Given the increasing chatter over who’s set to perform on the Grammy Awards — or, as in the case of Ariana Grande, who’s not — it may have slipped your mind that Sunday’s show will also feature the distribution of eight or nine golden trophies. (That’s how many Grammys are expected to be awarded on the live CBS telecast, with the remaining 70-something to be handed out during an untelevised ceremony Sunday afternoon.) But forget about music’s biggest prize we, at least, have not. Here are some final predictions as show time approaches. Album of the year The Recording Academy’s decision to boost the number of nominees in the major categories from five to eight — one of several measures this year intended to bring some overdue diversity to the field — means there’s no clear front-runner for the night’s most prestigious title. Advertisement Oddsmakers have pointed to Kacey Musgraves’ “Golden Hour,” a quirky yet intimate country album that strikes the blend of tradition and innovation that academy members so often reward. But the presence of another such album — Brandi Carlile’s “By the Way, I Forgive You” — could end up splitting the vote. The same goes for a pair of streaming hip-hop smashes in Drake’s “Scorpion” and Post Malone’s “Beerbongs & Bentleys” and for two left-of-center R&B efforts in Janelle Monáe’s “Dirty Computer” and the self-titled debut by H.E.R. That leaves Cardi B’s “Invasion of Privacy” and Kendrick Lamar’s soundtrack for “Black Panther,” the latter of which has the edge if only because this is the fourth time the celebrated rapper has been up for album of the year. With his three previous losses still a sore point for many, expect voters to attempt some damage control here. Cardi B performs at the Coachella festival in 2018. (Maria Alejandra Cardona / Los Angeles Times) Record of the year The correct choice, of course, is “I Like It” by Cardi B, Bad Bunny and J Balvin — the irresistible (and inescapable) Latin-pop smash that united generations and felt like a political statement even as Cardi B rapped about her love of fancy sneakers that look like socks. But it was just last year that a similarly geared number, “Despacito,” somehow lost this prize. And if there’s one thing the academy loves, it’s repeating its mistakes (as Lamar, among others, can tell you). Absurdly, a rapper has never won this prize, which would seem to narrow the chances of Malone’s “Rockstar,” Drake’s “God’s Plan” and Lamar and SZA’s hit “Black Panther” duet, “All the Stars.” Ditto Childish Gambino’s “This Is America,” though voters may have been sufficiently moved by that song’s video — in which Donald Glover addresses gun violence and racial terror with an unflinching eye — to relax their usual bias against hip-hop. Advertisement The smart money is on Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s “Shallow,” a real-deal event record that’s taken on a life beyond “A Star Is Born” — and satisfies the Grammys’ well established desire to see a slick pop star go rootsy. Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in a scene from “A Star Is Born.” (Clay Enos / Warner Bros. Pictures) Song of the year The academy’s highest-profile songwriting award — as opposed to record of the year, which recognizes performance and production — song of the year has historically made even less room for rap than the other category. So it’s almost impossible to imagine “God’s Plan,” “This Is America” or “All the Stars” winning here. (Tellingly, “I Like It” and “Rockstar” weren’t even nominated.) Advertisement Nods for Ella Mai’s “Boo’d Up” and Shawn Mendes’ “In My Blood” reflect voters’ admiration for young songwriters who’ve paid close attention to their predecessors; the presence of “The Middle” — the country-pop-EDM collaboration from Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey — suggests the academy is less opposed to songwriting-by-committee than you might’ve thought. (“The Middle” has seven credited writers, more than any other nominee this year.) But like recent tunes by Adele, Sam Smith, Lady Antebellum and the Dixie Chicks before it, “Shallow” seems primed to take both song and record of the year. Chloe Bailey, left, and Halle Bailey of Chloe x Halle perform at Coachella in 2018. