Disney)

60. BEST SONG WRITTEN FOR VISUAL MEDIA
“Everything Is Awesome!!!”, Tegan & Sara featuring The Lonely Island (WaterTower Music)
“I See Fire”, Ed Sheeran (WaterTower Music)
“I’m Not Gonna Miss You”, Glen Campbell (Big Machine/Republic)
“Let It Go”, Idina Menzel (Walt Disney) (WINNER)
“The Moon Song”, Scarlett Johansson & Joaquin Phoenix (WaterTower Music)

64. BEST RECORDING PACKAGE
Formosa Medicine Show, The Muddy Basin Ramblers (Hove)
Indie Cindy, The Pixies (Pixies Music/Play It Again Sam)
Lightning Bolt, Pearl Jam (Republic) (WINNER)
LP1, FKA Twigs (Young Turks/XL)
Whispers, Passenger (Nettwerk)

65. BEST BOXED OR SPECIAL LIMITED EDITION PACKAGE
Cities Of Darkscorch, Various Artists (Numero Group)
A Letter Home (Vinyl Box Set), Neil Young (Third Man)
The Rise & Fall Of Paramount Records, Volume One (1917-27), Various Artists (Third Man/Revenant) (WINNER)
Sparks (Deluxe Album Box Set), Imogen Heap (RCA/Megaphonic)
Spring 1990 (The Other One), The Grateful Dead (Rhino)

69. PRODUCER OF THE YEAR, NON-CLASSICAL
Paul Epworth
John Hill
Jay Joyce
Greg Kurstin
Max Martin (WINNER)

70. BEST REMIXED RECORDING, NON-CLASSICAL
“All Of Me” (Tiesto’s Birthday Treatment Remix), John Legend (Columbia) (WINNER)
“Falling Out” (Ming Remix), Crossfingers featuring Danny Losito (Big Alliance)
“Pompeii” (Audien Remix), Bastille (Virgin/Capitol)
“The Rising” (Eddie Amador Remix), Five Knives (Red Bull)
“Smile” (Kaskade Edit), Galantis (Big Beat/Atlantic)
“Waves” (Robin Schulz Remix), Mr. Probz (Ultra/RCA)

82. BEST MUSIC VIDEO
“We Exist”, Arcade Fire (Capitol)
“Turn Down For What”, DJ Snake & Lil Jon (Columbia)
“Chandelier”, Sia (RCA/Monkey Puzzle)
“Happy”, Pharrell Williams (Columbia) (WINNER)
“The Golden Age”, Woodkid featuring Max Richter (Interscope)

83. BEST MUSIC FILM
Beyoncé & Jay Z: On The Run Tour, Beyoncé & Jay Z (Columbia)
Ghost Stories, Coldplay (Parlophone/Atlantic/Ja Digital)
20 Feet From Stardom, Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer & Judith Hill (Anchor Bay) (WINNER)
Metallica Through The Never, Metallica (Blackened Recordings)
The Truth About Love Tour: Live From Melbourne, Pink (RCA)

That’s it for now… once again, let me know you think below or find PGTC on social media by clicking the “Get Social!” tab. Oh, and don’t forget to tune in for the GRAMMY Awards this Sunday night at 8PM (Eastern) on CBS.

GRAMMY WATCH: Adam Predicts The Big Four at the 57th Annual Grammys

A Gram slam.

When good ol’ September 30 comes around again, we all know that it marks the completion of the eligibility period for the 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards. So, being that it’s the day after, it’s the perfect time to make some new predictions and take a look what’s been happening this year in music. Though the big show doesn’t air until February 8 and a usual nominations special doesn’t air until December (I think it’s been renewed), here are some of my early favorites, and let me know what you think below!

Here’s what I’m thinking could be in this year’s Big Four awards…

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Barbra Streisand, Partners (Columbia)
Beyoncé, Beyoncé (Columbia)
Coldplay, Ghost Stories (Parlophone/Atlantic)
Ed Sheeran, X (Atlantic)
Sam Smith, In The Lonely Hour (Capitol)

Given Streisand’s recent strong sales for her effort and that shining achievement of having #1 albums in six decades, I think the upper demo will get in on this one for a nod. (It would be her first nomination since The Broadway Album in 1987 and seventh overall.) The surprise release Beyoncé put out last December and the multi-Platinum success of the album should carry it to a nod, as well as some key nods in the R&B and Rap fields. Of course, Coldplay are GRAMMY darlings at this point, so it’ll likely be between them and U2 for who gets nominated. I’ll give the edge to the Brits; they have the biggest opening of 2014 so far and their biggest hit since “Viva La Vida” on the charts. The debut of Sheeran’s second album was also notable – he’s been nominated two years in a row in the Big Four, so he shouldn’t miss it. Lastly, there’s Sam Smith, another given. Obviously, this was a huge breakout year for him and he’ll be rewarded well.

Other contenders:
Eric Church, The Outsiders (EMI Nashville)
Jack White, Lazaretto (Third Man/Columbia)
Lana Del Rey, Ultraviolence (Interscope)
Smokey Robinson, Smokey & Friends (Verve)
U2, Songs Of Innocence (Interscope)

—

RECORD OF THE YEAR
Coldplay, “A Sky Full Of Stars” (Parlophone/Atlantic)
Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX, “Fancy” (Def Jam)
Katy Perry featuring Juicy J, “Dark Horse” (Capitol)
Sam Smith, “Stay With Me” (Capitol)
Sia, “Chandelier” (RCA)

SONG OF THE YEAR
Eminem featuring Rihanna, “The Monster” (Aftermath/Interscope)
Idina Menzel, “Let It Go” (Walt Disney)
Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX, “Fancy” (Def Jam)
Lorde, “Team” (Lava/Republic)
Sam Smith, “Stay With Me” (Capitol)

There’s usually some overlap in these two categories, so don’t be surprised if some of my predictions swap places. For now, Coldplay and Sam Smith seem like no-brainers since both have albums that are early favorites for AOTY. There is certainly no denying that impact of “Fancy” and what it achieved on the charts this summer, so it may be that it ends up in both fields for Iggy Azalea and Charli XCX, but it could also leave voters wondering about possibilities of Ariana Grande’s “Problem”, which features Azalea, and Charli XCX’s own “Boom Clap” for nods as well. I guess we’ll wait and see. Katy Perry’s collaboration with Juicy J and Sia’s solo track both stick out from a production standpoint and could make it in somewhere. Eminem and Rihanna were nominated for “Love The Way You Lie” several years ago, and since   “The Monster” was just as big, they’ll make it in. Finally, there’s the endless talk of “Let It Go” and Frozen. Singer Idina Menzel should at least catch a nomination, while the soundtrack won’t be as lucky (the panel’s pretty inconsistent over the years.) The only Disney affiliated song to win the prize was “A Whole New World” (from Aladdin) in 1994.

