The Grammys: for some, an exciting ceremony chock-full of entertainment and a recap of modern music’s best. For others, a fateful night that determines whether or not they’ll be cheering or complaining for the following weeks—a litmus test for the trajectory of music at large. For most, just another mainstream, unobjective awards show featuring some people and artists they may or may not recognize. Wherever you fall, there’s no denying that it’s a big night, and a big night demands big discussion. Here, KSDT’s writers throw their hats in the ring and give their takeaways on the 2024 Grammys’ bests, worsts, mosts, and leasts!
Happy Grammys season! How would you compare this year’s awards show to previous years? Did it seem more or less fair? Did it live up to your expectations?
Megan Hirao: I always go into the Grammys with relatively low expectations because I’m aware of the subjectivity of music and that there will be discourse regardless of who wins. Year in and year out, the ceremony feels performative and almost like a Met Gala-esque gathering of music industry professionals, miscellaneous Los Angeles C-List celebrities, and random social media influencers. With that being said, I felt that the televised ceremony this year was more of the same from 2024. Spanning four hours, the Grammys have become more like a series of performances and commercial breaks rather than an actual award show.
Isabella Le: I never take The Grammys too seriously, for all the reasons that Megan listed, on top of the fact that I have no expectations going in. Of course, there are bound to be some amazing performances and red-carpet appearances, but I’ve never been one to care much about the awards ceremony itself—to be honest, I look forward to the Twitter discourse above all else. On that front, this year was pretty underwhelming since (for the most part) everyone agreed that the winners were unsurprising, and the awards were well-deserved. One of the main pop culture news accounts accurately predicted 7 of 8 winners for the primary categories a day in advance, so I can’t say I was surprised by much.
What’s your opinion on the nominees this year?
Alex Kozak: This year was an amazing year for music, and I don’t think I am alone in believing that. Thus, there were bound to be really amazing nominations in each category, which is especially important for artists that are just starting to build momentum. There were nominations that felt like no-brainers due to their commercial and radio success from artists such as Kendrick Lamar, Beyoncé, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift, and Charli XCX. It would have been surprising if Chappell Roan did not receive any nominations due to her exploding popularity throughout this past year, so it was heartwarming to see her on the list as a personal fan. However, I was really excited to see recognition for artists that I have felt have been undervalued by the industry, and I was looking forward to seeing how Doechii, Raye, and Fontaines D.C. would do in the race for awards. There were some artists/individuals that I thought were controversial and whose nominations I believe could have been passed on to others (Chris Brown, Dave Chappelle, Ricky Gervais), and question why the Grammys would accept nominations from individuals that have caused verbal and physical harm. On the flip side, there were artists that I had hoped to see recognized such as Megan Thee Stallion, Tyler the Creator, The Marias, and Mk.gee that had extreme successes this year, but again, the Grammys are notorious for being occasionally baffling in their awarding process. However, the Grammys overall had more buzz than they have in the past couple of years, and I hope this year’s nominations will open the way for even more exciting moves in music.
Emma Cam: Award shows have and will always be my guilty pleasure and this year’s Grammys was no exception. In all honesty, I did not have high hopes for the event given the big 4 awards (AOTY, SOTY, ROTY, and Best New Artist) were very predictable – in my opinion. However, one thing about the nominees I really appreciated was the acknowledgment of their growth. Chappell and the recognition for her impact with The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, Doechii being the third woman to receive best rap album, Charli’s with her cultural impact with BRAT?!? Many of the nominees this year have grown into their own artistry rather than what the industry wants or expects of them and they WELL deserved these recognitions.
Megan Hirao: One of my biggest issues with the Grammy nominations is always the eligibility period for the awards, which for this year was September 16, 2023 through August 30, 2024. With the actual ceremony being in February of 2025, it feels like some of the nominations were released so long ago that they’re no longer relevant, or popular releases that came out after the period ended feel like they’re being glossed over and have to be held off for the following year. However, given these circumstances, I think the Recording Academy selected nominees that were unsurprising. The big mainstream releases were pretty much all covered for the Big 4, but I’m glad Chappell Roan and Doechii are finally getting their flowers for the year that they had!!
Isabella Le: As far as the bigger acts go, I feel like they all made sense! This was truly a year for the pop girls. In the same vein as everyone else, seeing Chappell Roan nominated (and even more, win) the awards for Best New Artist and Song of the Year was so heartwarming. They (the people who can’t fathom that female artists can speak out against mistreatment) can never make me hate her! On my end, as a huge fan of hardcore, I was elated to see Knocked Loose on the red carpet and get nominated for Best Metal Performance! “Suffocate” was one of my most listened-to songs, and I briefly covered it for another publication I write for. I could have stopped watching there, to be honest; that was all I needed to see.
What was the BIGGEST snub? Do you have any thoughts on the winner?
Alex Kozak: I might be a tad bit biased, but I believe the biggest snub of the night fell in the category of Best Rock Album, as the laurels went to the Rolling Stones while I had hoped for a Fontaines D.C. win. Some might argue that the Rolling Stones are as “classic” as the rock genre can get (and thus understandable that they won), but that does not hold up against the nominations from Green Day and Pearl Jam, who dominate the alternative/punk rock scene in their own right. While the Rolling Stones are legends—no argument there—legends should stay in the past and usher in new forces in music, which the Grammy’s claim to do. Fontaines D.C. have consistently been pushing at the walls of a genre that have not budged since the early 2000s, which they have finally blasted through with the beautifully intricate album that is Romance. The Grammys are infamous for playing it painfully safe, which is just simply a shame, as Fontaines have given something new to hungry young fans stifled by an old genre, and should receive all of the recognition that they deserve.