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times) Best new artist Advertisement Expect more vote-splitting here, particularly between Bebe Rexha and Dua Lipa and between Luke Combs and Margo Price — although given that it’s been nearly a decade since a country act won best new artist, the latter two may never have had a chance to begin with. Greta Van Fleet’s nomination feels like little more than a last-ditch effort to land a rock band somewhere in the major categories; Jorja Smith released an intriguing debut (and made some impressive guest appearances with Drake and Kali Uchis) but remains too obscure to win. Who’s left? Chloe x Halle, the Beyoncé-mentored sister duo who sang “America the Beautiful” at last weekend’s Super Bowl, and H.E.R., whose album of the year nod makes voters’ preference clear. ‘The 61st Annual Grammy Awards’ Advertisement Where: CBS When: 5 p.m. (live) and 8:30 p.m. (tape) Sunday mikael.wood@latimes.com Twitter: @mikaelwood<doc-sep>If you want to know who wins big at the Grammys, don’t wait until the evening’s telecast. That televised event on CBS is jam-packed with performances, so there are usually only a few top awards presented throughout the night. The real main event for eagle-eyed awards watches is the afternoon Premiere Ceremony, where most of the 84 Grammy categories are decided. Scroll down for our live blog with the key moments, winners, upsets, and analysis of the pre-show, which starts streaming at 3:30pm Eastern/12:30pm Pacific on Grammy.com. While the top awards — including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist — will be handed out in the evening, there are actually dozens of categories spanning genres from rock, pop and R&B to jazz, American roots, new age and classical. The majority of these prizes were doled out at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California, right across from the Staples Center where the primetime telecast will be held. These festivities are hosted by Grammy-winning reggae artist Shaggy, who was a nominee for Best Reggae Album again this year for his collaboration with Sting, “44/876.” Performers at the Premiere Ceremony are Grammy nominees Sofi Tukker (Best Dance/Electronic Album for “Treehouse”), Snatam Kaur (Best New Age Album for “Beloved”), Craig Morris (Best Classical Instrumental Solo for “Glass”), Seun Kuti (Best World Music Album for “Black Times”) and Fatoumata Diawara (Best World Music Album for “Fenfo”). SIGN UPfor Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions Presenters for the event include Lzzy Hale of the Grammy nominated rock band Halestorm, Kalani Pe’a, Questlove, Cécile McLorin Salvant, TOKiMONSTA and Jimmy Jam. Find out what happened below starting at 3:30pm (all times listed are Eastern). 3:46pm — First award of the night goes to Dave Chappelle: Best Comedy Album for “Equanimity and The Bird Revelation.” This is his second straight victory in the category. Meanwhile, Tony winner “The Band’s Visit” takes down “Jesus Christ Superstar” for Best Musical Theater Album, which means poor Sara Bareilles is still Grammy-less. 3:52pm — Beck wins Best Alternative Album for “Colors.” That’s his third win in the category, following his victories for “Odelay” (1997) and “Mutations” (2000). This ties the all-time record shared by Radiohead and The White Stripes, who have also won the prize three times. 3:57 — Oscar nominee Terence Blanchard takes home the award for Best Instrumental Composition for “Blood and Soil” from “BlacKkKlansman.” This is the fifth Grammy of his career. He beat the likes of John Williams (“Solo”) and Alexandre Desplat (“The Shape of Water”), so could this be a good sign for Blanchard as we move towards the Oscars in a couple of weeks. 3:59pm — Weird Al Yankovic explains that he’s been playing the “long game” until he could finally win a Grammy as an art director. He prevailed for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package for “Squeeze Box: The Complete Works Of Weird Al Yankovic.” It’s the fifth win for the musical comedian. 4:04pm — Beck wins again! He claims Best Engineered Album for “Colors,” but the victory for significant for another reason: Emily Lazar reveals upon accepting the award with the engineering team that she’s the first woman ever to win the award. Considering the sheer number of engineers nominated every year and the number of winners in the “Colors” team alone, that’s … crazy. 4:16pm — Tori Kelly didn’t win Best New Artist when she was nominated in 2016, but now she’s a first-time Grammy winner: Best Gospel Performance/Song for “Never Alone” with Kirk Franklin. When it comes to the Grammys it pays to team up with Franklin, who has now won 13 times. 4:17pm — And Tori Kelly goes two for two with her victory for Best Gospel Album for “Hiding Place”! Country/Christian singer Lauren Daigle is also a double winner tonight with victories for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance (“You Say”) and Best Contemporary Christian Album (“Look Up Child”). 