Other contenders:
A Great Big World featuring Christina Aguilera, “Say Something” (Epic)
Ariana Grande featuring Iggy Azalea, “Problem” (Republic)
Beyoncé featuring Jay Z, “Drunk In Love” (Columbia)
Hozier, “Take Me To Church” (Columbia)
KONGOS, “Come With Me Now” (Epic)
MAGIC!, “Rude” (RCA)
Meghan Trainor, “All About That Bass” (Epic)
Nico & Vinz, “Am I Wrong” (Warner Bros.)
Paramore, “Ain’t It Fun” (Fueled By Ramen/Atlantic)
Taylor Swift, “Shake It Off” (Big Machine/Republic)

—

BEST NEW ARTIST
Charli XCX
Iggy Azalea
Jhene Aiko
KONGOS
Sam Smith

Three of the nominations are straight-forward in this category: Charli XCX, Iggy Azalea and Sam Smith were all strong on the charts this year and are all worthy contenders for the Award. The other two slots require a little more thinking. I’m going for Aiko because “The Worst” hit #1 at Urban radio and both her EP, Sail Out, and full-length album, Souled Out, had top ten debuts on the Billboard 200 within this period. KONGOS also makes for a solid rock entry here, only because “Come With Me Now” is going to have a hard time competing in the ROTY/SOTY categories. That being said, I think they’ll be around for a while on the Alternative scene and that should get them a second look over.

Other contenders:
A Great Big World
American Authors
Bastille
Cole Swindell
Vance Joy

—

Other notes:
– Arctic Monkeys and The Black Keys should see some major love in the Alternative/Rock categories. A.M. from the Monkeys isn’t eligible due to a release last September, but “Do I Wanna Know?” should get a nod or two, as well as “Fever” from the Keys.
– Really hoping to see “Hideaway” by Kiesza and “Rather Be” by Clean Bandit and Jess Glynne in the category of Best Dance Recording. Both were hugely successful in Europe and also crossed over here. (We’ll likely see some of the usual suspects as well: Avicii, Calvin Harris, Skrillex, etc.)
– The R&B field will be packed with Beyoncé a plenty, though male stars Trey Songz and Usher could get in on the action. “She Came To Give It To You” from the latter singer, featuring Nicki Minaj, would be a great candidate.
– I really want Barbra Streisand‘s Partners and Kelly Clarkson‘s Wrapped In Red locked in an epic battle for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga‘s Cheek To Cheek should pop up there too.

That’s it for now… once again, let me know you think below or find PGTC on social media by clicking the “Get Social!” tab.

GRAMMY WEEK: Adam Picks The Winners for The Big Four

Gram bam, thank you, ma’am.

It’s finally here… the week before the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards, airing on Sunday, January 26 at 8PM Eastern on CBS. This week on POP! Goes The Charts, we’ll be taking a look at nearly half the categories on the list and laying out who I think will taking home a prize or two or five (maybe!) on the big day.

As you may remember, I did my predictions for who was going to be nominated for the Big Four way back in October. As it turns out, I wasn’t 100% right, not that I was expecting to be. (For the record, I wasn’t 100% wrong either.) So, for the final GRAMMY Week post, let’s deal with the actual nominations and see who I think will be taking home the night’s top prizes at the big show!

(For a full list of nominations, check it out on GRAMMY.com along with more interactive features. You can also order the 2014 GRAMMY Nominees album, from Atlantic Records.)

1. RECORD OF THE YEAR

“Get Lucky”, Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers
Thomas Bangalter & Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo, producers; Peter Franco, Mick Guzauski, Florian Lagatta & Daniel Lerner, engineers/mixers; Antoine “Chab” Chabert & Bob Ludwig, mastering engineers (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“Radioactive”, Imagine Dragons
Alex Da Kid, producer; Manny Marroquin & Josh Mosser, engineers/mixers; Joe LaPorta, mastering engineer

“Royals”, Lorde
Joel Little, producer; Joel Little, engineer/mixer; Stuart Hawkes, mastering engineer

“Locked Out Of Heaven”, Bruno Mars
Jeff Bhasker, Emile Haynie, Mark Ronson & The Smeezingtons, producers; Alalal, Josh Blair, Wayne Gordon, Ari Levine, Manny Marroquin & Mark Ronson, engineers/mixers; David Kutch, mastering engineer

“Blurred Lines”, Robin Thicke featuring T.I. & Pharrell
Pharrell, producer; Andrew Coleman & Tony Maserati, engineers/mixers; Chris Gehringer, mastering engineer

PREDICTION: I think the general consensus is that “Blurred Lines” has the best shot of winning this category. It was the biggest song of last year and gave Robin Thicke his biggest hit ever on the charts. However, I’m more inclined to think that “Get Lucky” is going to take this category and give Daft Punk, Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers a big thrill. It was a slick and catchy summer hit and makes the French duo and American producer/singer my big winners of the night.

2. ALBUM OF THE YEAR

The Blessed Unrest, Sara Bareilles
Sara Bareilles, Mark Endert & John O’Mahony, producers; Jeremy Darby, Mark Endert & John O’Mahony, engineers/mixers; Greg Calbi, mastering engineer

Random Access Memories, Daft Punk
Julian Casablancas, DJ Falcon, Todd Edwards, Chilly Gonzales, Giorgio Moroder, Panda Bear, Nile Rodgers, Paul Williams & Pharrell Williams, featured artists; Thomas Bangalter, Julian Casablancas, Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo, DJ Falcon & Todd Edwards, producers; Peter Franco, Mick Guzauski, Florian Lagatta, Guillaume Le Braz & Daniel Lerner, engineers/mixers; Antoine “Chab” Chabert & Bob Ludwig, mastering engineers (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, Kendrick Lamar
Mary J. Blige, Dr. Dre, Drake, Jay Rock, Jay Z, MC Eiht & Anna Wise, featured artists; DJ Dahi, Hit-Boy, Skhye Hutch, Just Blaze, Like, Terrace Martin, Dawaun Parker, Pharrell, Rahki, Scoop DeVille, Sounwave, Jack Splash, Tabu, Tha Bizness, THC & T-Minus, producers; Derek Ali, Dee Brown, Andrew Coleman, Dr. Dre, James Hunt, Mauricio ‘Veto”” Iragorri, Mike Larson, Jared Scott, Jack Splash & Andrew Wright, engineers/mixers; Mike Bozzi & Brian ‘Big Bass”” Gardner, mastering engineers

The Heist, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Ab-Soul, Ben Bridwell, Ray Dalton, Eighty4 Fly, Hollis, Mary Lambert, Baffalo Madonna, Evan Roman, Schoolboy Q, Allen Stone, The Teaching & Wanz, featured artists; Ryan Lewis, producer; Ben Haggerty, Ryan Lewis, Amos Miller, Reed Ruddy & Pete Stewart, engineers/mixers; Tom Coyne & Brian Gardner, mastering engineers

Red, Taylor Swift
Gary Lightbody & Ed Sheeran, featured artists; Jeff Bhasker, Nathan Chapman, Dann Huff, Jacknife Lee, Max Martin, Shellback, Taylor Swift, Butch Walker & Dan Wilson, producers; Joe Baldridge, Sam Bell, Matt Bishop, Chad Carlson, Nathan Chapman, Serban Ghenea, John Hanes, Sam Holland, Michael Ilbert, Tyler Johnson, Jacknife Lee, Steve Marcantonio, Manny Marroquin, Justin Niebank, John Rausch, Eric Robinson, Pawel Sek, Jake Sinclair, Mark “”Spike”” Stent & Andy Thompson, engineers/mixers; Tom Coyne & Hank Williams, mastering engineers

PREDICTION: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’s name has been tossed around a bit for the win here, but I’m not sure if the whole effort appeals to the committee. (I do think Best New Artist is theirs, however.) The most successful both on the Billboard 200 and on my own personal chart is Taylor Swift‘s Red, which I’m pegging as the winner. She may have won four years ago for Fearless, but she’s certainly grown since then, and scored major pop and country hits from this album.

