The 66th Grammy Awards at the Cyrpto.com Arena this Sunday will be historical with all new categories, first-time nominations, and opportunity for many artists to break records.
This Sunday, Feb. 4, will be the first time a Grammy award is presented for Best African Music Performance, Best Alternative Jazz Album, and Best Pop Dance Album. The Best African Music Performance award nominees are dominated by Nigerian Afrobeats superstars like Burna Boy, Davido, ASAKE, and Ayra Starr, with South African Tyla also netting a nomination.
In rap, Travis Scott, Drake and 21 Savage, Nas, Metro Boomin, and Killer Mike are vying for the Best Rap Album award. Kendrick Lamar will be looking to earn his 18th Grammy award alongside his nephew, Baby Keem for their song The Hillbillies, which is nominated in the Best Rap Performance category. Drake and 21 Savage are also nominated in this category for their song Rich Flex.
Ice Spice is nominated for Best Rap Song alongside Nicki Minaj for their song Barbie World and in three categories outside of rap ranging from Best Pop Duo/Group Performance to Best New Artist.
Other nominees in rap include SZA, whose nine nominations double dip between R&B categories like Best Progressive R&B Album and rap categories like Best Melodic Rap Performance for her song Low.
She is also nominated for the Album of the Year award for her album SOS, which would make her the first to win the award for an R&B album since Bruno Mars’ 24k Magic last won the award in 2018. If SZA wins all nine awards, she will surpass Michael Jackson’s record of most GRAMMY wins in a single night by one award.
Hit songwriter Victoria Monet is nominated for the first time as an individual artist with a total of seven nominations, which include four nominations across R&B and three outside of it, most notably in the Record of the Year category for her song On My Mama.
Click here to read the complete list of nominees.
Those who watch the Grammy Awards Show for the live performances will enjoy the sights and sounds of artists like Travis Scott, SZA, and Burna Boy.
CBS will air the awards show live on Feb. 4 at 5 p.m. PT for television and stream viewers.