4:27pm — “The Greatest Showman” takes Best Visual Media Compilation. This gives songwriters Justin Paul and Benj Pasek their second Grammys, while star Hugh Jackman picks up his first Grammy. Jackman already has a Tony and an Emmy, so he’s now just an Oscar away from EGOT. 4:29pm — “Black Panther” takes Best Visual Media Score for Ludwig Goransson over last year’s Oscar winner Desplat (“The Shape of Water”). Goransson is also nominated for his work with Childish Gambino on his songs “This is America” and “Feels Like Summer.” 4:32pm — Lady Gaga officially wins BAFTA and Grammy in the same day as she takes Best Visual Media Song for “Shallow” from “A Star is Born” along with her co-writers Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt. This is the seventh Grammy of her career, and she has four other nominations tonight. Bradley Cooper doesn’t share this victory since he didn’t write “Shallow,” but Cooper has a couple of chances to win for his vocal performance: Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. 4:41pm — “It’s our first Grammy!” exclaims Brandi Carlile upon winning the first of her six nominations: Best American Roots Performance for “The Joke.” Immediately after she won Best American Roots Song, which is a songwriting award. And she completed her sweep by claiming Best Americana Album for “By the Way, I Forgive You.” “Americana music is the island of the misfit toys … It is this music that has shaped my life.” She recounted how she came out of the closet when she was 15 and never went to any dances; this was a great dance to be invited to now. Later tonight she’s up for Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year. 4:51pm — The legendary 82-year-old Buddy Guy wins his eighth Grammy: Best Traditional Blues Album for “The Blues Is Alive And Well.” The last time he was at the Grammys was three years ago when he was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the recording academy.<doc-sep>Last year Bruno Mars was the king of the Grammy Awards winning all six of his races. This year, one of the artists he bested for many of those prizes, Kendrick Lamar, leads with a whopping eight nominations. Many of these bids come for his work on the “Black Panther” soundtrack and the chart-topping single “All the Stars.” Likewise, Lady Gaga earned four nominations for “Shallow,” the love ballad from her film “A Star is Born.” Both of their songs also contend at the Academy Awards. The four general field categories — Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best New Artist — are the top prizes at the Grammys. While the nominees are drawn from across a variety of music genres, the winners of these Grammy Awards tend to be the biggest pop and rock acts like Mars, Adele, Taylor Swift, and Mumford and Sons. SEE 2019 Grammys online: How to watch Grammy Awards live stream without a TV The winners will be revealed on Feb. 10 in a two-part ceremony at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The majority of the awards in the 84 categories spread across 30 fields will be handed out in a non-televised event, the Premiere Ceremony, that afternoon. The televised portion of the Grammys will begin on CBS at 5:00 p.m. PT/8:00 p.m. ET. Expect that 3.5 hour telecast to be dominated by musical performances with about a dozen presentations of prizes. Scroll down for the full and complete list of nominees for the 61st annual Grammy Awards. GENERAL FIELD Record Of The Year “I Like It” — Cardi B, Bad Bunny & J Balvin “The Joke” — Brandi Carlile “This Is America” — Childish Gambino “God’s Plan” — Drake “Shallow” — Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper “All The Stars” — Kendrick Lamar & SZA “Rockstar” — Post Malone Featuring 21 Savage “The Middle” — Zedd, Maren Morris & Grey Album Of The Year “Invasion Of Privacy” — Cardi B “By The Way, I Forgive You” — Brandi Carlile “Scorpion” — Drake “H.E.R.” — H.E.R. “Beerbongs & Bentleys” — Post Malone “Dirty Computer” — Janelle Monáe “Golden Hour” — Kacey Musgraves “Black Panther: The Album, Music From And Inspired By” (Various Artists) Song Of The Year “All The Stars”— Kendrick Duckworth, Mark Spears, Al Shuckburgh, Anthony Tiffith and Solana Rowe “Boo’d Up”— Larrance Dopson, Joelle James, Ella Mai, and Dijon McFarlane “God’s Plan” — Aubrey Graham, Daveon Jackson, Brock Korsan, Ron Latour, Matthew Samuels and Noah Shebib. “In My Blood”— Teddy Geiger, Scott Harris, Shawn Mendes and Geoffrey Warburton “The Joke”— Brandi Carlile, Dave Cobb, Phil Hanseroth and Tim Hanseroth “The Middle”— Sarah Aarons, Jordan K. Johnson, Stefan Johnson, Marcus Lomax, Kyle Trewartha, Michael Trewartha and Anton Zaslavski “Shallow”— Lady Gaga, Mark Ronson, Anthony Rossomando and Andrew Wyatt “This Is America”— Donald Glover and Ludwig Göransson Best New Artist Chloe x Halle Luke Combs Greta Van Fleet H.E.R. Dua Lipa Margo