Ed Sheeran, Best New Artist GRAMMY nominee

Ed Sheeran

Photo: Christopher Polk/Getty Images

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What qualifies a Best New Artist GRAMMY winner as 'new'?

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GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:08 am

With the recent launch of The Recording Academy's and Pepsi's Best New Artist program, in our latest installment of Ask The GRAMMYs we feature a question pertaining to eligibility for the Best New Artist category:

Ed Sheeran was nominated for a GRAMMY last year and this year he is nominated in the Best New Artist category? What exactly qualifies an artist as "new"? — Joanna X

Thanks for your question, Joanna X.

Our Best New Artist category probably has the most complicated set of rules of any of our categories. Essentially, a "new artist" is defined for the GRAMMY process as any performing artist or established performing group who releases, during the eligibility year, the recording that first establishes the public identity of that artist or established group as a performer. A GRAMMY nomination in a performance category in a prior year disqualifies an artist from competing in this category, unless the nomination came from a single or a guest spot on another artist's recording, and the artist hadn't yet released a full album.

In Ed Sheeran's case, he was nominated for songwriting last year, not performing, and so remained technically eligible.

Still not completely clear? We hope not, and for more information on the GRAMMY Awards process, check out our handy infographic.

And for exclusive content on Sheeran and the rest of this year's Best New Artist nominees, visit GRAMMY.com.

(Have a specific GRAMMY Awards process question? Need the 411 on The Recording Academy's advocacy-related work in Washington? Are you curious about MusiCares or the GRAMMY Foundation? Ask The GRAMMYs is your opportunity. Send your burning GRAMMY-related question via email to askthegrammys@grammy.com. And don't forget to tune in to Music's Biggest Night, the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards, on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014, on CBS from 8–11:30 p.m. ET/PT.)

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Exploring The Best New Artist Nominees

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A look at the nominees for Best New Artist for the 56th GRAMMY Awards
GRAMMYs
Dec 2, 2014 - 4:06 pm
GRAMMY.com

You've seen the list of nominees, now take a closer look at the Best New Artist nominees for the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards.

Best New Artist

The Best New Artist race features artists who released albums that charted on the Billboard 200 in 2013: James Blake (Overgrown, No. 32), Kendrick Lamar (Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, No. 2), Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (The Heist, No. 2), Kacey Musgraves (Same Trailer Different Park, No. 2), and Ed Sheeran (+, No. 5).

The category includes four first-time nominees — Blake, Lamar, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, and Musgraves — and returning nominee Sheeran, who is looking to win his first career GRAMMY.

 

James Blake

James Blake : Overgrown

Blake has one nomination this year, marking the first GRAMMY nomination of his career.

Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar - Poetic Justice (Explicit) ft. Drake

Lamar's seven nominations this year include Album Of The Year and Best Rap Album for Good Kid, M.A.A.D City.

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS - WHITE WALLS - FEAT. SCHOOLBOY Q AND HOLLIS (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have seven nominations this year, including Album Of The Year for The Heist.

Kacey Musgraves

watch%3Fv%3DkQ8xqyoZXCc%3Flist%3DUUosnVpvQYMR58p8A8tBY-dw

Musgraves has four nominations this year, including Best Country Album for Same Trailer Different Park.

Ed Sheeran

Ed Sheeran - The A Team [Official Video]

Sheeran has two nominations this year and one prior GRAMMY nomination, a Song Of The Year nod last year for "The A Team."

Who will take home the GRAMMY for Best New Artist? Tune in to the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards on Jan. 26, 2014, taking place at Staples Center in Los Angeles and airing live on CBS from 8–11:30 p.m. (ET/PT).

 

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The 56th GRAMMY Awards: The Guessing Game (Part 2)

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GRAMMYs
Dec 2, 2014 - 3:22 pm

(Editor's Note: The winners for the 56th GRAMMY Awards are not known until they are announced during the Pre-Telecast and GRAMMY telecast on Sunday, Jan. 26. The following blog offers predictions that do not reflect the opinions of The Recording Academy, GRAMMY.com or Recording Academy voting members. The Academy's voting members, all involved in the creative and technical processes of recording, participate in the nominating process that determines the finalists in each GRAMMY category; and the final voting process that determines the GRAMMY winners. For more information on the GRAMMY Awards process, visit GRAMMY.org.)

The pundits are pontificating, the more than 12,000 Recording Academy voters have cast their ballots, and the 56th GRAMMY Awards, airing on CBS Jan. 26 at 8 p.m. ET/PT, is just around the corner, so what better time to survey this year's GRAMMY field and offer a few observations?

As I pointed out in my first blog, in which I peered into the crystal ball for the nominations, the following are my personal educated guesses in the General Field and select GRAMMY categories from my perspective as a longtime professional observer.

