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Beyonce breaks record for most nominations – DW – 11/09/2024

Beyonce has become the most Grammy-nominated artist of all time after the Recording Academy announced its nominations on Friday.

Beyonce beat her husband Jay-Z’s record of 88 nominations and has a whopping 99 nods to her name, thanks to her first country album “Cowboy Carter,” which she released last spring.

The album earned the 43-year-old megastar 11 nominations, putting her ahead of all other artists competing this year.

The awards ceremony will take place on February 2 in Los Angeles.

Who else has cut?

Billie Eilish, Charli

Meanwhile, Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter each scored six nominations. The latter two compete, among other things, for the closely watched best new artist category.

Charli xcx attends the WSJ. Magazine Innovators Awards at the Museum of Modern Art on Tuesday, October 29, 2024 in New York.
CharliImage: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP/picture alliance

Women dominated the album of the year category.

Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department,” Charli Beyonce’s. . Other artists competing for the prestigious category include Andre 3000 and Jacob Collier.

But perhaps the most unexpected nomination came for The Beatles. The legendary English band competes in the top recording category with ‘Now and Then’, a song reconstructed using artificial intelligence based on John Lennon’s rough demo.

Beyonce’s complicated relationship with the academy

Despite an edge in Grammy nominations and wins, an unprecedented 32, Beyonce has never received the album trophy, the academy’s most prestigious category. Artists who have taken the prize from her include Adele, Harry Styles and Taylor Swift.

Jay-Z called out the academy during a speech at the final awards ceremony earlier this year, arguing that voters had failed to give Black artists proper recognition.

About 13,000 singers, songwriters, producers, engineers and others make up the Recording Academy and ultimately choose the winners of the awards each year.

Beyonce accepts the Innovator Award during the iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, California, USA, April 1, 2024.
Despite an edge in Grammy nominations and wins, Beyonce has never received the album trophy, the academy’s most prestigious categoryImage: Mario Anzuoni/REUTERS

After years of criticism of its choices and accusations of racism, the academy has taken steps to diversify its ranks. The company boasts that 38% of its decision makers are people of color, which is an increase of 65% since 2019.

Experts and fans consider “Cowboy Carter” a reclamation and tribute to the often overlooked legacy of Black Americans within country music and culture.

The album became the first by a black woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. Nevertheless, it was rejected from the Country Music Awards.

What if Africa held its own Grammys?

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rmt/wd (AFP, AP, Reuters)