The 65th Grammy Awards premiere on the CBS Television Network on Sunday, Feb. 5 at 8 p.m., and, before you get geared up for your viewing parties, here’s everything you need to prepare for “Music’s Biggest Night.”
First and foremost, comedian Trevor Noah will return for the third year in a row as the night’s host, a precedent set only by LL Cool J in the last 30 years. A well-known TV personality as well as an experienced host, Noah certainly knows what it takes to lead one of the most highly anticipated music events of the year.
In regard to nominations, Beyoncé unsurprisingly leads with nine, her categories including Record of the Year and Song of the Year with “BREAK MY SOUL,” as well as Album of the Year and Best Dance/Electronic Music Album with RENAISSANCE.
Other notable nominees include Harry Styles and Adele, both of whom received nominations for Record of the Year (“As It Was” and “Easy On Me,” respectively) and Album of the Year (Harry’s House and 30).
For those of you wondering what the difference is between Record and Song of the Year, Record of the Year is awarded to the entire team that works on producing a song; Song of the Year honors the songwriting aspect of a song in specific.
Naturally, Taylor Swift is nominated for multiple categories, including Song of the Year and Best Music Video with “All Too Well (10 Minute Version)” and Best Country Song with “I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault).”
The Swedish supergroup ABBA also makes multiple appearances on this year’s nomination list after surprising many with a nomination for Record of the Year last year in honor of their first song in almost 40 years, “I Still Have Faith in You.” This year’s nominations for the band include Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance with “Don’t Shut Me Down,” as well as Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album with Voyage.
Notably, this year’s award ceremony has introduced five new categories, of which are Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical; Best Alternative Music Performance; Best Americana Music Performance; Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media; and Best Spoken Word Poetry Album.
Expanding the pool of nomination categories is significant, simply because more artists have the chance to receive recognition for their work— even if it isn’t within the mainstream realm of music.
Unfortunately, word regarding presenters and performers is still inconclusive, assumedly because of the grueling task of finalizing artists’ schedules. Nonetheless, with the awards coming up soon, it is expected that the list of names will slowly but surely become public.
Overall, the awards night is likely to impress, especially with some of the biggest names in music racking up multiple nominations left and right. If you miss the viewing, be sure to check back in with The Outlook for a full breakdown of the night’s winners and performances.
