What To Know About The 2022 Grammy Nominations

Nominations for the 2022 Grammy Awards have been revealed and while some artists came out on top, a handful of heavy hitters were completely shut out. All nominees were voted on by Recording Academy voting members from nearly 22,000 eligible entries with music released from Sept. 1, 2020, through Sept. 30, 2021.

“This is an exciting day for music,” said Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy in a press statement. “These nominations beautifully reflect today’s broad and diverse musical landscape. I congratulate all of the nominees and everyone who submitted work. I’m also so proud of our voters. They voted in record numbers and brought their very best to evaluating the work of their peers, and I thank them on behalf of the entire music community.”

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Here are some of the biggest takeaways from this year’s class of nominees:

What’s New?

There will be 10 nominees in each of the General Field Categories: Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Song Of The Year, and Best New Artist, expanded from eight in previous years. Two new categories have also been added to the Grammy Awards: Best Global Music Performance and Best Música Urbana.

Who Is Most Nominated?

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Although she did not take home the Best New Artist award in 2021, Doja Cat makes the most triumphant return of her peers with eight nominations total for the 2022 ceremony. The rapper earned recognition for music from her album Planet Her as well as guest verses on other artists’ records. The 26-year-old star is most notably nominated for both Song Of The Year and Record Of The Year for “Kiss Me More” featuring SZA, and Album Of The Year for Planet Her Deluxe.

Tied with the “Need To Know” performer with eight nominations is R&B singer H.E.R. Together the two are the most-nominated women at the award show. H.E.R. could take home the gold for Song of the Year, for “Fight For You,” and Album of the Year, with her debut studio album, “Back Of My Mind,” among other categories.

Overall, the most nominated artist is Jon Batiste with 11 nods. Justin Bieber is also tied with Doja Cat and H.E.R. at eight and pop stars Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish are tied for seven.

What Rap Artists Are Battling It Out?

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The Best Rap Album category features a handful of heavy hitters who have all won Grammy awards in Hip-Hop categories before. J. Cole is up for The Off-Season, competing against Nas’ Kings Disease II, Drake’s Certified Lover Boy, Tyler, the Creator’s Call Me If You Get Lost, and Kanye West’s DONDA. Songs from each album are also represented in additional Hip-Hop categories such as Best Rap Performance, Best Melodic Rap Performance, and Best Rap Song. J. Cole is the only artist present in all four Hip-Hop categories.

Additionally, Megan Thee Stallion, Cardi B, Saweetie with Doja Cat, Lil Nas X with Jack Harlow, Baby Keem with Kendrick Lamar, and the late DMX with the assistance of Jay-Z and Nas are the only rappers represented in these categories outside of the nominated albums.

Who Is Nominated For The First Time?

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First-time nominees include rappers Saweetie, Baby Keem, Giveon, Morray, Silk Sonic, Snoh Aalegra, Tems, and Young Boy NBA. Saweetie and Baby Keem are up against each other and a handful of rising acts in the Best New Artist Category. Additionally, Saweetie scored a nomination in the Best Rap Song field for “Best Friend” featuring Doja Cat. Baby Keem is also in the category for “Family Ties” featuring Kendrick Lamar. The Las Vegas native is also nominated for Best Rap Performance for the same song.

While Anderson .Paak and Bruno Mars have earned nominations and awards in the past for their solo artistry, they are nominated together as Silk Sonic with four nods, all for “Leave The Door Open.” Giveon has earned multiple nominations for his guest work on “Peaches” by Justin Bieber alongside Daniel Caesar as well as his solo work for Best R&B Song for “Heartbreak Anniversary.”

What Nominations Made History?

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Just being nominated, Jay-Z has made history, surpassing Quincy Jones as the most nominated person in Grammy Awards history. With three total nominations for the 2022 ceremony, the Brooklyn rap legend brings his career total nominations to 83. Winning his first Grammy in 1999, the veteran artist currently has a total of 23 wins. This also officially makes Jay-Z and Beyoncé the most nominated couple. Queen Bey is currently the most nominated woman in Grammy Awards history with 79, and also the most winningest woman with 28.

Paul McCartney follows Jay-Z as the second-most-nominated artist of all time, adding two more this year to bring his career total to 81, just one nod above Jones’ 80.

With “Kiss Me More” earning a nomination for Record Of The Year, it marks the second year in a row an all-female collaboration earned the nomination, following Megan Thee Stallion and Beyoncé’s “Savage” recognized in the coveted category in 2021.

What Nominations Were Surprising?

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Despite all the controversy, delays, and updates surrounding Ye’s DONDA album, the chart-topping LP managed to place in the Best Rap Album category as well as the highly-regarded Album Of The Year, where he places for the first time as the lead artist in more than a decade. The Chicago rapper released DONDA after a series of dramatic listening parties that received mixed reviews. The feature-heavy project could earn a handful of artists their first Grammy-winning work. It also features Marylin Manson who is currently facing multiple sexual abuse allegations and lawsuits.

