LOS ANGELES, March 31 (Reuters) – It is anybody’s guess who will prevail on the Grammy awards on Sunday in Las Vegas, in a area that ranges from teen sensation Olivia Rodrigo to 95-year-old singer Tony Bennett and rapper Kanye West.
Rodrigo, 19, is nominated within the high 4 classes – album, track and report of the yr and finest new artist – on the music business’s highest honors. Solely two musicians in Grammys historical past have swept all 4 classes on the identical evening.
Specialists say Rodgrigo is near a lock-in for finest new artist after her “drivers license” took off in January 2021, and that the viral hit is a robust contender within the report and track classes.
“All people thinks Olivia Rodrigo goes to take a big variety of awards,” stated Selection deputy music editor Jem Aswad. “She’s virtually a shoo-in for finest new artist.”
Album of the yr is more durable to name, Grammy watchers say. Rodrigo’s “Bitter” is competing towards West’s “Donda,” Jon Batiste’s “We Are,” and Tony Bennett and Woman Gaga’s “Love for Sale.”
Justin Bieber’s “Justice” can also be within the race, together with Doja Cat’s “Planet Her,” Billie Eilish’s “Happier Than Ever,” H.E.R.’s “Again of My Thoughts,” Lil Nas X’s “Montero” and Taylor Swift’s “Evermore.”
West, who has legally modified his identify to Ye, has a contentious historical past with the Grammys. Media shops have quoted an unnamed consultant for the rapper saying West was informed he couldn’t carry out at this yr’s ceremony as a consequence of his latest social media posts.
The rapper was suspended from Instagram for twenty-four hours this month after posting racial slurs about late-night host Trevor Noah, who can be internet hosting the Grammys. learn extra
Representatives for the Recording Academy, which presents the Grammys, and West didn’t reply to requests for remark.
West is an award nominee, so he may very well be seated within the viewers on Sunday even when he doesn’t carry out. Viewers and attendees can be watching how he reacts, win or lose, within the 5 classes he’s nominated in, Aswad stated.
The rapper famously took the microphone from Taylor Swift as she was accepting a trophy on the MTV Video Music Awards in 2009.
“Nobody expects Kanye West to sit down on his arms on Grammy evening,” Aswad stated.
This yr’s Grammys had been pushed to April from January due to a COVID-19 surge firstly of the yr. The date swap pressured a change in venue from Los Angeles to the MGM Grand Backyard Area in Las Vegas. The awards can be broadcast dwell on CBS tv and the Paramount+ streaming service.
Okay-pop band BTS, which has but to win a Grammy, enters the evening with a single nod for top-selling single “Butter” and is among the many acts slated to carry out on the Grammys stage.
Nominee Bennett has Alzheimer’s illness and isn’t anticipated to attend.
Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Modifying by Karishma Singh
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