3. SONG OF THE YEAR

“Just Give Me A Reason”, Pink featuring Nate Ruess
Jeff Bhasker, Pink & Nate Ruess, songwriters

“Locked Out Of Heaven”, Bruno Mars
Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine & Bruno Mars, songwriters

“Roar”, Katy Perry
Lukasz Gottwald, Max Martin, Bonnie McKee, Katy Perry & Henry Walter, songwriters

“Royals”, Lorde
Joel Little & Ella Yelich O’Connor, songwriters (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“Same Love”, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Mary Lambert
Ben Haggerty, Mary Lambert & Ryan Lewis, songwriters

PREDICTION: Much like the huge Gotye and Kimbra duet of last year’s ceremony, “Somebody That I Used To Know”, Pink and Nate Ruess seems like a strong enough team to pull off double duty at this year’s show with Song of the Year, as well as Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Just Give Me A Reason”. Bruno Mars and Lorde will certainly stand their ground against the beautiful ballad, but “Reason” is such a timeless record that it will sway a lot of voters to get on its side.

4. BEST NEW ARTIST

James Blake (Day In The Life)
Kendrick Lamar (Day In The Life)
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (DITL video not available) (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Kacey Musgraves (Day In The Life)
Ed Sheeran (Day In The Life)

PREDICTION: This year’s pack, as many people have stated, is out of whack; what can you do? Of the five, the easiest choice for me is Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, who have four solid hits now and will likely produce a big second album. Ed Sheeran will too, but he would’ve made sense as a winner last year. Kacey Musgraves and Kendrick Lamar likely don’t stand a chance; however, James Blake could always be the Esperanza Spalding of this year. You never know!
_____

Watch to see how I did with my picks on Sunday night when the GRAMMY Awards air! Until then, follow the blog below and find us on social media by click the “Get Social!” tab.

GRAMMY WEEK: Adam Picks The Winners for Dance/Pop Fields

Gram bam, thank you, ma’am.

It’s finally here… the week before the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards, airing on Sunday, January 26 at 8PM Eastern on CBS. This week on POP! Goes The Charts, we’ll be taking a look at nearly half the categories on the list and laying out who I think will taking home a prize or two or five (maybe!) on the big day. Let’s go for the Dance and Pop fields, shall we?

(For a full list of nominations, check it out on GRAMMY.com along with more interactive features. You can also order the 2014 GRAMMY Nominees album, from Atlantic Records.)

5. Best Pop Solo Performance

“Brave”, Sara Bareilles
“Royals”, Lorde (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“When I Was Your Man”, Bruno Mars
“Roar”, Katy Perry
“Mirrors”, Justin Timberlake

PREDICTION: Difficult decision right here. “Brave” and “Roar” will probably cancel each other out (if only Bareilles and Perry would do a medley on GRAMMY night!) A safer choice would be Bruno Mars‘s “When I Was Your Man”; it’s a classic ballad.

6. Best Pop Duo/Group Performance

“Get Lucky”, Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams & Nile Rodgers (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“Just Give Me A Reason”, Pink featuring Nate Ruess
“Stay”, Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko
“Blurred Lines”, Robin Thicke featuring T.I. & Pharrell
“Suit & Tie”, Justin Timberlake featuring Jay Z

PREDICTION: This is tough too. Looks like we’re going to have another year where the winner of this category also wins one of the Big Four, whether it’s “Blurred Lines”, “Get Lucky” or “Just Give Me A Reason”. I’m going with the Pink and Nate Ruess duet.

7. Best Pop Instrumental Album

Steppin’ Out, Herb Alpert (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
The Beat, Boney James
Handpicked, Earl Klugh
Summer Horns, Dave Koz, Gerald Albright, Mindi Abair & Richard Elliot
Hacienda, Jeff Lorber Fusion

PREDICTION: Again, this isn’t my best area of expertise, but I know a lot of these names from the occasional look at the Jazz survey. A version of “Puttin’ On The Ritz” from Alpert’s album just got serviced to AC radio; it could be a sign that this this one is his.

8. Best Pop Vocal Album

Paradise, Lana Del Rey
Pure Heroine, Lorde
Unorthodox Jukebox, Bruno Mars (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Blurred Lines, Robin Thicke
The 20/20 Experience – The Complete Experience, Justin Timberlake

PREDICTION: Believe it or not, this is the only category in which Justin Timberlake‘s album is nominated for. Is that some major shade on the Academy’s part? Yet, the biggest album of last year has to win something, right? It would only seem fair to me.

9. Best Dance Recording

“Need U (100%)”, Duke Dumont featuring A*M*E & MNEK
Adam Dyment & Tommy Forrest, producers and mixers

“Sweet Nothing”, Calvin Harris featuring Florence Welch
Harris, producer and mixer

“Atmosphere”, Kaskade
Finn Bjarnson & Ryan Raddon, producers; Raddon, mixer

“This Is What It Feels Like”, Armin Van Buuren featuring Trevor Guthrie
Armin Van Buuren & Benno De Goeij, producers and mixers

“Clarity”, Zedd featuring Foxes
Zedd, producer and mixer (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: With no Skrillex in the mix (and no Al Wasser, thank God), this category is probably going to go back to one of the bigger hits of the bunch, most likely “Clarity” or “Sweet Nothing”. Of the two, I prefer the Calvin Harris and Florence Welch song.

10. Best Dance/Electronica Album

Random Access Memories, Daft Punk (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Settle, Disclosure
18 Months, Calvin Harris
Atmosphere, Kaskade
A Color Map Of The Sun, Pretty Lights

PREDICTION: There was no bigger Dance album in 2013 than Random Access Memories. Daft Punk didn’t just get lucky; they knocked it out of the park. The critical acclaim of Disclosure will keep it in the running, but the French duo will likely take it.

11. Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album

Viva Duets, Tony Bennett and Various Artists
To Be Loved, Michael Bublé (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
The Standards, Gloria Estefan
Cee Lo’s Magic Moment, Cee Lo Green
Now, Dionne Warwick

PREDICTION: This category is usually a two horse race between Bennett and Bublé, and because the Canadian crooner didn’t win last year for his Christmas album, I think Michael Bublé is overdue for yet another win here. “It’s A Beautiful Day” indeed.

67. Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical

Annie Up, Pistol Annies
Chuck Ainlay, engineer; Bob Ludwig, mastering engineer

The Blue Room, Madeleine Peyroux
Helik Hadar & Leslie Ann Jones, engineers; Bernie Grundman, mastering engineer

The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here, Alice In Chains
Paul Figueroa & Randy Staub, engineers; Ted Jensen, mastering engineer

…Like Clockwork, Queens Of The Stone Age
Joe Barresi & Mark Rankin, engineers; Gavin Lurssen, mastering engineer

The Moorings, Andrew Duhon
Trina Shoemaker, engineer; Eric Conn, mastering engineer

Random Access Memories, Daft Punk
Peter Franco, Mick Guzauski, Florian Lagatta & Daniel Lerner, engineers; Antoine “Chab” Chabert, Bob Ludwig, mastering engineers (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: I don’t know a ton about this category, but the winners in past years have been a real mix of commercial releases and some lesser-known works. Though I’m placing Daft Punk for the win here, it could essentially be any one of these six.

68. Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical

Rob Cavallo
Dr. Luke
Ariel Rechtshaid
Jeff Tweedy
Pharrell Williams (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: I love Rob Cavallo and would be thrilled to see him win this category, but 2013 was clearly the year of Pharrell Williams, both as a producer and singer, and he’s very much deserving of this honor. Tell Dr. Luke to go back to medical school.

69. Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical

“Days Turn Into Nights”, Delerium featuring Michael Logen
Andy Caldwell, remixer

“If I Lose Myself”, OneRepublic
Alesso, remixer

“Locked Out Of Heaven”, Bruno Mars
Ned Shepard & Sultan, remixers

“One Love/People Get Ready”, Bob Marley and The Wailers
Rupert Parkes (Photek), remixer

“Summertime Sadness”, Lana Del Rey
Cedric Gervais, remixer (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: Long after Lana Del Rey had been written off in the U.S., Interscope’s push of the Cedric Gervais remix of “Summertime Sadness” launched her at radio, selling over 2 million copies with all versions combined. Not so sad anymore, huh?
_____

Check back tomorrow to see what I take a second swing at predicting the Big Four! Until then, follow the blog below and find us on social media by click the “Get Social!” tab.

GRAMMY WEEK: Adam Picks The Winners for R&B/Rap Fields

Gram bam, thank you, ma’am.

It’s finally here… the week before the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards, airing on Sunday, January 26 at 8PM Eastern on CBS. This week on POP! Goes The Charts, we’ll be taking a look at nearly half the categories on the list and laying out who I think will taking home a prize or two or five (maybe!) on the big day. Today, we continue with the fields for R&B and Rap music.

(For a full list of nominations, check it out on GRAMMY.com along with more interactive features. You can also order the 2014 GRAMMY Nominees album, from Atlantic Records.)

17. Best R&B Performance

“Love And War”, Tamar Braxton
“Best Of Me”, Anthony Hamilton
“Nakamarra”, Hiatus Kaiyote featuring Q-Tip
“How Many Drinks?”, Miguel featuring Kendrick Lamar
“Something”, Snarky Puppy with Lalah Hathaway (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: Many of the winners in this category are generally successful on the R&B survey, and with a former top 5 hit on the Urban airwaves as well as a #2 album, singer Tamar Braxton stands out with her single “Love And War”. It is one smooth track.

18. Best Traditional R&B Performance

“Please Come Home”, Gary Clark, Jr. (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“Get It Right”, Fantasia
“Quiet Fire”, Maysa
“Hey Laura”, Gregory Porter
“Yesterday”, Ryan Shaw

PREDICTION: A few of these acts really don’t have a lot of coverage out on social media. Fantasia, a prior nominee in this category, has a good shot, but if he isn’t a winner in Best Rock Song, I think Gary Clark, Jr. may take this one with “Please Come Home”.

19. Best R&B Song

“Best Of Me”
Performed by: Anthony Hamilton
Written by: Hamilton & Jairus Mozee

“Love And War”
Performed by: Tamar Braxton
Written by: Braxton, Darhyl Camper, Jr., LaShawn Daniels & Makeba Riddick

“Only One”
Performed by: PJ Morton featuring Stevie Wonder
Written by: Morton

“Pusher Love Girl”
Performed by: Justin Timberlake
Written by: James Fauntleroy, Jerome Harmon, Timothy Mosley & Timberlake (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“Without Me”
Performed by: Fantasia featuring Kelly Rowland & Missy Elliott
Written by: Barrino, Elliott, Al Sherrod Lambert, Harmony Samuels & Kyle Stewart

PREDICTION: Even though he was shut out of the Big Four, a huge shock to many, Justin Timberlake‘s “Pusher Love Girl” was a fan favorite from his album. Hard to believe it didn’t even get an Urban AC servicing. I think it will pull off the trick here.

20. Best Urban Contemporary Album

Love And War, Tamar Braxton
Side Effects Of You, Fantasia
One: In The Chamber, Salaam Remi
Unapologetic, Rihanna (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
New York: A Love Story, Mack Wilds

PREDICTION: This category is probably going to end up being won by a female; I was initially going to pick Rihanna for the win, but I think this is Tamar Braxton‘s year to shine at The GRAMMY’s. Otherwise, this may be some bull you know what.com.

21. Best R&B Album

R&B Divas, Faith Evans
Girl On Fire, Alicia Keys (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Love In The Future, John Legend
Better, Chrisette Michele
Three Kings, TGT

PREDICTION: Both Keys and Legend are prior winners here, so the choice is ultimately between them. However, this is the only award that John Legend is up for and he’s singing “All Of Me” on the show, so be prepared for him to walk away with this one.

22. Best Rap Performance

“Started From The Bottom”, Drake
“Berzerk”, Eminem
“Tom Ford”, Jay Z
“Swimming Pools (Drank)”, Kendrick Lamar
“Thrift Shop”, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Wanz (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: Heavy hitters are a-plenty here, a few of whom could win in bigger categories. However, given the rock field and all the older acts there, the Billy Squier sample and Rick Rubin production on “Berzerk” by Eminem could help secure a win.

23. Best Rap/Sung Collaboration

“Power Trip”, J. Cole featuring Miguel
“Part II (On The Run)”, Jay Z featuring Beyoncé
“Holy Grail”, Jay Z featuring Justin Timberlake (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“Now Or Never”, Kendrick Lamar featuring Mary J. Blige
“Remember You”, Wiz Khalifa featuring The Weeknd

PREDICTION: I’m convinced that one of the Jay Z collaborations is going to win here — question is, which one? “Holy Grail” was the hit, but “Part II (On The Run)” packs some marriage power and a potential performance. However, I’m going with “Grail”.

