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Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert, Julia Michaels Partner With GRAMMY Awards, Uber

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The three current Best New Artist nominees will surprise aspiring musician Uber drivers, with segments to air during the 60th GRAMMY Awards
Renée Fabian
GRAMMYs
Jan 12, 2018 - 9:37 am

Ever fantasize about your favorite artist crashing your Uber ride? Now, thanks to the 60th GRAMMY Awards Uber partnership with three Best New Artist GRAMMY nominees — Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert and Julia Michaels — the rideshare company will make that dream come true for unsuspecting aspiring musician Uber drivers.

Best New Artist Nominees | 60th GRAMMY Awards

Each Best New Artist nominee will share their career stories and give a leg up to the aspiring musicians who will be surprised by the encounter. Lil Uzi Vert will surprise a Philadelphia rapper; Khalid will pair up with a beat maker; and Michaels will swap stories with an aspiringsinger.

Fans will have the chance to live vicariously through the selected Uber drivers with videos of the interactions, which will air during the 60th GRAMMYs on Jan. 28 on CBS.

"In music, everyone is working towards that big break," Amy Friedlander Hoffman, who heads experiential marketing for Uber, told Billboard. "That's why we are thrilled to partner with the GRAMMYs to further the ambitions of artists​ ​and fans alike​.​"

"The Recording Academy is proud to partner with Uber, one of today's more innovative brands, to build a multifaceted, fully immersive program worthy of the 60th Annual GRAMMY Awards," added Evan Greene, the Recording Academy's Chief Marketing Officer. "This partnership is creating unique and unexpected opportunities to connect with music’s biggest night."

The 60th GRAMMY Awards will take place at New York City's Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Jan. 28. The telecast will be broadcast live on CBS at 7:30–11 p.m. ET/4:30–8 p.m. PT. 

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2018 GRAMMYs Poll: Who Will Win Best New Artist?

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Alessia Cara, Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert, Julia Michaels, and SZA are officially the 60th GRAMMY nominees for Best New Artist — who will voters choose?
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Nov 28, 2017 - 5:42 am

Alessia Cara, Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert, Julia Michaels, and SZA: all five Best New Artist nominees for the 60th GRAMMY Awards are performers on the rise with promising futures.  

Who do you think GRAMMY voters will choose? Cast your vote now!

Polls

Who will GRAMMY voters choose for Best New Artist for the 60th GRAMMYs?

60th GRAMMY Awards: Full Nominations List

The 60th GRAMMY Awards will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Jan. 28, 2018, airing live on CBS from 7:30–11 p.m. ET/4:30–8 p.m. PT.

60th GRAMMY Nominees By Region
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Kendrick Lamar To Jay-Z: 2018 GRAMMY Nominees By Region | L.A. To NYC

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From the West and Midwest to the South and Northeast, learn where 60 60th GRAMMY nominees were born in the United States
Tim McPhate
GRAMMYs
Jan 12, 2018 - 4:45 pm

As far as the 60th GRAMMY Awards go, the compass is pointing east this year with the milestone telecast taking place at the venerable Madison Square Garden in New York on Sunday, Jan. 28.

But it goes without saying, when it comes to the hundreds of music creators who can call themselves 60th GRAMMY nominees, all signs point to disparate locations on the map.

There is, among others, Lorde, who is from Auckland, New Zealand; Ed Sheeran from England; Chronixx from Kingston, Jamaica; Antonio Sánchez from Mexico City; Juanes from Colombia; Petra Müllejans from Düsseldorf, Germany; and Dmitri Hvorostovsky from Krasnoyarsk, Russia.

And then there's the United States, with nominees hailing from Southern California all the way to Bedford, N.H.

For a different slice of the 60th GRAMMY nominees, we broke up a select group of 60 nominees according to their U.S. birthplace by region: West, Midwest, South, and Northeast. In each region you'll find 15 nominees, offering you a taste of the directional sense of how these nominees got from point A — home — to point B — Music's Biggest Night.

West

60th GRAMMY Nominees, West Region

Out West, a variety of nominees were born in California, including Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, Big Sean, Tyler, The Creator, Warryn Campbell, Tina Campbell, Beck, Julian Lage, and Kehlani. Representing Las Vegas is Imagine Dragons' Dan Reynolds. India.Arie and Ben Glover hail from Colorado while Raul Midón is from the Land of Enchantment, New Mexico. Rounding out the region is a pair of Northwest entries: Natalie Grant from Seattle and Wynne from Portland, Ore.

