Grammy Awards 2023: Five things to look out for on music’s biggest night
It’s the biggest night in music, with stars from all over the world vying for a prestigious Grammy award to boost their reputation and musical credentials.
Hosted by former host of The Daily Show, Trevor Noah, for the third time on the trot, Sunday’s ceremony will take place at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
So, who will be the big winner of the night? How will our British stars fare? And what kind of buzz can we expect around the show? Here’s what to look out for at the 65th annual Grammy Awards.
Beyonce making history
Leading the nominations, Beyonce is on the cusp of becoming the most decorated artist in Grammy history.
Already the show’s most awarded woman with 28 wins, if she bags just four of the nine categories she’s nominated in, she’ll break the late Hungarian-British conductor Georg Solti’s record of 31 Grammys.
Beyonce’s is already tied with husband Jay-Z for the title of most nominated artist of all time.
Queen Bey‘s game has been strong leading up to the awards, performing her first live gig in four years in Dubai and a two-night event in Los Angeles last month, all promoting her seventh album – Renaissance – which is up for album of the year.
Beyonce will also come up against Adele in the category again this year, with the British star using her acceptance speech for her 2017 album of the year win, to heap praise on Beyonce.
Many – including Adele herself – said the US artist should have taken the prize for her surprise album Lemonade – loved by fans and critics alike. This year’s rematch is likely to make good viewing, as well as fostering plenty of headlines.
As well as album of the year for Renaissance, Beyoncé’s also up for record of the year, song of the year, and best dance/electronic recording for Break My Soul, best dance/electronic music album, best R&B performance for Virgo’s Groove, best traditional R&B performance for Plastic Off The Sofa, best R&B song for Cuff It, and best song written for visual media for Be Alive (from King Richard).
British stars winning big
British stars Harry Styles and Adele are among the frontrunners for the awards and shortlisted against Beyonce in three of the ceremony’s biggest prizes – album of the year (see above), song of the year, and record of the year.
After a spell away from the spotlight, Adele burst back onto the scene in 2021 with her fourth album 30, topping both the UK and US charts.
The 41-year-old powerhouse is also nominated for best pop solo performance for break-up ballad Easy On Me, best pop vocal album, best music video, and best music film, for Adele: One Night Only – which marked the singer’s comeback with an interview by Oprah Winfrey and a concert performance at the Griffith Observatory.
Styles has six Grammy nominations, following a standout year which saw him topping the charts with his third album Harry’s House and shortlisted for the prestigious Mercury Prize award.
Aside from his musical prowess, he also appeared in two movies, Don’t Worry Darling and My Policeman.
In addition to the three big prizes of the night, Styles is also up for best pop solo performance, best pop vocal album and best music video. His pop rock fan pleaser As It Was is tipped to nab at least one prize.
Upcoming British indie rock duo Wet Leg – who count Iggy Pop and Barack Obama among their fans – also scored three nominations, including prestigious, best new artist.
Veteran rock band Coldplay are up for three awards, album of the year, best pop vocal album and best pop duo / group performance.
Kendrick Lamar taking centre stage
Rapper Kendrick Lamar is the second front-runner in the nominations stakes after Beyonce, up for eight awards.
The 35-year-old will come up against heavyweights Beyonce, Styles, Adele and Lizzo in the album of the year, song of the year, and record of the year categories.
Headlining at Glastonbury last year, he earned rave reviews and was labelled one of the most gifted rappers of his generation.
But while he has 14 Grammy wins to his name, he’s been snubbed for album of the year three times. He’ll be hoping his fifth album could break the pattern, but he’s clearly got stiff competition – particularly in the form of Grammy Queen Beyoncé.
Likely to win best rap performance for The Heart Part 5 (he’s racked up five wins in this category over the last eight years), Lamar’s also up for best melodic rap performance for Die Hard, best rap song, best rap album for Mr Morale & The Big Steppers and best music video.
