The Current's Grammys preview
by Jill Riley and Mac Wilson
January 24, 2020
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards are coming up on Sunday, Jan. 26, and Mac Wilson, a longtime Grammys follower, joined Jill Riley on The Morning Show to share some insights ahead of an important night in the music calendar.
Listen to the complete segment above and read highlights below.
Interview Highlights
On Best New Artist:
"As with everything in the top awards, it looks like it's going to be Billie Eilish versus Lizzo, as has been the trend for all of 2019. Lil Nas X in there as well. And then many artists worthy of recognition who have gotten a lot of airplay on The Current, whether it's Black Pumas, Maggie Rogers, Rosalia, Tank and the Bangas and Yola, all of whom are staples on The Current. It's really exciting to see them nominated in there and get this moment in the spotlight. … [The winner is] probably going to be somebody known nationwide, probably either Lizzo or Billie Eilish."
On the Album of the Year:
"One thing I'm going to be watching for Album of the Year, in particular, as all eyes are going to be on Lizzo versus Billie Eilish — whether or not they'll split the vote — we might get some relative surprise in there for Album of the Year. I look back at the odds when Beck won Album of the Year five years ago, he was up against Beyoncé and Sam Smith, and he went off at seven-to-one odds and then wound up winning for Morning Phase, so you could have somebody like Bon Iver or Vampire Weekend or even Lana Del Rey winning Album of the Year. It would not surprise me at all."
On the Alternative Music categories:
"Big Thief got their first nomination for U.F.O.F., they'll be going up against James Blake Bon Iver, Vampire Weekend and Grammy favorite Thom Yorke for his solo record. I would expect that one to come down to Bon Iver or Vampire Weekend, both of whom have won this award in the past."
On the outlook for Lizzo, who is nominated for eight awards:
"I would expect her to sweep the R&B and Urban categories. I would expect her to win that because that's typically how trends go at the Grammys: If somebody is nominated for a bunch of high-profile awards, they tend to sweep everything that they're nominated for, and then they're all going up against each other at the top. So the category I would definitely look for to keep an eye on is Pop Solo Performance; that'll be the first opportunity of the night where Billie Eilish and Lizzo are head to head. And whoever wins in that one, I think it'll bear very well for them for the rest of the night."
Hosted by Alicia Keys, the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards will be broadcast live from Staples Center in Los Angeles on Sunday, Jan. 26, starting at 6 p.m. Central on the CBS Television Network and streaming on CBS All Access. The pre-telecast awards will be streamed live at grammy.com. Follow @TheCurrent on Twitter for live coverage during the telecast.
Related Stories
• Lizzo lands Grammy nominations including Best New Artist and Song, Record, Album of the Year Lizzo, a Detroit-born artist who rose to prominence during her years in Minneapolis; and Bon Iver, the band of nearby Eau Claire's Justin Vernon, were among the big honorees when this year's Grammy nominations were announced.
• Full list of 2020 Grammy nominees See a complete list of nominees for the 62nd Grammy Awards. The telecast will air on CBS on Jan. 26, 2020.
External Link
Recording Academy: Grammy Awards - official site