Midwest

60th GRAMMY Nominees, Midwest

In the Midwest, SZA was born in St. Louis, the Gateway to the West. Oklahoma and Kansas are represented by country and classical royalty in Reba McEntire and Joyce DiDonato, respectively. Illinois, the Prairie State, counts Chicago native Common and Decatur native Alison Krauss as two of its own. Julia Michaels, now a Southern California resident, was born in Davenport, Iowa. The state of Indiana spawned the likes of Offa Rex's Chris Funk, comedian Jim Gaffigan and Bruno Mars collaborator Philip Lawrence. Ohio represents hard rock in the Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl and jazz with pianist Fred Hersch. Actor/filmmaker Mark Ruffalo calls Kenosha, Wis., his home, while gospel great CeCe Winans came up through the heart of Motown in Detroit. Two legends round out the region: the inimitable Bob Dylan from Minnesota and the late great Glen Campbell from Arkansas, which was once dubbed the Land of Opportunity.

South

60th GRAMMY Nominees, South Region

Starting in the South, in Texas we find jazz singer Jazzmeia Horn, "American Idol" alum Kelly Clarkson and master singer/songwriter Rodney Crowell. R&B songstress Ledisi and jazz pianist John Beasley call Louisiana home. "Cover Me Up" singer/songwriter Jason Isbell hails from Green Hill, Ala. Killer Mike and Khalid, a pair of rappers, represent the Peach State. Gospel singer Le'Andria was born in Palatka, Fla. August Burns Red's Jake Luhrs' hometown is Greenville, S.C. There are two Virginia natives — Chris Eldridge and Pharrell Williams. "Stay" singer/songwriter Lisa Loeb is from Bethesda, Md. Rapsody represents the Tar Heel State. Rounding out the region are Baltimore rapper 6LACK and Washington, D.C., funnyman Dave Chappelle.

Northeast

60th GRAMMY Nominees, Northeast Region

Up in the Northeast region, there is Jay-Z from Brooklyn, N.Y. Other New Yorkers include Lady Gaga, Cardi B, Gillian Welch, and Lana Del Rey. Producer/songwriter Jack Antonoff and the Boss, Bruce Springsteen, call New Jersey home. Representing the Keystone State are jazzers Joey DeFrancesco and Christine McBride, pop queen Pink, rapper Lil Uzi Vert and comedian Kevin Hart. Rounding out the region are Seth McFarlane, from Kent, Conn.; composer Adam Schoenberg: Northampton, Mass.; and comedienne Sarah Silverman from Bedford, N.H.

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Here Are The Contenders For Best New Artist | 60th GRAMMYs

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Alessia Cara, Khalid, Lil Uzi Vert, Julia Michaels, and SZA are officially the 60th GRAMMY nominees for Best New Artist
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Nov 28, 2017 - 5:36 am

The Best New Artist category for the 60th GRAMMY Awards is positively stacked with talented creators who have built names for themselves on their own terms.

Best New Artist Nominees | 60th GRAMMY Awards

Some are songwriters who broke into the business penning hits for big-name artists before transitioning into their own solo careers; others are independent phenoms who leveraged their social media followings and artist amplification platforms such as SoundCloud to build a grassroots critical mass that made it impossible for the industry to ignore them.

All five will surely be names to watch in the coming years. Here's a closer look at this year's Best New Artist nominees:

Alessia Cara

Alessia Cara's debut single, "Here," became a sleeper hit in early 2015, and was dubbed by MTV as the "new song for everyone who secretly hates parties."

Her debut album arrived soon after, with the third radio single "Scars To Your Beautiful" becoming a chart hit late last year when it climbed to No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100

Leaving no doubt that the Canadian singer has officially arrived, in 2017 she was tapped for some impressive marquee collaborations on Zedd's "Stay" and Logic's "1-800-273-8255." The former is nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, while the latter is up for Song Of The Year.

Khalid

Singer/songwriter Khalid's explosive viral success with self-released tracks on SoundCloud saw the young artist tapped for numerous "artists you need to know" lists by publications such as Billboard and Rolling Stone just months after his high school graduation.

His first official single, "Location," released before the end of his senior year. The video collected more than 17 million plays on YouTube by the time his debut album, American Teen, dropped last March, and he promptly sold out every tour date of his 2017 summer tour.

Khalid is also featured alongside Alessia Cara on Logic's Song Of The Year and Best Music Video-nominated "1-800-273-8255."

The 19-year-old is nominated for a total of five GRAMMY Awards this year, with his Best R&B Song-nominated "Location" and Best Urban Contemporary Album-nominated American Teen rounding out his nods.

Polls

Who will GRAMMY voters choose for Best New Artist for the 60th GRAMMYs?