Big name presenters and live performances
As well as some of the biggest stars of the music world, there’s also a diverse line-up of famous faces dishing out the awards.
James Corden, Cardi B and US first lady Jill Biden are among the presenters, with comedian Trevor Noah on hosting duties for the star-studded night.
Hollywood stars Viola Davis, Dwayne Johnson and Billy Crystal will also present awards as well as five-time Grammy winner Shania Twain and three-time winner Olivia Rodrigo.
Davis is also nominated in the best audiobook, narration, and storytelling recording category for her recent memoir Finding Me, while Crystal is among the best musical theatre album nominees alongside the cast of the stage musical Mr Saturday Night.
Confirmed live performances on the night include Harry Styles, Lizzo, Sam Smith and Kim Petras, Bad Bunny, Mary J Blige, Brandi Carlile, Luke Combs and Steve Lacy.
There will also be a special celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip-hop’s beginnings featuring some of the genres biggest names and co-curated by Roots musician Questlove.
New categories
This year, in a bid to branch out, the Grammys have introduced five new categories – taking prizes given out on the night to a whopping 91.
Songwriters will get their own standalone category – songwriter of the year – and alternative and Americana music will also be celebrated with two new awards.
Post-pandemic, with the video game market booming and forecast to be worth $219bn (£180bn) by 2024, a brand-new category has been introduced to reflect the success of gaming and gaming-related music – best score soundtrack for video games and other interactive media.
And songs that do good will get a nod in the new special merit award – best song for social change – based on lyrical content that addresses a timely social issue.
Meanwhile best new age album has been expanded to best new age, ambient or chant, and the classical and musical theatre fields have also been opened up to make more musical creatives eligible to win a Grammy.
Main category nominees:
Album Of The Year
Voyage – ABBA
30 – Adele
Un Verano Sin Ti – Bad Bunny
Renaissance – Beyonce
Good Morning Gorgeous (Deluxe) – Mary J Blige
In These Silent Days – Brandi Carlile
Music of the Spheres – Coldplay
Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers – Kendrick Lamar
Special – Lizzo
Harry’s House – Harry Styles
Record Of The Year
Don’t Shut Me Down – ABBA
Easy on Me – Adele
Break My Soul – Beyoncé
Good Morning Gorgeous – Mary J. Blige
You and Me On The Rock – Brandi Carlile featuring Lucius
Woman – Doja Cat
Bad Habit – Steve Lacy
The Heart Part 5 – Kendrick Lamar
About Damn Time – Lizzo
As It Was – Harry Styles
Song Of The Year (songwriter’s award)
abcdefu – Sara Davis, GAYLE and Dave Pittenger
About Damn Time – Lizzo, Eric Frederic, Blake Slatkin and Theron Makiel Thomas
All Too Well (10 Minute Version – The Short Film) – Liz Rose and Taylor Swift
As It Was – Tyler Johnson, Kid Harpoon and Harry Styles
Bad Habit – Matthew Castellanos, Brittany Foushee, Diana Gordon, John Carroll Kirby and Steve Lacy
Break My Soul – Beyonce, S Carter, Terius The Dream Gesteelde-Diamant and Christopher A Stewart
Easy On Me – Adele Adkins and Greg Kurstin
God Did – Tarik Azzouz, E Blackmon, Khaled Khaled, F LeBlanc, Jay-Z, John Stephens, Dwayne Carter, William Roberts and Nicholas Warwar
The Heart Part 5 – Jake Kosich, Johnny Kosich, Kendrick Lamar and Matt Schaeffer
Just Like That – Bonnie Raitt
Best New Artist
Anitta
Omar Apollo
DOMi & JD Beck
Muni Long
Samara Joy
Latto
Måneskin
Tobe Nwigwe
Molly Tuttle
Wet Leg
Songwriter Of The Year
Amy Allen
Nija Charles
Tobia Jesso Jr
The-Dream
Laura Veltz