24. Best Rap Song

“F***in’ Problems”
Performed by: A$AP Rocky featuring Drake, 2 Chainz & Kendrick Lamar
Written by: Tauheed Epps, Graham, Lamar, Rakim Mayers & Noah Shebib

“Holy Grail”
Performed by: Jay Z featuring Justin Timberlake
Written by: Carter, Terius Nash, J. Harmon, Timothy Mosley, Timberlake & Ernest Wilson (sample: “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, Nirvana – Kurt Cobain, Dave Grohl & Krist Novoselic)

“New Slaves”
Performed by: Kanye West
Written by: Christopher Breaux, Ben Bronfman, Mike Dean, Noah Goldstein, Louis Johnson, Malik Jones, Sham Joseph, Elon Rutberg, Sakiya Sandifer, Travis Scott, Che Smith, West & Cydel Young, songwriters (Anna Adamis & Gabor Presser, songwriters)

“Started From The Bottom”
Performed by: Drake
Written by: W. Coleman, Graham & Noah Shebib

“Thrift Shop”
Performed by: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Wanz
Written by: Haggerty & Lewis (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: Since 2010, either Jay Z or Kanye West have won this particular award, both separately and together. Once again, they’re competing against each other. Yet, this category usually goes to a hit song, so “Holy Grail” is your best best for the win.

25. Best Rap Album

Nothing Was The Same, Drake
Magna Carta… Holy Grail, Jay Z
Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, Kendrick Lamar
The Heist, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Yeezus, Kanye West

PREDICTION: Best Rap Album hasn’t gone to a newcomer in some time, and it generally goes to an act with a large first-week, which should pit Drake vs. Jay Z. The Canadian rapper won last year for Take Care; I’m guessing that a repeat is in the cards.
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Check back tomorrow to see what I’m thinking for the Dance and Pop categories! Until then, follow the blog below and find us on social media by click the “Get Social!” tab.

GRAMMY WEEK: Adam Picks The Winners for Alternative/Rock/Country Fields

Gram bam, thank you, ma’am.

It’s finally here… the week before the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards, airing on Sunday, January 26 at 8PM Eastern on CBS. This week on POP! Goes The Charts, we’ll be taking a look at nearly half the categories on the list and laying out who I think will taking home a prize or two or five (maybe!) on the big day. Today, we continue with the fields for Alternative, Rock and Country.

(For a full list of nominations, check it out on GRAMMY.com along with more interactive features. You can also order the 2014 GRAMMY Nominees album, from Atlantic Records.)

12. Best Rock Performance

“Always Alright”, Alabama Shakes
“The Stars (Are Out Tonight)”, David Bowie
“Radioactive”, Imagine Dragons (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“Kashmir (Live)”, Led Zeppelin
“My God Is The Sun”, Queens Of The Stone Age
“I’m Shakin'”, Jack White

PREDICTION: It’s hard to deny the overwhelming success of “Radioactive” during the past year, but it’s only up for two categories, one being Record Of The Year, which is out of the question. (To me, at least.) This is the safer bet for the Las Vegas band.

13. Best Metal Performance

“T.N.T.”, Anthrax
“God Is Dead?”, Black Sabbath (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“The Enemy Inside”, Dream Theater
“In Due Time”, Killswitch Engage
“Room 24”, Volbeat featuring King Diamond

PREDICTION: While metal isn’t a genre of choice when it comes to my listening habits, I do know a little bit about the acts in this category. With their first studio album in 18 years, I’m hoping the reformed trio of Black Sabbath is rewarded with this.

14. Best Rock Song

“Ain’t Messin ‘Round”
Performed and Written by: Gary Clark Jr.

“Cut Me Some Slack”
Performed and Written by: Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Krist Novoselic & Pat Smear (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“Doom And Gloom”
Performed by: Rolling Stones
Written by: Mick Jagger & Keith Richards

“God Is Dead?”
Performed and Written by: Black Sabbath (Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi & Ozzy Osbourne)

“Panic Station”
Performed by: Muse
Written by: Matthew Bellamy

PREDICTION: There are classic acts galore in this category, along with a few newcomers. Gary Clark, Jr. would be a good choice for the win, but I think Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Krist Novoselic & Pat Smear have this. Just keepin’ it Reel.

15. Best Rock Album

13, Black Sabbath
The Next Day, David Bowie
Mechanical Bull, Kings Of Leon
Celebration Day, Led Zeppelin (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
…Like Clockwork, Queens Of The Stone Age
Psychedelic Pill, Neil Young with Crazy Horse

PREDICTION: I’ll say this category is probably going to be a fight between Bowie and Zeppelin – both albums did well. Though they have several entries in the GRAMMY Hall of Fame, wouldn’t it be cool to see Led Zeppelin win their first regular award?

16. Best Alternative Music Album

The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You, Neko Case
Trouble Will Find Me, The National
Hesitation Marks, Nine Inch Nails
Lonerism, Tame Impala
Modern Vampires Of The City, Vampire Weekend (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: There’s quite a few buzzworthy acts in this category, but people seemed rather surprised that Vampire Weekend was shut out of the Big Four. This is their only chance to win an award as a band this year, so I think it will easily go to them.

26. Best Country Solo Performance

“I Drive Your Truck”, Lee Brice
“I Want Crazy”, Hunter Hayes
“Mama’s Broken Heart”, Miranda Lambert
“Wagon Wheel”, Darius Rucker (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“Mine Would Be You”, Blake Shelton

PREDICTION: It’s a man’s, man’s, man’s year for this category, and while all five did particularly well on the Country chart, Hayes will probably take this honor. He’s the youngest in the pack and “Crazy” managed some minor crossover airplay in 2013.

27. Best Country Duo/Group Performance

“From This Valley”, The Civil Wars (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
“Don’t Rush”, Kelly Clarkson featuring Vince Gill
“Your Side Of The Bed”, Little Big Town
“Highway Don’t Care”, Tim McGraw, Taylor Swift & Keith Urban
“You Can’t Make Old Friends”, Kenny Rogers with Dolly Parton

PREDICTION: It would be fantastic to see The Civil Wars win this one. That being said, if Taylor Swift is going to be at the show and performing, I’ll give her this one. (cue Swift’s shocked face) “Highway” was a #1 Country hit for the three performers.

28. Best Country Song

“Begin Again”
Performed and Written by: Taylor Swift

“I Drive Your Truck”
Performed by: Lee Brice
Written by: Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington & Jimmy Yeary

“Mama’s Broken Heart”
Performed by: Miranda Lambert
Written by: Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally & Kacey Musgraves

“Merry Go ‘Round”
Performed by: Kacey Musgraves
Written by: Shane McAnally, Musgraves & Josh Osborne (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“Mine Would Be You”
Performed by: Blake Shelton
Written by: Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington & Deric Ruttan

PREDICTION: This category is a little more balanced than the Performance award. I could conceivably see the lyric-driven “I Drive Your Truck” winning, but Kacey Musgraves is up twice here and I think she’ll be able to win for the song she performed.

