The 2020 Grammy Award Nominations Are Finally Here

The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards are set to air on Sunday, January 26, 2020. They officially just announced the nominations and it's quite a list of diverse artists. Newcomer Lizzo received the most nominations with a total of eight, followed by other popular artists including Lil Nas X and Billie Eilish.

Even though many singers got recognized for their fine achievements in music there are others who were left in the dust. Find out who got majorly snubbed and who came out on top with the 2020 Grammy nominations.

The Truth Doesn't Hurt For Lizzo

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Lizzo is a relatively fresh face in the mainstream music industry, but that hasn't stopped her from becoming a best-selling artist. She had a few hit singles before 2019, but the major turning point in her career was the release of her album Cuz I Love You.

She is now leading the way for the 2020 Grammy Awards with eight nominations in categories such as Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, and Song Of The Year. The only females who've received more Grammy nominations in one night include Beyoncé and Lauryn Hill with 10 each.

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This Isn't What Taylor Swift Fans Were Expecting

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After becoming a household name over a decade ago Taylor Swift is no stranger to the Grammys. With almost 40 nominations and wins, she's experienced what it feels like for people to notice her massive music success. Even with four nominations, she was still left out of the prestigious Album Of The Year category.

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Music experts predicted that 2019's Lover would take home the award for that category because of its positive reception. This also happened the year prior for Reputation, but it's great to see that there are still some diverse artists getting their turn for a Grammy.

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Beyoncé Is Still A Grammy Favorite

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Beyoncé had quite the year after starring as Nala in Disney's remake of The Lion King. It would seem trivial not to include her voice in the soundtrack and that led to her to create an album inspired by the movie called The Lion King: The Gift.

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She was honored with four nominations this year for Best Pop Solo Performance, Best Pop Vocal Album, Best Song Written For Visual Media, and Best Music Film. The first three were for her musical contributions in The Lion King and the latter is for her Coachella Music Festival performance filmed for Netflix, called Homecoming.

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The Missed Opportunities For A Star Is Born

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This is the second year in a row where the music from A Star Is Born received Grammy Award nominations. The lead single "Shallow" was the only song that was eligible last year, but now the entire album is being recognized. "Shallow" won two awards in 2019 and reviewers are confused as to why Lady Gaga's work on the entire album only got three nominations.

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Both the movie and its soundtrack were heavily promoted, so it seemed like it would garner many more nominations. Gaga is nominated for Song Of The Year, Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media, and Best Song Written For Visual Media.

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Harry Potter And The Cursed Child Isn't A Musical

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The Best Musical Theater Album category at the Grammy Awards is one of the few times where Broadway musicals are recognized aside from the Tony Awards. This year many popular musicals earned a nomination including Oklahoma!, Moulin Rouge!, Hadestown, and Ain't Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations.

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Harry Potter and the Cursed Child also received a nomination in the same category, but it's something special. It's a play, not a musical. There is no singing, but the reason they were nominated was for the original score by Imogen Heap.

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Billie Eilish May Break A Grammy Record

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Both Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X tied for the second most Grammy nominations with each earning six. Since she was born on December 18, 2001 she qualifies as being the youngest performer in history to receive nominations in all four of the main categories.

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This is a huge accomplishment at such a young age and it's predicted that she'll at least win Album Of The Year for When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? If she wins she will be the youngest to do this by replacing Taylor Swift who won for Fearless in 2010.

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Cardi B Is The Only Female In Her Category

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Even though female rappers aren't always acknowledged, there are plenty of them taking the music industry by storm. This year the rap categories were completely filled up by men with Cardi B only receiving one nomination for being featured on "Clout" by her husband Offset for Best Rap Performance.

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Some experts believe artists such as Megan Thee Stallion and Doja Cat were completely snubbed in the rap category. Even Cardi B who won the category last year wasn't able to earn any solo nominations for 2020.

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Sam Smith Skips Another Year Of Grammy Nominations

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Former Grammy winner Sam Smith and singer Normani released their hit song "Dancing with a Stranger" back in January of 2019. It peaked on several singles charts in the United States and the United Kingdom and received rave reviews from publications including Rolling Stone and Out.

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Its commercial success prompted music reviewers to expect for it to get a Grammy nomination. Smith and Normani didn't end up with a single one, but it can be difficult to compete with artists such as Taylor Swift, Lizzo, Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, and Billie Eilish.

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Ariana Grande Moves Into The Big Leagues

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Over the last few years, it's seemed as though Ariana Grande hasn't taken a break. She's been releasing multiple albums dealing with her relationships, family, and being a woman in today's world. Last year she was able to take home the Best Pop Album award for Sweetener and now she's one of three artists to be nominated for five awards for the 2020 Grammys.

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After changing her music style from "bubble gum" pop to more personal and confessional, it got people noticing her musical capabilities. Thank U, Next is nominated for Album Of The Year and her single, "7 Rings," is nominated for Record Of The Year.

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Lil Nas X Topped The Billboard Charts In 2019

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This batch of nominees is all about letting the next generation of musicians step into the spotlight. Joining Lizzo and Billie Eilish is another first-time nominee, Lil Nas X. He broke a huge music record in 2019 for having his song "Old Town Road" stay in the number one spot on the US Billboard Hot 100 charts for 19 weeks.

