First Grammy predictions are in!
Let's all sing the praises of Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly for being the first topnotch music pundit to tell us who he's predicting will win eight leading Grammy races on Feb. 8.
Unfortunately, we don't know why Chris is making these forecasts. "I'm up in the mountains with the barest of Internet access!" he said by email over the holiday weekend, so we didn't press him to elaborate. We'll bug him later when he comes down from the mountaintop, hopefully with some clay tablets offering divine insight.
Meantime, "here goes nothing," Chris says most modestly. I advise all skeptics to take his gutsy forecasts seriously, however. In February 2004, when Chris and I competed against a half dozen other Grammy gurus at GoldDerby.com, he won.
RECORD OF THE YEAR
X - "We Belong Together," Mariah Carey
"Feel Good Inc.," Gorillaz featuring De La Soul
"Boulevard of Broken Dreams," Green Day
"Hollaback Girl," Gwen Stefani
"Gold Digger," Kanye West
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
"The Emancipation of Mimi," Mariah Carey
"Chaos and Creation in the Backyard," Paul McCartney
"Love, Angel, Music, Baby," Gwen Stefani
X - "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb," U2
"Late Registration," Kanye West
SONG OF THE YEAR
"Bless the Broken Road"
"Devils & Dust"
"Ordinary People"
X - "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own"
"We Belong Together"
BEST NEW ARTIST
Ciara
Fall Out Boy
Keane
X - John Legend
Sugarland
BEST R&B ALBUM
"Illumination," Earth, Wind & Fire
"Free Yourself," Fantasia
X - "Unplugged," Alicia Keys
"Get Lifted," John Legend
"A Time to Love," Stevie Wonder
BEST MALE POP VOCAL PERFORMANCE
Jack Johnson, "Sitting, Waiting, Wishing"
Paul McCartney, "Fine Line"
Seal, "Walk on By"
X - Rob Thomas, "Lonely No More"
Stevie Wonder, "From the Bottom of My Heart"
BEST FEMALE COUNTRY VOCAL PERFORMANCE
Emmylou Harris, "The Connection"
Faith Hill, "Mississippi Girl"
Gretchen Wilson, "All Jacked Up"
X - Lee Ann Womack, "I May Hate Myself in the Morning"
Trisha Yearwood, "Georgia Rain"
BEST RAP SONG
"Candy Shop," Curtis Jackson & Scott Storch, songwriters (50 Cent featuring Olivia)
X - "Diamonds from Sierra Leone," D. Harris & Kanye West, songwriters; (J. Barry & D. Black, songwriters) (Kanye West)
"Don't Phunk with My Heart," William Adams, Printz Board, Stacy Ferguson & George Pajon, Jr., songwriters; (Kalyanji Anandji, Full Force & Indeewar, songwriters) (The Black Eyed Peas)
"Hate It or Love It," Curtis Jackson, A. Lyon, Jayceon Taylor & M. Valenzano, songwriters; (Baker, Felder & Harris, songwriters) (The Game featuring 50 Cent)
"Lose Control," M. Elliott, C. Harris & G. Isaacs III, songwriters; (J. Atkins, R. Davis & C. Hudson, songwriters) (Missy Elliott featuring Ciara & Fat Man Scoop)
Photo: Music reporter Chris Willman believes U2's "Atomic Bomb" will decimate the competition in the album and song of the year contests.
(Interscope Records)
Hey bud. I've posted MY predictions on my blog. We differ in every category except "NEW ARTIST" John Legend is this years Norah Jones.
Let's compare!
www.myspace.com/_dustin25
Posted by: Dustin | February 08, 2006 at 03:08 PM
Carey's album may be the highest selling, but Ray Charles won last year and he didn't outsell American Idiot, or Usher's Confessions. U2 should win in pretty much every category they were nominated for. How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb is a masterpiece not to mention it was followed by a HUGE tour that is still ongoing. U2 should have a good night this wednesday.
Posted by: cjboog | February 05, 2006 at 10:53 AM
I hope Mariah wins Song Of The Year, because We Belong Together really deserved it! Think about it: she had the greatest comeback, 15 weeks of Number 1 spot in Billboard (and there some other important things like being number one in 7 or 8 charts at the same time), the most listened song of all times, the best selling album of 2005... At least she should receive some grammys for all those success.