29. Best Country Album

Night Train, Jason Aldean
Two Lanes Of Freedom, Tim McGraw
Same Trailer Different Park, Kacey Musgraves (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Based On A True Story, Blake Shelton
Red, Taylor Swift

PREDICTION: Aldean, McGraw and Shelton have never won this category despite being nominated before, and don’t get me started about Red being classified as “Country album.” So, under careful consideration, Kacey Musgraves shall be the winner here.
_____

Check back tomorrow to see what I’m thinking for the Rap and R&B categories! Until then, follow the blog below and find us on social media by click the “Get Social!” tab.

GRAMMY WEEK: Adam Picks The Winners for Packaging/Visual Media Fields

Gram bam, thank you, ma’am.

It’s finally here… the week before the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards, airing on Sunday, January 26 at 8PM Eastern on CBS. This week on POP! Goes The Charts, we’ll be taking a look at nearly half the categories on the list and laying out who I think will taking home a prize or two or five (maybe!) on the big day. Today, we start out with the fields for Packaging and Visual Media.

(For a full list of nominations, check it out on GRAMMY.com along with more interactive features. You can also order the 2014 GRAMMY Nominees album, from Atlantic Records.)

56. Best Musical Theater Album

Kinky Boots (***ACTUAL WINNER***)
Matilda: The Musical
Motown: The Musical

PREDICTION: Much like the Tony Awards back in June, I think Best Musical winner Kinky Boots will be the winner in this category. This would mark singer and songwriter Cyndi Lauper‘s first GRAMMY win since claiming Best New Artist way back in 1985.

57. Best Companion Soundtrack for Visual Media

Django Unchained
Quentin Tarantino, compilation producer

The Great Gatsby (Deluxe Edition)
Baz Luhrman, compilation producer

Les Misérables (Deluxe Edition)
Cameron Mackintosh, Lee McCutcheon & Stephan Metcalfe, compilation producers

Muscle Shoals
Stephan Badger & Greg Camalier, compilation producers

Sound City: Real To Reel
Butch Vig, compilation producer (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: I was going back and forth between Luhrman and Vig for this Award, as both soundtracks have the star power to win, but I’ll give the edge to The Great Gatsby on this one. As a stand-alone work, it’s quite inspired and did well commercially.

58. Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media

Argo
Alexandre Desplat, composer

The Great Gatsby
Craig Armstrong, composer

Life Of Pi
Mychael Danna, composer

Lincoln
John Williams, composer

Skyfall
Thomas Newman, composer (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

Zero Dark Thirty
Alexandre Desplat, composer

PREDICTION: Five out of the six nominations (minus Danna) are by previous winners in the category; that is some serious competition. However, I’m giving it to Lincoln. The movie was fantastic and Williams did an exceptional job setting the mood for it.

59. Best Song Written for Visual Media

“Atlas” (The Hunger Games: Catching Fire)
Performed and Written by: Coldplay (Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion & Chris Martin)

“Silver Lining (Crazy ‘Bout You)” (Silver Linings Playbook)
Performed by: Jessie J
Written by: Diane Warren

“Skyfall” (Skyfall)
Performed by: Adele
Written by: Adkins & Paul Epworth (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“We Both Know” (Safe Haven)
Performed and Written by: Colbie Caillat and Gavin DeGraw

“Young And Beautiful” (The Great Gatsby)
Performed by: Lana Del Rey
Written by: Del Rey & Rick Nowels

“You’ve Got Time” (Orange Is The New Black)
Performed and Written by: Regina Spektor

PREDICTION: This is a pretty hard category – two of the selections in here went to #1 on my personal chart. As much as I want “Atlas” to take the prize, I am going with “Skyfall”. The GRAMMY’s wouldn’t be complete without an Adele win, would they?

63. Best Recording Package

Geneseo, Automatic Music Can Be Fun
Mike Brown, Zac DeCamp, Brian Grunert & Annie Stoll, art directors

Reckless Kelly, Long Night Moon
Sarah Dodds & Shauna Dodds, art directors  (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

Jay Z, Magna Carta… Holy Grail
Brian Roettinger, art director

Metallica, Through The Never (Music From The Motion Picture)
Bruce Duckworth, Sarah Moffat, Brian Steele & David Turner

David Bowie, The Next Day
Jonathan Barnbrook, art director

PREDICTION: All five sets have pretty unique artwork even though I don’t know two of the acts in the category. I do believe David Bowie has the best chance of a win here. I liked the campaign based around it; it’s a simple piece, yet it’s also mysterious.

64. Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package

Rolling Stones, The Brussels Affair
Charles Dooher & Scott Sandler, art directors

Mayer Hawthorne, How Do You Do (Limited Edition Box Set)
Mayer Hawthorne, art director

Mumford & Sons, The Road To Red Rocks (Special Edition)
Ross Stirling, art director

Various Artists, The Smith Tapes
Masaki Koike, art director

Wings, Wings Over America (Deluxe Edition)
Simon Earith & James Musgrave, art directors (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

PREDICTION: There’s some major GRAMMY darlings in here, and of course, my dream win would be for Hawthorne. Yet, I’ll be realistic here and say Wings Over the other four. Hey, I even got the “Maybe I’m Amazed” 12″ for Record Store Day last year.

81. Best Music Video

“Safe And Sound”, Capital Cities
Grady Hall, video director; Buddy Enright, Javier Jimenez, Danny Lockwood & Daniel Weisman, video producers

“Picasso Baby” (A Performance Art Film), Jay Z
Mark Romanek, video director; Shawn Carter & Aristides McGarry, video producers

“Can’t Hold Us”, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Ray Dalton
Jon Jon Augustavo, Jason Koenig & Ryan Lewis, video directors; Tricia Davis, Honna Kimmerer & Jenny Koenig, video producers

“Suit & Tie”, Justin Timberlake featuring Jay Z
David Fincher, video director; Timory King, video producer (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

“I’m Shakin'”, Jack White
Dori Oskowitz, video director; Saul Levitz & Candice OvaKnine, video producer

PREDICTION: Of the five entries here, only one music video helped me to like the song better, and that would be “Safe And Sound” by Capital Cities. With a clip featuring dancers from multiple eras, the nostalgia should prove to be positive with the committee.

