The votes are in! Here’s a bit of analysis on the biggest awards, examining the 2022 Grammys winners and who missed out this year.
The votes are in! Here’s a bit of analysis on the biggest awards, examining the 2022 Grammys winners and who missed out this year.
Olivia Rodrigo’s smash hit “Driver’s License seemed like the clearest choice, but producers Bruno Mars and D’Mile really did make a special sound in “Leave the Door Open.” The remaining group of winners (Serban Ghenea, John Hanes, Charles Moniz, and Randy Merrill) deserves a shoutout for creating the best-engineered single of the year.
We Are is a deserving choice and surprising one, considering typical winners Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift were also nominated for Album of the Year. Olivia Rodrigo as the clear best new artist of the group seemed like another clear choice, so props to the voters for picking perhaps the highest caliber record of the bunch (Montero was also nominated, but its sprawling shifts make for a hard sell to typical folks).
This makes more sense to win here, though seeing “Driver’s License” passed up again is downright shocking. Seeing Anderson .Paak get recognized for his contribution is a delight, though.
This was probably the easiest category to predict; Olivia Rodrigo has the most streamed songs of 2021 despite debuting the same year.
Another easy to predict category. Though she’s been the main winner of the past two Grammys, Billie Eilish has arguably the best record of the nominees (Sour is a close second, though). Instead, Eilish walked away without a single Grammy this year.
Subconsciously winning is another nice surprise, even with features from Usher, Pharrell Williams, David Guetta, and Diplo. Marshmello and Major Lazer are significantly more popular, so Black Coffee is a welcome nod to his abilities.
With veteran rockers Paul McCartney and AC/DC nominated, Foo Fighters pulled off a remarkable upset here (though they are perhaps the most popular rock band of the 21st century, so not that surprising if you think about it). Foo Fighters' win is bittersweet since their drummer of over 20 years died unexpectedly on March 25th of this year.
For indie lovers, this would be a tough choice between albums from Arlo Parks, Fleet Foxes, Japanese Breakfast, St. Vincent, and Nine Inch Nails-produced Halsey. St. Vincent is the most in line with today’s retro appreciation, but Japanese Breakfast has the best album of the nominees.
How did this happen? Another thrilling surprise is Jazmine Sullivan’s win over Jon Batiste, whose same record won Album of the Year. This is a deserving and delightfully astonishing win.
Yet another quality-over-legacy choice in this year’s winners! Call Me If You Get Lost is arguably the best album of the year, period, and its win over the albums of J. Cole, Nas, and Kanye West is a thrill to experience.
All of these winners are recommended for checking out! All can be found on your favorite streaming service.