Lil Uzi Vert

With a rapid-fire series of mixtapes starting in late 2015 and stemming across 2016, Lil Uzi Vert carved himself a noticeably standout niche into the exploding cloud rap genre. With a sound often meandering between rock and hip-hop stylings, Vert's music has been sometimes called "emo rap," though the 23-year old artist strives hard to avoid genre labels.

Released in August, his debut album, Luv Is Rage 2, hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

During his recent sit-down with Zane Lowe on Beats 1 Radio, Vert was quick to stir the pot when Lowe tried to nail down a name for his sound, summing himself up saying, "I think it's [unidentifiable] … I just pulled up in a UFO, that means I'm an alien. [laughs] That's all I can say."

Lil Uzi Vert is also nominated alongside breakout trap trio Migos for his feature verse on their summer smash hit "Bad And Boujee."

Julia Michaels

Prior to stepping into the solo spotlight with her breakout debut single "Issues," Julia Michaels had already built an illustrious songwriting resume packed with writing credits for top-tier artists including Demi Lovato, Fifth Harmony, Gwen Stefani, Hailee Steinfeld, Linkin Park, and Justin Bieber.

Speaking to the Recording Academy about "Issues," Michaels revealed that the song was originally written over two years previously with the intent of giving away to a songwriting client, but she felt it too personal to give up, and sparked her decision to make the jump into becoming a performing artist.

Julia Michaels On Writing "Issues"

"I just thought, 'I can't do that. I can't give this song to somebody'," Michaels explained.  "That was my very first feeling of wanting to sing my own words."

Michaels is nominated for two GRAMMY Awards this year, with "Issues" bringing the singer/songwriter an additional nod for Song Of The Year.

SZA

SZA began stirring up underground buzz as early as 2012, with her self-released debut EP, See.SZA.Run, which caught the attention of independent hip-hop label Top Dawg Entertainment, which signed her in early 2013.

After releasing a pair of acclaimed EPs over the next two years, Top Dawg kept a tight lid on any and all details about SZA's eventual debut album, Ctrl, which was eventually released this past June. Though the album's success — gold certification and a No. 3 peak position — has resulted in somewhat of a whirlwind for the singer/songwriter, it's given her a new perspective on her fans.

SZA's "Drew Barrymore" Connection

"Being noticed on a very different end of the spectrum is very intense, but it makes me feel like I have a responsibility because I feel like every person that I'm meeting at a meet-and-greet or at a show — or that's listening to my album or that I'm seeing on the internet — I see that they're genuine reflections of me," SZA told GRAMMY.com.

Along with her Best New Artist nod, SZA has also drawn a Best R&B Song nomination this year for "Supermodel."

The 60th GRAMMY Awards will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Jan. 28, 2018, airing live on CBS from 7:30–11 p.m. ET/4:30–8 p.m. PT.

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Who Are The Song Of The Year Nominees? | 60th GRAMMY Awards

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Preview and learn more about this year's Song Of The Year nominees: "Despacito," "4:44," "Issues," "1-800-273-8255," and "That's What I Like"
Renée Fabian
GRAMMYs
Nov 28, 2017 - 5:36 am

There's a little something for everyone among this year's 60th GRAMMY Awards Song Of The Year category nominees, including an infectious Latin remix ("Despacito"), straight hip-hop (Jay-Z's "4:44"), two pop smashes (Julia Michaels' "Issues" and Bruno Mars' "That's What I Like"), and a hip-hop collaboration with an inspirational message ("1-800-273-8255").

Song Of The Year Nominees | 60th GRAMMY Awards

Take a closer look at this year's Song Of The Year nominees and the songwriters who made these unforgettable tracks possible:

"Despacito," Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee Featuring Justin Bieber

Ramón Ayala, Justin Bieber, Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd, Erika Ender, Luis Fonsi & Marty James Garton, songwriters

Fresh off its Latin GRAMMY success, "Despacito" is up for three GRAMMY Awards this year including Song Of The Year for the remixed version of the track. Written by Ramón Ayala, Bieber, Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd, Erika Ender, Fonsi, and Marty James Garton, the Latin crossover hit made it big on the charts and in the hearts of millions of fans. But it turns out one of the biggest hits of the summer was written in an afternoon.

"I woke up one morning with this despacito in my head, and it was pretty much that chorus melody and … that's all I had," Fonsi told E! News. "Then we were at the studio in my house with Erika Ender …  and that's where I said … 'It's a feel-good song and let's just mess around with the word despacito.' That was where we started, and that afternoon we finished the song."

From here, Daddy Yankee added his unforgettable rap verse to the track, and when Bieber heard the track in Colombia and saw fan reactions, he just had to get in on the action. The "Sorry" singer took the time to learn the correct Spanish pronunciations and added his spin on what is now a ubiquitous Latin pop hit.