82. Best Music Film

Coldplay, Live 2012
Paul Dugdale, video director; Jim Parsons, video producer

Green Day, ¡Cuatro!
Tim Wheeler, video director; Tim Lynch, video producer

Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite, I’m In, I’m Out And I’m Gone: The Making Of Get Up!
Danny Clinch, video director; Ben Harper, video producer

Paul McCartney, Live Kisses
Jonas Åkerlund, video director; Violaine Etienne, Aron Levine & Scott Rodger, video producers (***ACTUAL WINNER***)

Mumford & Sons, The Road To Red Rocks
Nicolas Jack Davies & Frederick Scott, video directors; Dan Bowen, video producer

PREDICTION: I only own one of these (Coldplay), but I think Mumford & Sons will take it. I saw the special when it aired on HBO; besides being a fan of them, it’s a high quality film and edited together well. Their past GRAMMY history also helps the cause.
_____

Check back tomorrow to see what I’m thinking for the Alternative, Rock and Country categories! Until then, follow the blog below and find us on social media by click the “Get Social!” tab.

GRAMMY WATCH: Nominations As They’re Announced (Complete)

A grand slammy for a GRAMMY or two.

Excited for this year’s GRAMMY Awards? I am as well, but we’ll have to wait until January 26 to find out the winners of this year’s prizes. Tonight, however, is all about the nominations in a one-hour program airing on CBS at 10PM Eastern. The special, The GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music’s Biggest Night, will feature the unveiling of the nods in several categories, with a full update online sometime after the broadcast. Performances are due from Lorde, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Robin Thicke, Taylor Swift and more. So, stay tuned to my blog as the nominations come in… and see how I did at predicting the Big Four categories.

View the full nominations at GRAMMY.com.

LIVE BLOG — CURRENTLY UPDATING

(10:00 PM) PERFORMANCE – Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Wanz are currently performing “Thrift Shop”.

(10:05 PM) LL Cool J is handling the nominees for Song Of The Year…

SONG OF THE YEAR
Bruno Mars, “Locked Out Of Heaven”
Katy Perry, “Roar”
Lorde, “Royals”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Mary Lambert, “Same Love”
Pink featuring Nate Ruess, “Just Give Me A Reason”

I predicted:
Bruno Mars, “When I Was Your Man”
Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams, “Get Lucky”
Justin Timberlake, “Mirrors”
Katy Perry, “Roar”
Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell Williams and T.I., “Blurred Lines”
The Civil Wars, “The One That Got Away”

(10:08 PM) PERFORMANCE – Taylor Swift is currently performing “I Knew You Were Trouble” from Australia.

(10:15 PM) PERFORMANCE – Keith Urban and Miguel are currently duetting on a cover of Bill Withers‘s “Ain’t No Sunshine”.

(10:18 PM) Ed Sheeran is handling the next set of nominees…

BEST POP DUO/GROUP PERFORMANCE
Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams, “Get Lucky”
Justin Timberlake featuring JAY Z, “Suit & Tie”
Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko, “Stay”
Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell Williams and T.I., “Blurred Lines”
Pink featuring Nate Ruess, “Just Give Me A Reason”

(10:23 PM) Enrique Iglesias is presenting the nominees for Album Of The Year…

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Daft Punk, Random Access Memories
Kendrick Lamar, Good Kid, m.a.a.d City
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, The Heist
Sara Bareilles, The Blessed Unrest
Taylor Swift, Red

I predicted:
Bruno Mars, Unorthodox Jukebox
Daft Punk, Random Access Memories
Justin Timberlake, The 20/20 Experience: The Complete Experience
Taylor Swift, Red
The Civil Wars, The Civil Wars

(10:26) PERFORMANCE – Katy Perry is currently performing “Roar”.

(10:35) PERFORMANCE – Lorde is currently performing “Royals”.

(10:40) Kelly Rowland is presenting the nominees next…

BEST COUNTRY ALBUM
Blake Shelton, Based On A True Story…
Jason Aldean, Night Train
Kacey Musgraves, Same Trailer, Different Park
Taylor Swift, Red
Tim McGraw, Two Lanes Of Freedom

(10:48) Arsenio Hall is presenting for Best New Artist…

BEST NEW ARTIST
Ed Sheeran
James Blake
Kacey Musgraves
Kendrick Lamar
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

I predicted:
Emeli Sandé
Imagine Dragons
Kendrick Lamar
Lorde
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

(10:53) Melissa Etheridge is handling the nominees for Record Of The Year…

RECORD OF THE YEAR
Bruno Mars, “Locked Out Of Heaven”
Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams, “Get Lucky”
Imagine Dragons, “Radioactive”
Lorde, “Royals”
Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell Williams and T.I., “Blurred Lines”

I predicted:
Bruno Mars, “When I Was Your Man”
Lorde, “Royals”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Mary Lambert, “Same Love”
Passenger, “Let Her Go”
Pink featuring Nate Ruess, “Just Give Me A Reason”

(10:55) Robin Thicke, T.I. and Earth, Wind and Fire end the show with a performance of “Blurred Lines”.

View the full nominations at GRAMMY.com.

GRAMMY WATCH: Adam Predicts The Big Four

Don’t stop the music.

September 30 marks the end of the eligibility for the upcoming 2014 GRAMMY Awards, so, being that it’s the day after, I think it’s time to make some predictions for the big show, yes? Though it isn’t until January 26 of next year and a special nominations special doesn’t air until December 6, here are some of my early favorites, and let me know what you think below! For now, it’s just the Big Four — and maybe a few extra thoughts when it’s all over. Let’s get to those magic predictions:

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
Bruno Mars, Unorthodox Jukebox
Daft Punk, Random Access Memories
Justin Timberlake, The 20/20 Experience: The Complete Experience
Taylor Swift, Red
The Civil Wars, The Civil Wars

All five of these albums went to #1 and the majority of them have been certified (or are at the point where they can be.) It’s definitely going to be another pop heavy year overall. Mars’s late 2012 release has given us smashes like “Locked Out Of Heaven” and “When I Was Your Man”, plus with his upcoming Super Bowl appearance, he may just lead the nominations. Luck was on Daft Punk‘s side this year as “Get Lucky” took a ride up to #2 on the Hot 100, while their album delivered the band’s best sales frame by far. Timberlake, an early winner for this category, had the biggest opening of the year with the first half of this collection and will once again debut at the top with the second half. Why RCA chose to submit both albums as one entry instead of two, we shall never know. Both Swift and The Civil Wars are GRAMMY favorites having been nominated separately and together and should likely gain a vote or two.

Other contenders:
Drake, Nothing Was The Same – The rapper’s album was just issued last week and the numbers on it are looking huge. His connection was multiple format audiences will obviously help him; I’d think this would be the rap release to get a nomination if there is one.
Janelle Monáe, The Electric Lady – Expect to see this one on a lot of year-end lists. The futuristic neo soul singer has a lot of people buzzing about her latest release, but with low radio airplay and only decent sales, this will get cut along the way.
Jay Z, Magna Carta… Holy Grail – He’s an industry heavyweight and his most recent album was one of the most hyped of the year. With a hit single in “Holy Grail”, his name is out there once again, but reception’s been mixed and others are favored.
Kanye West, Yeezus – It’s raw, it’s minimalist and ultimately, it won over both fans and critics when it was released this summer. That being said, I don’t think those on the GRAMMY panel will “get it.” Expect a tantrum or two from West if it’s looked over.
Vampire Weekend, Modern Vampires Of The City – Some people seem to think that this could pull off a nomination because of high critical scores. This era gave them their biggest hit yet on the Alternative survey, “Diane Young”, but I don’t think it’ll be enough to get this in.