P.S. I can go on and on, but other criminal snubs of the night include Raye not receiving any awards for her songwriting, and the Challengers Soundtrack losing to Dune 2 (which yes, I know Hans Zimmer but c’mon nobody was blasting Hans effing Zimmer in their cars over Challengers). And also Adrianne Lenker not winning Best Folk Album, and Lana Del Rey being pushed to the sidelines once again. Also a snub to Billie Eilish… the list goes on.
Emma Cam: First I want to talk about artists who were snubbed of nominations because there’s a lot. For example, Megan Thee Stallion getting NOTHING for Hiss shocked me because when I first heard “Aye, these hoes don’t be mad at Megan These hoes mad at Megan’s Law”, I WAS GAGGED, way more than I was with “Tryna strike a chord and it’s probably A minor.” Another artist I expected to see was Hozier. Looking at the Grammys’ patterns, they definitely skew towards artists who were very active in recent pop culture and Hozier’s Too Sweet was definitely prominent in spring 2024. Finally, the loves of my life, The Marias who submitted for ROTY, SOTY, Alt album, and more. Unfortunately, they got nothing and I understand that Submarine was a very limbo album, not alt enough but not pop enough, but damn it hurts to see that no one noticed them (get it). Anyways, onto the actual Grammys, I really thought Billie and Ariana would have gone home with at least one award given how influential their role in the music realm was last year. My heart specifically goes out to Billie because what do you mean you finally break through the expectations and your insecurities to create an album you love AND GET NOTHING.
Megan Hirao: Faye Webster’s Underdressed at the Symphony was a notable release that I feel should have been recognized at this year’s awards. She submitted for Best Alternative Music Album (which I already have my issues with because is it really alternative…), but I think she had a successful year and album rollout that at least deserved a nomination. On the topic of Best Alternative, given the albums that were nominated, Clairo should have taken that…nothing against St. Vincent but Charm was a more widely-received album and had the success of “Juna” behind it. It’s interesting to see when the Recording Academy decides to care about commercial success and cultural impact for its winners and when they don’t. Additionally of those who were nominated, Billie Eilish deserved something!! It’s hard to imagine that one of the biggest artists of this century is going unnoticed for arguably her best and most vulnerable album to date. Like what do you mean “Espresso” for Best Pop Solo Performance instead of “Birds of a Feather”…
Isabella Le: Glad to see we all agree on the Billie Eilish front… Cowboy Carter was an amazing record, and Beyoncé is undoubtedly one of the most talented artists of our generation, but I won’t lie and say my heart didn’t break a little when they showed that clip of Billie with tears in her eyes. HIT ME HARD AND SOFT was huge for the culture. On the bright side, however, Taylor Swift didn’t win! I was also really hoping that Knocked Loose would win Best Metal Performance, but Gojira made sense and was well-deserved; I’m just biased as a KL fan, but I’m happy for them! Last, a la Alex, The Rolling Stones need to retire STAT! *insert that one Azealia Banks Instagram story*
Who had the best performance? Conversely, what about a not-so-great performance…?
Emma Cam: Best performance is easily tied between Chappell’s or Doechii’s. Chappell, whether you like her or not, you must admit she knows how to perform. The vocals, the set design, the simple yet effective choreo, AND the fact that the costume and makeup of her dancers resembled clowns… referencing how her hometown would call homosexual clowns?! MIND BLOWN. Also, one thing I loved about this year’s Grammys was the community, from the speeches to the contributions to help the LA fires – it was so beautiful. So seeing and listening to some of the greatest singers of 2024 come together to sing Pink Pony Club, that did something for me. Then Doechii’s performance?! Billie and Sza’s reactions sum up my reaction perfectly. The choreo of this performance was so synchronous, clean, and visually satisfying I can’t stop watching it. However… WHAT WAS BENSON BOONE DOING? I do not know how he got the most streamed song of 2024 for a song that brought nothing to the table. I swear he sings at 100 decibels and I would not be surprised if I went to one of his live performances and lost my hearing. I think it is a nigh hate crime to say Benson Boone radiates Freddie Mercury energy, and once again, SZA’s reaction to his parkour-ball-scratching performance—literally me.
Megan Hirao: Literally yes, everything that Emma said… Doechii and Chappell easily had the night’s best and most memorable performances. The energy they give is just unmatched. Chappell singing “Pink Pony Club” – which is about following her dreams of performing in LA and leaving her family in the South – IN LA AT THE GRAMMYS is such a meta “I made it” moment that is so cool to see. Doechii’s mashup of “Catfish” and “Denial is a River” for her performance was also incredible. Her Thom Browne outfits and outfit change were literally so good. The fact that her performance was directly after Benson Boone was a crazy setup for Benson, because all he gave were backflips, yelling, and readjusting his “restricting” one-piece…
If YOU were to decide, which artist would you have awarded for each category?
Megan Hirao: Best Pop Duo Performance of the year for me is easily “Girl, so confusing featuring lorde.” I know she submitted “Guess featuring billie eilish” for this category, but girl, so confusing deserved to be there instead. They literally worked it out on the remix.
Isabella Le: See the KSDT Awards post on Instagram 🙂 (though, if it were up to me, the award for Song of the Year would have gone to “No One Noticed”).
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