And my predictions about Mariah:
As I said I think she should win Song Of The Year but U2 and John Lenegd are dangerous competitors.
She is probably going to win Record Of The Year. But Gwen Stefani...
Album Of The Year: I know that The Emancipation Of Mimi is not a very strong album but because of the reasons I explained above I think she should win. U2 is the biggest obstacle.
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance: I think It's Like That is one of the best songs in TEOM. Its a very catchy song but probably Kelly Clarkson or Gwen Stefani is going to win.
Best Female R&B Vocal Peroformance: Now here now words to say! I'm telling you, if she has to win a grammy, it should definetely be this one! No damn opponents!
Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance: I think she should win this one, too. But Aretha Franklin is also a very important performer and she also has the probability to win. Also Grammys love to be given to Alicia Keys!
Best R&B Song: MariaaaaaahhH!! Maybe John Legend.
Best Contemporary Album: For me, TEOM.
Well, I guess its quite clear that I am a big Mariah fan but this time she really deserves to receive some grammys. I mean isn't it enough for Alicia Keys to get so much award while her voice detonates easily on live performances (but I admit that she improved a lot).
Oh, and... There is a very high probability that Norah Jones receives "some" (plural, not only 1) grammys at the last minute =)
Posted by: Muranyum | January 21, 2006 at 10:25 AM
i would like to see Alicia Keys wins all of hers cause she deserved them but dont want to see Kanye win anything beside writing for Alicia Keys nom but U2 do deserved Album of the Year and Mariah album was good not for Album of the Year
Posted by: Chris Lawton | January 14, 2006 at 02:12 PM
what about the pop vocal album/performance i say kelly clarkson will win
Posted by: me | January 13, 2006 at 06:00 PM
To be a best selling album doesn't mean anything, last year Usher's album didn't win and it was a lot bigger than Mariah's this year. I agree with the U2 prediction, they are loved by everybody, they had the biggest tour this year and the album was critically acclaimed across the board. Personally I would love if Kanye wins because I think is the most original album of the year but I think the fact that it's hip hop and that he isn't the most likable guy around might kill his chances
Posted by: Jon | January 09, 2006 at 11:16 AM
Ugh. Kill me, Sheryl Crow wasn't nominated that year. "One Sweet Day" lost to Seal's "Kiss From A Rose." I'll just cower in a corner now. lol.
Posted by: Keith | January 08, 2006 at 01:57 PM
I meant Sheryl Crow's "All I Wanna Do." I apologize for the error.
Posted by: Keith | January 08, 2006 at 01:55 PM
Belated comment on this -- and one no one may read, considering the lack of interest in the Grammys on the site -- but Mariah's chances are good ... but not that good.
She had eight nominations at the awards that were presnted in 1996, and she lost them all. And that was even with the strength of "One Sweet Day" with Boyz II Men, which had a nod for Record of the Year. However, they lost to Sheryl Crow's "One Sweet Day."
Grammy might like a comeback story, sure. And Mariah has that vibe this year. But she's not exactly a Grammy darling. In her career, she's only won two Grammys. For some reason, Grammy doesn't smile on her.
She's up against U2 -- who can't do anything wrong at the Grammys. They are the group version of Sting -- who gets nominated constantly.
You can't equate Michael Jackson's "Thriller" to Carey's "Mimi." It's simply apples and oranges. "Thriller" was an inescapable, massive cultural touchstone. Jackson, at the time, was viewed as the biggest pop star in the world, bar none. I don't think "Mimi" has that vibe -- despite the fact that it was the best selling album of the year.
Posted by: Keith | January 08, 2006 at 01:54 PM
i will agree all of your predictions
for grammies no need of commercial sucess in charts
i think mariah carey win only one r two awards totally
U2 Vertigo//2005" is without doubt the hottest tour of the year!! Ticket demand has been phenomenal and by the end of 2005 U2 will have played to 3.25 million people!
U2 will get 3 to 4 grammies
Posted by: ashok | January 06, 2006 at 11:25 PM
I firmly disagree! I think Mariah Carey will sweep the the major Awards. She finish the year with THE TOP GROSSING ALBUM OF THE YEAR with "The Emancipation of Mimi'
Grammy voters will reward her for that! Remember 'Micheal Jacksons " Thriller"
it was the top grossing of that Year and went on to Win I think eight Grammys.
Posted by: Matt | January 05, 2006 at 02:37 PM