Album Of The Year Nominees Revealed | 2019 GRAMMY Awards
The 2019 GRAMMYs are just around the corner, and now the nominations are in for the coveted honor of Album Of The Year. While we'll have to wait until the 61st GRAMMY Awards air on CBS on Feb. 10 to find out who will win, let's take a look at which albums have been nominated for one of the most anticipated GRAMMY Awards each year.
Invasion Of Privacy – Cardi B
With the success of her breakout single, "Bodak Yellow," which earned two GRAMMY nominations for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance at the 60th GRAMMY Awards last year, Cardi B set the stage for one of the most anticipated debut rap albums in recent memory. Invasion Of Privacy arrived on April 5, 2018, and showed the Bronx-born and raised rapper had a lot more to show.
In June, "I Like It" with J Balvin and Bad Bunny made it to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making Cardi the first ever female rapper to earn two No. 1 hits. "I Like It" is also nominated for Record Of The Year, "Be Careful" received a nod for Best Rap Performance and Invasion Of Privacy is up for Best Rap Album this year. Tack on Cardi's nomination alongside Maroon 5 for "Girls Like You" for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance bring her total nominations this year to five.
By The Way, I Forgive You – Brandi Carlile
Since exploding from the folk music scene into the mainstream in 2007 with her the title track from her sophomore album, The Story, Brandi Carlile has released a string of quality folk/roots albums. Her latest, By The Way, I Forgive You, shows Carlile and longtime writing/singing partners, twins Tim and Phil Hanseroth, in top form. The album's lead single, "The Joke," encapsulates the spirit and power of love and forgiveness, two main themes of the album.
"I wrote 'The Joke' about a reckoning and a revolution and a time that's coming when we'll realize that love has already conquered the world and pick it back up," Carlile told us in July.
The album, Carlile's sixth, yielded the same number of GRAMMY nominations—an impressive six—for the 61st GRAMMY Awards, including Best Americana Album as well as Record Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Best American Roots Song and Best American Roots Performance for "The Joke."
Scorpion – Drake
From the very beginning of 2018, chart titan Drake saw a groundswell of buzz for his fifth album, Scorpion. When it finally dropped in late June, the album already had three successful singles: "God's Plan," "Nice For What" and "I'm Upset." Shortly after the album's release, the album's fifth single, "In My Feelings," would climb to put Drake at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the third time of year. Simply put, the Canadian rapper spent the better part of the year shattering streaming and chart records, and the ambitious and hit-laden double-disc album Scorpion was well worth the wait for fans. The project was a hit for voters as well, as Drake clocked in with an impressive seven nominations for the 61st GRAMMY Awards.
H.E.R. – H.E.R.
With her soulful songs and jaw-dropping musicianship only further fueling the mystique of her persona, H.E.R. stepped into the light this year, releasing her widely acclaimed self-titled debut. Apropos of her moniker's meaning (Having Everything Revealed), H.E.R. showed the world her gift, with a breakthrough performance of "Focus" and "Best Part," both from her debut LP, at the BET Awards this summer alongside Daniel Caesar. After a string of successful EPs, H.E.R. gave her fans a new, more complete idea of H.E.R.'s musical ability and remarkable potential. In addition to the coveted Album Of The Year nomination, she's also up for Best New Artist.
Beerbongs & Bentleys – Post Malone
Not to be outdone online, Post Malone broke streaming records this year as well by earning the most streams in one week when Beerbongs & Bentleys arrived on April 27. Real name Austin Richard Post, the singer/rapper entered a new stratosphere of popularity with his sophomore album—and he brought many of this friends along for the joyride, as the album includes cameos by the likes of 21 Savage, Ty Dolla Sign, Nicki Minaj, G-Eazy and YG. Post Malone is nominated in a total of four categories at the 61st GRAMMY Awards.
Dirty Computer – Janelle Monáe
At the 60th GRAMMY Awards, Janelle Monáe delivered one of the most poignant and powerful speeches in recent memory, calling attention to the #TimesUp movement. Three months later, she made an equally powerful statement with her third studio album, Dirty Computer. With the catchy and bold singles "Make Me Feel," "Django Jane" and "Pynk" leading the way, Monáe set a new precedent for what it means to make infectious music with a message in 2018.
“[Creatives] have the power to create the culture and shape it to what we want it to be,” she told us earlier this year. “And we also have the power to undo the culture if it does not serve us well.”
Golden Hour – Kacey Musgraves
Country music might be the platform Kacey Musgraves has chosen for her music, but it certainly is not a constriction for the singer/songwriter. On Golden Hour, Musgraves takes her signature stir-up of crafty lyric turns, progressive social themes and authentic twang to a new level, all while opening herself up more candidly than she has in the past.
"This album feels very special and different to me because it feels like my most personal." Musgraves told us back in July. "I don't feel like I've really let people in on this scale previously."
Black Panther: The Album, Music From And Inspired By – Various Artists
Music has always played a key integral role in film, but for this year's transcendent blockbuster "Black Panther," the soundtrack took on a life of its own. Led by the Kendrick Lamar and SZA hit "All The Stars," which earned four nominations of its own including Record Of The Year, Song Of The Year and Best Rap/Sung Performance, Black Panther: The Album, Music From And Inspired By looks to make history as just the third ever movie soundtrack to win Album Of The Year, joining the soundtracks for Saturday Night Fever at the 21st GRAMMY Awards, The Bodyguard at the 36th GRAMMY Awards and, most recently, O Brother, Where Art Thou? at the 44th GRAMMY Awards.