Price Bebe Rexha Jorja Smith SIGN UP for Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions COUNTRY FIELD Best Country Solo Performance “Wouldn’t It Be Great?” — Loretta Lynn “Mona Lisas And Mad Hatters” — Maren Morris “Butterflies” — Kacey Musgraves “Millionaire” — Chris Stapleton “Parallel Line” — Keith Urban Best Country Duo/Group Performance “Shoot Me Straight” — Brothers Osborne “Tequila” — Dan + Shay ” When Someone Stops Loving You” — Little Big Town “Dear Hate” — Maren Morris Featuring Vince Gill “Meant To Be” — Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line Best Country Album “Unapologetically” — Kelsea Ballerini “Port Saint Joe” — Brothers Osborne “Girl Going Nowhere” — Ashley McBryde “Golden Hour” — Kacey Musgraves “From A Room: Volume 2” — Chris Stapleton Best Country Song “Break Up In The End” — Jessie Jo Dillon, Chase McGill & Jon Nite, songwriters (Cole Swindell) “Dear Hate” — Tom Douglas, David Hodges & Maren Morris, Songwriters (Maren Morris Featuring Vince Gill) “I Lived It” — Rhett Akins, Ross Copperman, Ashley Gorley & Ben Hayslip, songwriters (Blake Shelton) “Space Cowboy” — Luke Laird, Shane McAnally & Kacey Musgraves, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves) “Tequila” — Nicolle Galyon, Jordan Reynolds & Dan Smyers, songwriters (Dan + Shay) “When Someone Stops Loving You” — Hillary Lindsey, Chase McGill & Lori McKenna, songwriters (Little Big Town) DISCUSS All the Grammy nominations with music insiders in our red-hot forums POP FIELD Best Pop Solo Performance “Colors” — Beck “Havana (Live)” — Camila Cabello “God Is A Woman” — Ariana Grande “Joanne (Where Do You Think You’re Goin’? )” — Lady Gaga “Better Now” — Post Malone Best Pop Duo/Group Performance “Fall In Line” — Christina Aguilera Featuring Demi Lovato “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” — Backstreet Boys “‘S Wonderful” — Tony Bennett & Diana Krall “Shallow” — Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper “Girls I Like You” — Maroon 5 Featuring Cardi B “Say Something” — Justin Timberlake Featuring Chris Stapleton “The Middle” — Zedd, Maren Morris & Grey Best Pop Vocal Album “Camila” — Camila Cabello “Meaning Of Life” — Kelly Clarkson “Sweetener” — Ariana Grande “Shawn Mendes” — Shawn Mendes “Beautiful Trauma” — P!nk “Reputation” — Taylor Swift TRADITIONAL POP FIELD Best Traditional Pop Album “Love Is Here To Stay” — Tony Bennett & Diana Krall “My Way” — Willie Nelson “Nat “King” Cole & Me” — Gregory Porter “Standards” — Seal “The Music… The Mem’ries… The Magic!” — Barbra Streisand R&B FIELD Best R&B Performance “Long As I Live” — Toni Braxton “Summer” — The Carters “Y O Y” — Lalah Hathaway “Best Part” — H.E.R. Featuring Daniel Caesar “First Began” — PJ Morton Best Traditional R&B Performance “Bet Ain’t Worth The Hand” — Leon Bridges “Don’t Fall Apart On Me Tonight” — Bettye LaVette “Honest” — MAJOR. “How Deep Is Your Love” — PJ Morton Featuring Yebba “Made For Love” — Charlie Wilson Featuring Lalah Hathaway Best Urban Contemporary Album “Everything Is Love” — The Carters “The Kids Are Alright “— Chloe x Halle “Chris Dave And The Drumhedz” — Chris Dave And The Drumhedz “War & Leisure” — Miguel “Ventriloquism” — Meshell Ndegeocello Best R&B Album “Sex & Cigarettes” — Toni Braxton<doc-sep>The 61st annual Grammys are this Sunday (February 10) on CBS. Alicia Keys will host this telecast that airs live nationwide from the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles beginning at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET. While winners of the marquee categories like Album and Record of the Year will be revealed during this three-hour ceremony, the vast majority of the 84 Grammy Awards will be handed out during an afternoon event that the recording academy has dubbed the Premiere Ceremony. This three-hour awards shows kicks off at 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET and will be hosted by Shaggy at the Microsoft Theater. That venue is part of the same complex as the main arena making it easy for nominees to attend both ceremonies. This earlier event, in which winners of upwards of 70 categories will be revealed, will stream online at Grammy.com. SEE 2019 Grammys: Full list of nominations for the 61st Grammy Awards The slate of presenters includes current Grammy nominees Lzzy Hale of Halestorm, Kalani Pe’a, Questlove, Cécile McLorin Salvant and TOKiMONSTA, as well as one-time recording academy chair Jimmy Jam. SEE 2019 Grammys online: How to watch Grammy Awards live stream without a TV Among those set to perform are singer/songwriter Snatam Kaur, trumpeter Craig Morris and dance duo Sofi Tukker. Nigerian Afrobeat artist Seun Kuti and Malian singer/songwriter Fatoumata Diawara will sing together, while Ángela Aguilar, Aida Cuevas and Natalia Lafourcade will unite for the first time to perform “La Llorona,” a Mexican folkloric classic all three artists have recorded. SEE 2019 Grammy winners: Who voted for the 61st annual Grammy Awards?<doc-sep>
