The Grammy nominations for the Jan. 26 Grammy Awards will be announced Friday (6) during the enthusiastically titled CBS television special, “The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!!-Countdown to Music”s Biggest Night.”
In addition to announcing the nominees in a smattering of the 80 or so categories, the hour-long program, which will air Live!! at 10 p.m., will feature performances from Lorde, Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Robin Thicke with Earth Wind & Fire and Keith Urban with Miguel.
Here are six predictions for tomorrow night:
*Justin Timberlake will come away with nominations in three of the big four: album, song and record of the year, as well as a number of collaboration nods.
*Best new artist nominees will likely be Lorde, Imagine Dragons, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Ellie Goulding and Kendrick Lamar…although Ariana Grande could also sneak in there. (Depending upon how vigilant the Grammys are, Kacey Musgraves may not be eligible for best new artist: nominees can not have put out more than three albums and “Same Trailer Different Park” is her fourth album, following three indie and/or self-released sets.)
*Regardless of whether she gets a best new artist nod, Kacey Musgraves will be the leading country nominee. The Grammys have gotten better by getting in step with country”s populist taste, but the voters still love to support acts that get no or scant country radio play like past nominees Ryan Adams and Lyle Lovett. And who can forget 2007 when the Dixie Chicks won album of the year after the country music industry had shunned them? Musgraves has been embraced by the press of all stripes and will show up on lots of Top 10 lists, yet she”s struggling at radio and has only eked out one Top 10.
*Both Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and Lorde could achieve the holy grail: nominations in all of the major four categories, album, song, record of the year and best new artist. Both are likely, but the nod goes to Macklemore & Ryan Lewis since most voters still know Lorde for one song not for the depth of her album, “Pure Heroine.”
*Even though Robin Thicke is performing “Blurred Lines” at the nominations concert, and that”s usually a good sign, the backlash against “Blurred Lines” may result in the song getting blanked when it comes to record of the year. It was the biggest song of the year, spending 12 weeks at No. 1 on Billboard”s Hot 100, but the tide turned on the song for some. It could still eke out a nomination, but it”s far from a sure bet….although it will likely get some nods in collaboration categories.
*Kanye West, who has been a Grammy magnet, may pay the price for some of his antics. It shouldn”t matter, but West”s belligerence has turned some of his most ardent supporters against him. He was legitimately robbed of an album of the year nomination for “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” three years ago after three previous albums getting nods, and he”s probably not returning to the category with “Yeezus.” Don”t feel too back for him, however, West already has 21 Grammys, the sixth highest among any male artist.