On November 7, the nominations were announced for the 68th Annual Grammy Awards. The event takes place on February 1, 2026 in L.A. at Crypto.com Arena. The industry is fragmented and watercooler moments are fewer and farther between. There was no “song of the summer” this year, let alone a clear-cut song of the year. It’s more and more an uphill battle to “name that tune” and I’m not sure the Grammys is still the right board to make the call, despite the progress they’ve made. I’m impressed with their website, though, which has cool commentary, fun ways of laying out the nominees, and even a Grammy Music IQ game powered by IBM Watson.
As a culture marketer, I believe that if it’s in the paper today, it’s yesterday’s news. Real-time data is a crucial commodity when it comes to staying on the pulse of culture, and the Grammys are focused on celebrating the year that was, not the year that’s coming. Here are my main takeaways from this year’s nominations:
Who is more relevant: Grammys or TikTok?
With 95 categories, it’s hard for the Grammys not to have some hits. But who do you think wins in terms of media, impressions, and overall relevance? The first ever TikTok Awards this year or the Grammys? TikTok killed the video star of the MTV days, but I don’t think it will have the influence to upend the entire music business.
Grammy Ecosystem is a System
Once you are a Grammy darling, it’s a gift that keeps on giving. Does Billie Eilish deserve to be here for songs she released in 2024? Doechii, last year’s breakout star from the show, was nominated for song of the year with “Anxiety,” even though the track was originally released in 2019 (I’ll admit, the track sums up 2025 quite nicely, though). Kendrick is off cycle and still dominating. On the whole, there may be too many familiar Grammy faces for my taste.
Good Year for Hip-Hop at the Grammys, but Not On The Charts
The Grammys gave hip-hop its biggest look yet this year and I’m excited about that. I remember when they didn’t even televise the category. For years, the Academy was out of step with rap’s dominance of culture, so I’m loving the fact that Clipse is getting the respect they deserve with nominations for album of the year, best rap song, best rap album, and more. If “marketing rollout of the year” was an award, they would be a shoe-in for that, too. Don’t miss their new GQ Men of the year interview either.
But in terms of real-time data, the Academy is a little late. Last week, for the first time in 35 years, there were no hip-hop songs in the Billboard Top 40. At least they won’t get hit with the #GrammysSoWhite hashtag like 2017.
It Takes 10 Years To Be Best New Arist
The best new artist category is always an exciting way to highlight up-and-comers, and the curse of best new artist has been dispelled in the past decade. I mean, you can’t really have a sophomore slump when you get nominated for your fourth project, right?
See, talent like Addison Rae, Leon Thomas, and recent SNL musical guest Sombr have all been around for many, many years. Music executive Riggs Morales summed it up nicely with this emotional post about the Marias, who he signed in 2017. Sometimes overnight success takes 10 years. It just seems like the Grammys have lost the plot a bit with this category.
Snubs!
My personal favorites all got the cold shoulder this year. I’m bummed to not see Role Model get nominated (“Sally…” is my jam). Maybe he jinxed himself saying he’d rather be People’s Sexiest Man of the Year than win a Grammy. He got that award, but took his eyes off the prize.
Speaking of eyes on the prize, Slick Rick’s Victory is a visual masterpiece and a major miss by the Academy. There is no better visual album than this project he put out with Idris Elba and Nas’ Mass Appeal.
BigXthaPlug is my favorite rapper right now. I know he was nominated in 2024 as the XXL Awards’ Best New Artist, but he’s been feeding us hits all year and deserves a look when you talk about artists of the year in 2025.
Perhaps the ultimate snub was of the Grammys themselves. Morgan Wallen, arguably the biggest artist in the country right now, didn’t submit his smash hit album this year, returning to his 2022-2024 stance after last year’s collab with The Weeknd.
Sinners Is Actually The Music Moment of The Year
As someone who doesn’t like scary movies or period pieces, I can say Sinners was one of the best movies ever made on so many levels. There’s a reason it’s got a 97 on Rotten Tomatoes. One of my go-to jokes at cocktail parties is to try to point out the three people who didn’t give it a perfect score. There are two scenes in this movie that will stick with me forever as some of the greatest music scenes in movie history. This film is set up for not only a monstrous Grammy outcome, but major Oscar love around the bend.
The Stage is Set for Bad Bunny
Speaking of around the bend, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, better known as Bad Bunny, is up in all the top all-genre categories for his latest album, Debí Tirar Más Fotos, which mixes traditional Puerto Rican styles like plena with his more familiar reggaeton and trap. The stage is set for a BIG political statement in California if he crushes the Grammys just a week before he‘ll make history with the first all-Spanish performance at the Super Bowl halftime show This is a story worth telling in America right now and I think can be a storybook win if it plays out the way we hope.
Critical opinions aside, The Grammys are an awesome week for the industry with the parties, brunches, meetings, and music. There are so many tentpole moments to tie in brands and enhance storytelling, and many artists will have their “moment” that will live on for a lifetime. The Clios Music awards take place that week as well, celebrating the best ads and music collaborations. Nue’s very own Alex Kirshbaum is a juror this year, so he’s seeing all of the best in class and is thoroughly inspired.
This is the last year the Grammys will be broadcast with CBS and Paramount. Starting in 2027, they move over to the House of the Mouse, which presents an exciting world of possibilities in which music stars and their stories can be enhanced with the magic of Disney. I wonder with amusement how things will play out over the next few years…
Beats + Bytes goes out each week to a capacity larger than Crypto.com’s arena. Packing out stadiums is one thing, but even more so, I hope this information can inform your job, feed your passion for music, and inspire you in one way or another. It’s a music industry love letter each week. Sharing is caring. If you feel inclined, please send to some friends and colleagues by clicking here: https://nueagency.com/beatsbytes/