"It says a lot about where Latin music is nowadays and where our culture is," Fonsi said. "We're breaking barriers down. I think that's the biggest win out of all of this."

"4:44," Jay-Z

Shawn Carter & Dion Wilson, songwriters

An eight-time nominee for the 60th GRAMMY Awards, Jay-Z paired with Dion Wilson — aka producer No. I.D. — to pen "4:44," the title track off his Album Of The Year-nominated project.

The song, which touches on infidelity, the way he has treated women in the past and the birth of his twin children, per Billboard, "throws all pride out the window and uses the nearly three-minute confessional to apologize for his wrongdoing, addressing Beyoncé's miscarriage and his absence."

Jay-Z doesn't shy away from the personal on this album, and "4:44" is arguably the centerpiece. In fact, for Hov, the song is the pinnacle moment of his entire album.

"'4:44' is … the crux of the album, just right in the middle of the album. And I woke up, literally, at 4:44 in the morning … to write this song," Jay-Z told iHeartRadio. "It's the title track because it's such a powerful song, and I just believe one of the best songs I've ever written."

"Issues," Julia Michaels

Benny Blanco, Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Julia Michaels & Justin Drew Tranter, songwriters

Michaels has worked as a songwriter for other artists, including Selena Gomez, Bieber, Fifth Harmony, Gwen Stefani, and many others. But "Issues," written with collaborators Benny Blanco, Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, and Justin Drew Tranter, marks her first foray as a performer.

The impetus behind her move from behind-the-scenes to the front of the stage (and now first-time GRAMMY nominee) came because this song — which Michaels wrote about a fight she had with a boyfriend — felt too intimate for somebody else to sing.

Julia Michaels On Writing "Issues"

"When I had written it, someone else was going to sing it, and I just thought, 'This feels so weird. This is my life,'" Michaels told GRAMMY.com. "I've never had something so personal want to be sung before by somebody else. And I just thought, 'I can't. I can't do that. I can't give this song to somebody.'"

"1-800-273-8255," Logic Featuring Alessia Cara & Khalid

Alessia Caracciolo, Sir Robert Bryson Hall II, Arjun Ivatury & Khalid Robinson, songwriters

Each songwriter behind this inspirational and life-saving track — Logic, Alessia Cara, Khalid, and Arjun Ivatury — are first-time nominees for  "1-800-273-8255." (The song's video is also up for Best Music Video.)

Titled after the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline phone number, this track sheds light on mental health by creating an emotional dialog between a suicidal caller and a crisis worker who helps the caller find a glimmer of hope by song's end.

Logic decided to write a song that deals with this difficult subject because of the feedback he got from fans — he was frequently told on tour that his music had saved his fans' lives. He wasn't trying to save anybody's life, but he wondered what would happen if he purposely set out to do so. Enter "1-800 …"

Rapper Logic on mental health

"Who really wants to write a song about suicide," Logic said about the impactful song with a hopeful message. "But I was like f*** it, I'm gonna do it, I'm gonna make this sh** an anthem."

"That's What I Like," Bruno Mars

Christopher Brody Brown, James Fauntleroy, Philip Lawrence, Bruno Mars, Ray Charles McCullough II, Jeremy Reeves, Ray Romulus & Jonathan Yip, songwriters

No stranger to the Song Of The Year category, "That's What I Like" — from his Album Of The Year-nominated 24K Magic — marks Mars' fourth career nod in the category. He was previously nominated for the tracks "F*** You" (2010), "Grenade" (2011) and "Locked Out Of Heaven" (2013).

Composed with songwriters Christopher Brody Brown, James Fauntleroy, Philip Lawrence, Ray Charles McCullough II, Jeremy Reeves, Ray Romulus, and Jonathan Yip, Mars' sultry "That's What I Like" is about living the high life with his lady — a condo in Manhattan, lobster tail for dinner, Cadillacs, strawberry champagne on ice, the works.

Combining hip-hop, soul and smooth R&B that goes down just like that perfectly chilled champagne, Rolling Stone said this hit song "brings the silky vibes of 12 Play-era R. Kelly into the boom of modern trap."

Mars has stated that tracks like "That's What I Like" are all about his penchant for delivering feel-good vibes for his fans. "We're creating this positive vibe and everyone's dancing and it feels like we're all in love," Mars told PBS. "I'm creating my America. I'm creating what I want to feel every day."

The 60th GRAMMY Awards will take place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Jan. 28, 2018, airing live on CBS from 7:30–11 p.m. ET/4:30–8 p.m. PT.