The Weeknd also received nominations for his work with both Kanye West and Doja Cat despite his vow to boycott the institution.

What Hip-Hop and R&B Artists Were Snubbed?

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Rappers Polo G and Moneybagg Yo were shut out of all Grammy categories despite having the most successful years of their individual careers so far and releasing some of the most popular and well-received songs and albums. Moneybagg Yo’s A Gangsta’s Pain featuring records such as “Wockesha,” and “Time Today” was one of the top-selling rap albums of the year. Additionally, Polo G issued fan-favorite Hall of Fame, which features the hit “RAPSTAR,” but was not nominated in any category. Top Dawg Entertainment’s Isaiah Rashad was also left out despite releasing The House Is Burning.

Additional snubs include Normani’s “Wild Side” featuring Cardi B in the R&B song categories as well as Best Music Video. Megan Thee Stallion’s “Thot Sh*t” earned a nomination in Best Rap Performance but was left out of the music video category.

Wizkid and Tems’ groundbreaking “Essence” was also restricted to the Best Global Music Performance and not included in the “Record Of The Year” or “Song Of The Year” categories where it rightfully deserves to compete. Wizkid’s album Made In Lagos also deserved recognition in the big four categories.

Rapper-turned-rockstar Machine Gun Kelly received no nominations for his crossover album Tickets to My Downfall and took to Twitter to express his feelings about being snubbed, simply asking, “wtf is wrong with the grammys.”

The Recording Academy will present the Grammy Awards on Monday, Jan. 31, 2022, on CBS, and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+ at 8:00 p.m. ET and 5:00 p.m. PT.

View the full list of the 2022 Grammy Award nominations below:

Record Of The Year

“I Still Have Faith In You” — ABBA
“Freedom” — Jon Batiste
“I Get A Kick Out Of You” — Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga
“Peaches” — Justin Bieber Featuring Daniel Caesar & Giveon
“Right On Time” — Brandi Carlile
“Kiss Me More” — Doja Cat Featuring SZA
“Happier Than Ever” — Billie Eilish
“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” — Lil Nas X
“drivers license” — Olivia Rodrigo
“Leave The Door Open” — Silk Sonic

Album Of The Year:
We Are — Jon Batiste
Love For Sale — Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga
Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe) — Justin Bieber
Planet Her (Deluxe) — Doja Cat
Happier Than Ever — Billie Eilish
Back Of My Mind — H.E.R.
Montero — Lil Nas X
Sour — Olivia Rodrigo
Evermore — Taylor Swift
Donda — Kanye West

Song Of The Year
“Bad Habits” — Fred Gibson, Johnny McDaid & Ed Sheeran, songwriters (Ed Sheeran)
“A Beautiful Noise” — Ruby Amanfu, Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, Alicia Keys, Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna, Linda Perry & Hailey Whitters, songwriters (Alicia Keys And Brandi Carlile)
“drivers license” — Daniel Nigro & Olivia Rodrigo, songwriters (Olivia Rodrigo)
“Fight For You” — Dernst Emile II, H.E.R. & Tiara Thomas, songwriters (H.E.R.)
“Happier Than Ever” — Billie Eilish O’Connell & Finneas O’Connell, songwriters (Billie Eilish)
“Kiss Me More” — Rogét Chahayed, Amala Zandile Dlamini, Lukasz Gottwald, Carter Lang, Gerard A. Powell II, Solána Rowe & David Sprecher, songwriters (Doja Cat Featuring SZA)
“Leave The Door Open” — Brandon Anderson, Christopher Brody Brown, Dernst Emile II & Bruno Mars, songwriters (Silk Sonic)
“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” — Denzel Baptiste, David Biral, Omer Fedi, Montero Hill & Roy Lenzo, songwriters (Lil Nas X)
“Peaches” — Louis Bell, Justin Bieber, Giveon Dezmann Evans, Bernard Harvey, Felisha “Fury” King, Matthew Sean Leon, Luis Manual Martinez Jr., Aaron Simmonds, Ashton Simmonds, Andrew Wotman & Keavan Yazdani, songwriters (Justin Bieber Featuring Daniel Caesar & Giveon)
“Right On Time” — Brandi Carlile, Dave Cobb, Phil Hanseroth & Tim Hanseroth, songwriters (Brandi Carlile)

Best New Artist

Arooj Aftab
Jimmie Allen
Baby Keem
FINNEAS
Glass Animals
Japanese Breakfast
The Kid Laroi
Arlo Parks
Olivia Rodrigo
Saweetie

Best Pop Vocal Album

Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe) — Justin Bieber
Planet Her (Deluxe) — Doja Cat
Happier Than Ever — Billie Eilish
Positions — Ariana Grande
Sour — Olivia Rodrigo

Best Dance/Electronic Recording

“Hero” — Afrojack & David Guetta
“Loom” — Ólafur Arnalds Featuring Bonobo
“Before” — James Blake
“Heartbreak” — Bonobo & Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs
“You Can Do It” — Caribou
“Alive” — Rüfüs Du Sol
“The Business” — Tiësto