RECORD OF THE YEAR
Bruno Mars, “When I Was Your Man”
Daft Punk featuring Pharrell Williams, “Get Lucky”
Justin Timberlake, “Mirrors”
Katy Perry, “Roar”
Robin Thicke featuring Pharrell Williams and T.I., “Blurred Lines”
The Civil Wars, “The One That Got Away”

Both Record and Song Of The Year are going to be tough this year, but 2013 has been a spectacular and diverse year for music. Since ROTY listed six nominations last year, I’ll be predicting the same this year. Summer smashes “Blurred Lines” and “Get Lucky” will no doubt be in there, which is huge for producer, writer and singer Pharrell Williams. Many people seem to think that both Bruno Mars and Justin Timberlake are a lock for ROTY; I’m putting “Man” here over “Locked Out Of Heaven” and “Mirrors” over “Suit & Tie”, but it could go either way. “Roar”, like Taylor Swift‘s “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” last year, will be the last-minute nomination of the bunch. Finally, there’s The Civil Wars; based on the buzz this song registered on my blog well as the prior GRAMMY love for the duo, I think they hold a strong chance of being here.

Other contenders:
Drake featuring Majid Jordan, “Hold On, We’re Going Home” – With a smooth 80’s feel and a simple lyric, the song’s hot and a hit. I think this will only be shut out due to the similar throwback feel of entries like Thicke’s, which was also much bigger commercially.
Imagine Dragons, “Radioactive” – 2013 was a breakout year for this Las Vegas band and their dubstep meets rock production took over the charts a few months ago. Unfortunately, the burn factor with this one will ultimately cost it some votes in the long run.
Kanye West, “New Slaves” – With Yeezus probably missing a chance at AOTY, this would be West’s next best option. The industrial sounding song will too probably not make the category, but it’s worth a shot. He’ll pick up a few nods in the Rap sub-categories.
Taylor Swift, “I Knew You Were Trouble” – Swift has a better shot in the AOTY category. I’m not sure the Academy voters will respond positively to this song, despite the fact that it was a significant hit, given the harder electronic elements of it. Cue the goats!

SONG OF THE YEAR
Bruno Mars, “When I Was Your Man”
Lorde, “Royals”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Mary Lambert, “Same Love”
Passenger, “Let Her Go”
Pink featuring Nate Ruess, “Just Give Me A Reason”

As it was last year, Song Of The Year should be vastly different from ROTY, and since this is a songwriter’s award, let’s get into the lyrical love. Mars may be the only repeat in this category; his tender love song “Man” resonated with more than a few people this year. Lorde‘s anthem about the lifestyles of the rich and famous may have a minimal production, but stands out lyrically as biting and powerful. “Love” from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Mary Lambert carries a heavy tone, but is also a game changer when it comes to same-sex marriage support. Passenger‘s “Go” may be the dark horse in this race, but with a similar label strategy to Ed Sheeran‘s “The A Team”, this will continue to be a slow burner into next year. Last year, the duet between Pink and Ruess has such a classic feel that I would be shocked if “Reason” is snubbed in any of the major categories.

Other contenders:
Emeli Sandé, “Next To Me” – Though this was only a moderate success on the charts, Sandé is long overdue for some form of nomination after the song initially went to radio last year. Perhaps a nod in the BNA category below will serve her better.
Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko, “Stay” – This big ballad from the singer’s Unapologetic album was a nice change of pace at the time. The multi-format smash will likely be on the minds of the voters; it’s going to be a very close one.
Sara Bareilles, “Brave” – You may think it sounds like Katy Perry‘s “Roar”, and once the GRAMMY nominations actually come out, “Roar” will likely take all the glory. Still, “Brave” has a great lyric and Bareilles is certainly worthy of the Award.
The Band Perry, “Better Dig Two” – It’s another morbid musical number from these guys, but it was huge on the Country airwaves. It’s one of the best from the genre this year, but it may fall short of the nominations due to the competition.
The Civil Wars, “The One That Got Away” – I pegged this as a nominee for ROTY, but this still has a promising chance in this category to a lesser extent. I’m hoping for an excellent performance from the duo on the live telecast.

BEST NEW ARTIST
Emeli Sandé
Imagine Dragons
Kendrick Lamar
Lorde
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

This category should be largely predictable, save for maybe an entry or two. Sandé, who was expected to be on last year’s ballot, should make it on this year after the success of “Next To Me”, current single “My Kind Of Love”, and her “Beneath Your Beautiful” duet with Labrinth. Las Vegas quartet Imagine Dragons are an easy sell with their crossover-friendly hits like “It’s Time” and “Radioactive”. Lamar’s debut album, Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, recently went Platinum and he’s also all over the Urban airwaves in addition to his feature on Robin Thicke‘s “Give It 2 U”. New Zealand’s Lorde is also expected to place in the category thanks to the immense, yet sudden success of her “Royals” single, a recent #1 on the Alternative chart. Finally, there’s Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, likely the favorite to win, with three big hit singles in a row including the novelty hit “Thrift Shop” and the socially conscious “Same Love”.

Other contenders:
Ariana Grande – Young diva Grande has some major chops and a major fan base. 2013 marked her first top ten single, “The Way”, and her first #1 album, Yours Truly. However, with so many R&B acts in the bunch, she may not find a “way” into the five finalists.
Florida Georgia Line – The Southern duo has accumulated three big #1 singles on Country radio and scored one of the biggest Country crossovers of the year with the Nelly assisted “Cruise”, but will they skew too young for the panel? Perhaps.
Kacey Musgraves – Musgraves debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 with her first major label release; however, she’s been recording over ten years and issuing albums independently since 2002. The committee may see that as a reason to leave her out of this one.
Passenger – See Musgraves. He faces a similar problem in that he’s released several albums independently since 2009, as well as one with the band form of Passenger in 2007. Hey, Ed Sheeran and Gotye didn’t make it into BNA last year either.
Phillip Phillips – The American Idol winner from 2012 could be a strong candidate with a Platinum album and two memorable singles, yet it seems that most of his initial hype is gone. “Home” would have been a better choice for last year’s Awards.

As for some of the genre-specific categories, look out for a few more Pink and Taylor Swift nods in the Pop categories, as well as fun. and Maroon 5. Avicii, Martin Garrix and Zedd could compete together for the Best Dance Recording, while the Country categories should be dominated by Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum and The Band Perry. Oh, and in the Jazz categories, my friend Kurt Trowbridge would say that Etienne Charles‘s chances of being nominated for Creole Soul are “killin’ breh.” I just hope he doesn’t have to kill anyone to get his nods. That would just be bad.

Once again, let me know you think below or find PGTC on social media by clicking the “Get Social!” tab.