Sign up for our PoliticsNY newsletter for the latest coverage and to stay informed about the 2021 elections in your district and across NYC This year’s Grammys have expanded the Big Four (Best Song, Record, Album and New Artist) from five nominees to eight, meaning there’ll be a lot more names to introduce during the telecast. And while it’s muddied up the waters for prognosticators, there can still only be one winner in each category. Who will it be? Will Cardi B dominate Grammy night the same way she’s dominated conversation all year? Will Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper warm up for the Oscars with a couple of Grammy wins? We’ve broken down the main four categories, along with the Best Music Video selection, to see who’s got a realistic chance and who’s just hoping. (Note: If you value your money, please don’t use these picks for gambling purposes.) Record of the Year “I Like It,” Cardi B “The Joke,” Brandi Carlile “This is America,” Childish Gambino “God’s Plan,” Drake “Shallow,” Lady Gaga/Bradley Cooper “All the Stars,” Kendrick Lamar/SZA “Rockstar” Post Malone feat. 21 Savage “The Middle” Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey Will win: No rap song has ever been selected as Record of the Year; even though both “I Like It” and “All the Stars” would fall into an award show favorite storyline (artist wins award the year or two after they should have won it), it’s hard to pick either. With five rap songs in the category, there could easily be a split vote, with “Shallow” lovers leaving happy. Should win: Record of the Year is the “producers” category, as opposed to “Song of the Year,” the “songwriters” category. For that specific focus, “This is America” is the most interesting in a somewhat underwhelming field. Album of the Year “Invasion of Privacy,” Cardi B “By the Way I Forgive You,” Brandi Carlile “Scorpion,” Drake “H.E.R.,” H.E.R. “Beerbongs and Bentleys,” Post Malone “Dirty Computer,” Janelle Monáe “Golden Hour,” Kacey Musgraves “Black Panther: The Album, Music From and Inspired By,” [various artists] Will win: History hasn’t been kind to hip-hop here, either (2004’s OutKast album “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” is the last rap album to win). This is a truly up-in-the-air category, but Kacey Musgraves’ country-by-way-of-every-other-genre album may please enough to get over the hump. Should win: Do we just take for granted that Janelle Monáe is going to work at this level forever? “Dirty Computer” didn’t get the adoration it deserved the first time around, and it’d be a surprise to see it get that attention here, but it’s the album we’ll look back at a decade from now. Song of the Year “All the Stars,” Kendrick Lamar/SZA “God’s Plan,” Drake “Boo’d Up,” Ella Mai “In My Blood,” Shawn Mendes “The Joke,” Brandi Carlile “The Middle” Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey “This is America,” Childish Gambino “Shallow,” Lady Gaga/Bradley Cooper Will win: The same song swept the Song and Record categories in two of the last four years, and last year they were different songs by the same artist (Bruno Mars). The Academy last gave the Best Song to a track written and performed for a movie soundtrack in 1997 (Eric Clapton’s “Change the World” from the film “Phenomenon”), so this might be the year… Should win: … and it should be, but with a different choice. Kendrick Lamar has one more Pulitzer Prize than he does Grammy Award in one of the Big Four categories. It would be fitting for the MC (alongside SZA) to be the first artist to win hip-hop’s first-ever Song of the Year Award, even if it should have come in 2016 (“Thinking Out Loud” over “Alright”?). Best New Artist Chloe x Halle Luke Combs Greta Van Fleet H.E.R. Dua Lipa Margo Price Bebe Rexha Jorja Smith Will win: The expansion of the category to eight nominees and the rules stating that the “new” artist can have already released two albums makes it anyone’s guess which of these artists takes this home. Luke Combs topped country charts for much of last year, which may give him a small edge over someone like H.E.R., who the Academy clearly likes enough to give her a Best Album nod this year. Should win: Jorja Smith’s “Lost & Found” is one of 2018’s underrated gems in this country, but it was a massive hit in her native England; it was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize, the U.K.’s equivalent of Best Album.