Best Alternative Music Album

Shore — Fleet Foxes
If I Can‘t Have Love, I Want Power — Halsey
Jubilee — Japanese Breakfast
Collapsed In Sunbeams — Arlo Parks
Daddy’s Home — St. Vincent

Best R&B Performance

“Lost You” — Snoh Aalegra
“Peaches” — Justin Bieber Featuring Daniel Caesar & Giveon
“Damage” — H.E.R.
“Leave The Door Open” — Silk Sonic
“Pick Up Your Feelings” — Jazmine Sullivan

Best Progressive R&B Album

New Light — Eric Bellinger
Something To Say — Cory Henry
Mood Valiant — Hiatus Kaiyote
Table For Two — Lucky Daye
Dinner Party: Dessert — Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder & Kamasi Washington
Studying Abroad: Extended Stay — Masego

Best Rap Performance

“Family Ties” — Baby Keem Featuring Kendrick Lamar
“Up” — Cardi B
“m y . l i f e” — J. Cole Featuring 21 Savage & Morray
“Way 2 Sexy” — Drake Featuring Future & Young Thug
“Thot S***” — Megan Thee Stallion

Best Rap Album

The Off-Season — J. Cole
Certified Lover Boy — Drake
King’s Disease II — Nas
Call Me If You Get Lost — Tyler, The Creator
Donda — Kanye West

Best Country Song

“Better Than We Found It” — Jessie Jo Dillon, Maren Morris, Jimmy Robbins & Laura Veltz, songwriters (Maren Morris)
“camera roll” — Ian Fitchuk, Kacey Musgraves & Daniel Tashian, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves)
“Cold” — Dave Cobb, J.T. Cure, Derek Mixon & Chris Stapleton, songwriters (Chris Stapleton)
“Country Again” — Zach Crowell, Ashley Gorley & Thomas Rhett, songwriters (Thomas Rhett)
“Fancy Like” — Cameron Bartolini, Walker Hayes, Josh Jenkins & Shane Stevens, songwriters (Walker Hayes)
“Remember Her Name” — Mickey Guyton, Blake Hubbard, Jarrod Ingram & Parker Welling, songwriters (Mickey Guyton)

Best Jazz Vocal Album

Generations — The Baylor Project
SuperBlue — Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter
Time Traveler — Nnenna Freelon
Flor — Gretchen Parlato
Songwrights Apothecary Lab — Esperanza Spalding

Best Gospel Album

Changing Your Story — Jekalyn Carr
Royalty: Live At The Ryman — Tasha Cobbs Leonard
Jubilee: Juneteenth Edition — Maverick City Music
Jonny x Mali: Live In LA — Jonathan McReynolds & Mali Music
Believe For It — CeCe Winans

Best Latin Pop Album

Vértigo — Pablo Alborán
Mis Amores — Paula Arenas
Hecho A La Antigua — Ricardo Arjona
Mis Manos — Camilo
Mendó — Alex Cuba
Revelación — Selena Gomez

Best Música Urbana Album

Afrodisíaco — Rauw Alejandro
El Último Tour Del Mundo — Bad Bunny
Jose — J Balvin
KG0516 — KAROL G
Sin Miedo (Del Amor Y Otros Demonios) 8 — Kali Uchis

Best Global Music Performance

“Mohabbat” — Arooj Aftab
“Do Yourself” — Angelique Kidjo & Burna Boy
“Pà Pá Pà” — Femi Kuti
“Blewu” — Yo-Yo Ma & Angelique Kidjo
“Essence” — WizKid Featuring Tems

Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books & Storytelling)

Aftermath — LeVar Burton
Carry On: Reflections For A New Generation From John Lewis — Don Cheadle
Catching Dreams: Live At Fort Knox Chicago — J. Ivy
8:46 — Dave Chappelle & Amir Sulaiman
A Promised Land — Barack Obama

Best Opera Recording Album

Bartók: Bluebeard’s Castle — Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra
Glass: Akhnaten — The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus
Janáček: Cunning Little Vixen — London Symphony Orchestra; London Symphony Chorus & LSO Discovery Voices
Little: Soldier Songs — The Opera Philadelphia Orchestra
Poulenc: Dialogues Des Carmélites — The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra; The Metropolitan Opera Chorus

Best Music Video

“Shot In The Dark” — AC/DC
“Freedom” — Jon Batiste
“I Get A Kick Out Of You” — Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga
“Peaches” — Justin Bieber Featuring Daniel Caesar & Giveon
“Happier Than Ever” — Billie Eilish
“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” — Lil Nas X
“Good 4 U” — Olivia Rodrigo

Best Music Film:

Inside — Bo Burnham
David Byrne‘s American Utopia — David Byrne
Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter To Los Angeles — Billie Eilish
Music, Money, Madness…Jimi Hendrix In Maui — Jimi Hendrix
Summer Of Soul — Various Artists

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