Beyonce has become the most Grammy nominated artist of all time, after the Recording Academy announced its nominations on Friday.
Beating her husband Jay-Z’s record of 88 nominations, Beyonce has a whopping 99 nods under her belt, thanks to her first country album “Cowboy Carter,” which she released last spring.
The album earned the 43-year-old megastar 11 nominations, putting her in the lead of all other artists competing this year.
The award ceremony will take place on February 2 in Los Angeles.
Who else made the cut?
Billie Eilish, Charli XCX, Kendrick Lamar and Post Malone closely followed Beyonce, each snatching seven nominations.
Meanwhile Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter scored six nominations each. The latter two are competing for the closely watched best new artist category, among others.
Women dominated the album of the year category.
Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department,” Charli XCX’s “BRAT,” Carpenter’s “Short ‘n’ Sweet,” Roan’s “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” and Eilish’s “Hit me Hard and Soft” are among the albums competing with Beyonce’s. Other artists vying for the prestigious category include Andre 3000 and Jacob Collier.
But perhaps the most unexpected nomination came for The Beatles. The legendary English band is competing in the top record category with “Now and Then,” a track reconstituted using Artificial Intelligence based on John Lennon’s rough demo.
Beyonce’s complicated relationship with the academy
Despite a lead in Grammy nominations and wins, an unrivaled 32, Beyonce has never been awarded the album trophy, the academy’s most prestigious category. Artists who snatched the award from her include Adele, Harry Styles and Taylor Swift.
Jay-Z called out the academy during a speech in the last award ceremony earlier this year, arguing that its voters had failed to give Black artists proper recognition.
Some 13,000 singers, songwriters, producers, engineers and others make up the Recording Academy, and end up choosing the winners of its awards annually.
Following years of criticism over its choices, and accusations of racism, the academy has taken steps to diversify its ranks. It has boasted that 38% of its decision makers were people of color, which is a 65% increase since 2019.
Experts and fans view “Cowboy Carter” as a reclamation and homage to Black Americans’ often overlooked legacy within country music and culture.
The album became the first by a Black woman to land at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. It was, nevertheless, snubbed for the Country Music Awards.
rmt/wd (AFP, AP, Reuters)