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At only 20-years-old he's the only artist to do this since 1958. He is the male with the most nominations in seven categories including Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, and Best New Artist.

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Foreign Music Is Underrepresented

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With the prominence of streaming services, people can listen to music from all over the world at any time. Even though there are many best-selling foreign-language artists only one was nominated outside of a foreign category. Spanish singer Rosalía gets to represent foreign-language artists in the Best New Artist category.

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The Grammys do include foreign-language artists in their own categories such as Best Latin Album, but there are many who are left out of the nominations. This especially applies to the majorly successful K-Pop industry with groups including BTS and Blackpink.

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Bruce Springsteen Fans Think He Got Snubbed

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On June 14, 2019, Bruce Springsteen released his 19th studio album called Western Stars. It was met with critical acclaim with critics saying that it's one of the best albums he's put out in decades. Soon after its release, it was already in the number two spot on the US Billboard 200 album list.

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Even with 20 Grammy awards, he did not receive any nominations, even in the Americana categories. He also released a Netflix original movie called Springsteen on Broadway that was absent from the Best Music Film category.

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Aziz Ansari Is A Grammy Newcomer

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The Grammys offer more than just categories in music, but in all sorts of recording platforms. Even comedians who've never sung a note in their lives can earn an award for Best Comedy Album. The nominees for 2020 include Dave Chappelle, Trevor Noah, Jim Gaffigan, Ellen DeGeneres, and Aziz Ansari.

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This is Ansari's first nomination, but he's up against some of comedy's best. Dave Chappelle won the past two years and this is Jim Gaffigan's fifth nomination, so it's really a toss-up of who will bring home the trophy.

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New Year, More Nominees

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It's been a tradition for the Grammy Awards to only include five nominees in their top-four categories (Best New Artist, Song Of The Year, Album Of The Year, and Record Of The Year). Now, they're allowing a total of eight nominees in each of them.

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This has opened up space for a more diverse group and experts noticed that many of them are part of the indie genre. Artists such as Lana Del Rey, Bon Iver, and Vampire Weekend who normally would be passed over are now in the running with mainstream musicians.

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Rodgers & Hammerstein Are Posthumously Making A Comeback

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Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein were one of the most prolific composing duos of the early 20th century. Their works were mainly for Broadway and film including The Sound of Music, Cinderella, and Carousel. Now, their projects are still living out their legacy almost two decades into the 21st century.

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Ariana Grande's single "7 Rings" is nominated for Record Of The Year and samples the same melody used in The Sound of Music's "My Favorite Things." Also, the revival of their musical Oklahoma! is nominated for Best Musical Theater Album.

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The Common Denominator In R&B

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Almost all the nominees in the Best R&B Performance category had one thing in common. Four out of the five are duets. Daniel Caesar and Brandy, H.E.R. and Bryson Tiller (pictured), Lizzo and Gucci Mane, and Anderson .Paak and André 3000 all had their duets included.

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Lucky Daye was the only solo artist to be nominated, for "Roll Some Mo." He also was one of the favorites because he received a total of four Grammy nominations. The reason why many of them are duets is to try and get people in one fan base to become fans of the other artist.

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Elton John's Rocketman Has A Chance Of Winning

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The last couple of years brought many music biopics to the forefront. After the release of Freddie Mercury's Bohemian Rhapsody, other artists started to get their stories told on screen. In 2019 Rocketman was released starring newcomer Taron Egerton as Elton John.

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The two movies were heavily compared, but one of the main differences was that Egerton sang all of the songs, as opposed to Rami Malek's lip-syncing in Bohemian Rhapsody. Even though Elton John didn't get a nomination this year, the film received one for Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media.

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Alicia Keys Will Host

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It wouldn't be an award show without a host. Grammy-winning singer/songwriter and producer Alicia Keys is set to host the 2020 Grammy Awards. While she isn't nominated for one of the awards this year, she has plenty of experience on the receiving end after being nominated 30 times.

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It hasn't been announced yet who will perform at the show, but Billboard music experts think some potentials will include Taylor Swift, Post Malone, Lil Nas X, and Billie Eilish.

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Why These Artists Didn't Get The Right Nominations

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While there were a great number of iconic artists who received Grammy nominations for 2020, there are also more who didn't make the list. Halsey just received an American Music Award for her song "Without Me," and music critics believed it would be nominated for either Record or Song Of The Year.

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Other artists had unbelievable years in the music industry, but seemed to be skipped over in certain categories. Musicians such as Maren Morris, Tyler, The Creator, The 1975, and Maggie Rogers all received one nomination each but were expected to get a lot more.

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The Grammy Underdogs

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The most coveted categories at the Grammy Awards are Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Song Of The Year, and Best New Artist. With musicians including Billie Eilish, Lizzo, and Lil Nas X leading the way fans shouldn't forget about the other artists who were chosen to compete alongside them.

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Singers such as Bon Iver (pictured), H.E.R., Vampire Weekend, Brandi Carlile, Lewis Capaldi, Black Pumas, Tank and the Bangas, and Yola aren't as mainstream, but have made it into one or more of the top four categories.