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When it comes to the 2017Grammys, there’s one particular headline that everyone will be watching out for:Adelevs. Beyoncé.
As two of the main artists whocan still push huge album sales (it’s an off year for Taylor Swift), both women delivered the goods in a big way in 2016. And it’ll be a head-to-head diva collision for who takes home the night’s main prizes.
Beyoncé released what is arguably her career magnum opus, “Lemonade,” in April of this year. A conceptual album (with an accompanying visual component, which debuted on HBO) that channeled all of the emotions in its depiction of the black female experience in America, there’s no overlooking the magnitude of “Lemonade” on the cultural zeitgeist.
On the other hand, one can never bet against Adele, whose third album, “25,” charged forward into the world in November 2015 on the shoulders of ever-infectious lead single “Hello.” The long-awaited “25” sold over 17 million copies in 2015 alone, led to a resurgence in the sales of physical album copies (a feat almost considered impossible in this decade), and was supported by a mega world tour.
It’s anyone’s guess who will prevail in the Album of the Year category. Adele seems well-positioned, with her wide-ranging appeal to young and old and to so many other sectors of the music-listening public. While Beyoncé arguably produced the thematically higher concept work of art with “Lemonade,” Adele seems better positioned to appeal to the Recording Academy’s broad membership.
But with 2016 being the topsy-turvy year that it’s been, one should indeed expect the unexpected. Adele and Beyoncé could end up cancelling each other out, paving the way for another contender to sweep in for the Album of the Year win.
If anyone can disrupt Adele or Beyoncé’s reign, it’s certain to be the late great David Bowie,who diedon Jan. 10. The outpouring of emotion over the Thin White Duke’s death (along with the passing of so many other icons in 2016) was one of music’s most defining stories this past year. His final album, “Blackstar,” was released on his 69th birthday, Jan. 8, just two days before his death.
“Blackstar” also marked thefirst #1 album of Bowie’s career on the Billboard 200. Knowing his death was near, the album was created as a prescient reflection upon his own passing. “Blackstar” was Bowie’s “goodbye” to the world.
Another argument for a Bowie upset is that he’s only ever received two Grammys in the course of his storied career (for Best Video, Short Form in 1985 and a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006). A Bowie win for Album of the Year would feel similar to Ray Charles’ posthumous Album of the Year win for “Genius Loves Company,” a sentimental favorite in 2005, which prevailed over Green Day’s epic rock opera “American Idiot,” also defeating Alicia Keys’ “The Diary of Alicia Keys,” and Usher’s “Confessions.”
So, who could fill those final two Album of the Year spots? 2016 was a huge year for Drake, so the Academy could very well nominate his fourth studio album, “Views,” in this category. Drake’s latest effort also is the first album to hit 1 billion streams on Apple Music. Although lacking Drake’s commercial success, it would be a huge surprise if Radiohead’s “A Moon Shaped Pool” didn’t also slip into the Album of the Year category as well.
Another potential spoiler is Sia, whose concept album “This Is Acting,” didn’t contain a weak track from start to finish. The Aussie’s seventh studio album also had an interesting twist – all of the tracks were originally written by Sia for other artists, but not chosen. The singer/songwriter then re-purposed each song for herself, a move that could very well nab the heard-but-rarely-seen singer a spot as one of the honorees for the night’s main prize.
There are at least eight other contenders who can’t be ruled out as Album of the Year nominees. Bon Iver, 2012’s Best New Artist winner, released a very well-received third studio album this year, “A Million.” Perennial favorite Paul Simon returned last June with his first studio album in five years “Stranger to Stranger” (his 13th, to date), which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart, marking his highest ever debut. Stadium fan favorites Coldplay could sneak in there for “A Head Full of Dreams.” And you can never rule out Jack White, whose “Acoustic Recordings 1998 – 2016” dropped in late September, just in time for the Grammys cutoff.
Hip hop has three major contenders this year as well. Kendrick Lamar’s “untitled unmastered” consisted of unreleased demos from the 2016 Album of the Year contender, “To Pimp a Butterfly.” Newcomer Chance the Rapper could be the main beneficiary of the Recording Academy’s new rule this year to allow submissions that have only been made available through streaming. His album, “Coloring Book,” has been one of the medium’s most successful to date. And Kanye West’s “The Life of Pablo” is also impossible to ignore on its artistic merit, and could gain momentum based on sympathy for the rapper’s recent personal difficulties.
Lastly, it’s hard to imagine any Album of the Year lineup without representation from country music. This year’s entry could be Carrie Underwood’s fifth album, “Storyteller,” which came out way back in October 2015. Dierks Bentley could potentially sneak in with “Black,” as could Eric Church with “Misunderstood.”
(WWD)