Record Of The Year
Certainly no one can quibble with this year's nominees. There's consensus that Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams' "Get Lucky," Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive," Lorde's "Royals," Robin Thicke Featuring T.I. and Pharrell Williams' "Blurred Lines" and Bruno Mars' "Locked Out Of Heaven" were the most ubiquitous songs of the past year, both in terms of airplay and critical acclaim. That said, Mars, with four current nominations and a total of 14 prior GRAMMY nominations and one win (Best Pop Male Vocal Performance for "Just The Way You Are" in 2010), seems ripe for recognition — complete with the heat surrounding his upcoming Super Bowl halftime performance — though any of the other four wouldn't be a surprise.

Album Of The Year
This category includes a nominee from pop (Sara Bareilles), dance (Daft Punk), country (Taylor Swift), and two hip-hop artists (Kendrick Lamar and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis). Album Of The Year has a diverse history (recent winners include Mumford & Sons, Adele, Arcade Fire, Swift, and Robert Plant & Alison Krauss), and the presence of two rap acts might split that vote. Could that open the door for Bareilles, or another coronation for Swift, whose Fearless garnered the nod in 2009? That's what I'm thinking.

Song Of The Year
The competition is strong in this category, which recognizes songwriters, with Record Of The Year nominees "Locked Out Of Heaven" and "Royals" represented, Pink Featuring Nate Ruess' "Just Give Me A Reason" and Katy Perry's tour de force "Roar." But here's guessing that Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' "Same Love" captures the political zeitgeist this year, just as the Dixie Chicks ("Not Ready To Make Nice") and Bruce Springsteen ("Streets Of Philadelphia") have in years past.

Best New Artist
Once again, a mixed genre bag, with UK dub-step artist James Blake, Compton, Calif., hip-hop hopeful Kendrick Lamar, country newcomer Kacey Musgraves and Brit folkie Ed Sheeran forming a strong batch of contenders. However, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis' DIY success story and overturning of hip-hop orthodoxy in areas of bling and sexuality could just make the difference here.

Best Pop Solo Performance
Could this be where Justin Timberlake gets his due for the smash "Mirrors"? Or will Bareilles' "Brave" get the nod? Also in the mix are Perry's "Roar," Mars' "When I Was Your Man" and Lorde's "Royals." With not-so-perfect 20/20 foresight, I'm going with JT here.

Best Pop Vocal Album
A tough one to call, with pop starlet Lana Del Rey (Paradise) and the presence of General Field nominees Lorde (Pure Heroine), Mars (Unorthodox Jukebox) and Thicke (Blurred Lines) all accounted for, but I think this is where Timberlake (The 20/20 Experience — The Complete Experience) will reign.

Best Rock Performance
Deserving veterans David Bowie ("The Stars [Are Out Tonight]"), Led Zeppelin ("Kashmir"), Jack White ("I'm Shakin"), and Queens Of The Stone Age ("My God Is The Sun") are all represented here, along with last year's Best New Artist nominees Alabama Shakes ("Always Alright"), but I don't think newcomers Imagine Dragons' Record Of The Year nominee "Radioactive" will be denied.

Best Rock Song
Paul McCartney and Nirvana ("Cut Me Some Slack"), the Rolling Stones ("Doom And Gloom") and Black Sabbath ("God Is Dead?") are nominated, along with Muse ("Panic Station") and Gary Clark Jr. ("Ain't Messin 'Round), but I believe the presence of Dave Grohl with a living legend like Macca makes "… Slack" a "cut" above the rest.

Best Rap Album
Lamar (Good Kid, M.A.A.D City) and Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (The Heist) face off against the reigning hip-hop triumvirate of Jay Z (Magna Carta … Holy Grail), Kanye West (Yeezus) and Drake (Nothing Was The Same). My call? Lamar edges out his Seattle rivals to snare the prize.

Best Country Album
If Swift (Red) doesn't claim Album Of The Year, this will be a worthy consolation over a strong field, including Musgraves (Same Trailer Different Park), Jason Aldean (Night Train), Tim McGraw (Two Lanes Of Freedom) and Blake Shelton (Based On A True Story).

You've read my predictions. Who do you think GRAMMY voters will choose?

Dua Lipa

Dua Lipa 

Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

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Dua Lipa Wins Best New Artist | 2019 GRAMMYs

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The popstar takes home Best New Artist at the 61st GRAMMY Awards
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Feb 10, 2019 - 8:27 pm

British popstar Dua Lipa just won Best New Artist at the 61st GRAMMY Awards. It is her second win of the night, after "Electricity" won Best Dance Recording, her track with Silk City aka Diplo and Mark Ronson.

Watch: Dua Lipa Wins Best New Artist

"I want to say thank you to my fans who have allowed me to be the best version of myself," Lipa said in her speech.

She bestest her class of fellow talented Best New Artist nominees: Chloe x Halle, Luke Combs, Greta Van Fleet, H.E.R., Margo Price, Bebe Rexha and Jorja Smith.

As a first-time nominee she had a great night, taking home wins for both of her nods. She also made her GRAMMY stage performance debut, offering a sultry duet with fellow GRAMMY winner St. Vincent.

More: Dua Lipa Reflects On Her Journey To Pop Stardom: "Absolutely Mental"

23-year-old Lipa was born in London to Albanian parents. Her viral hit "New Rules," from her 2017 self-titled debut album, with its catchy and empowering lyrics put her firmly on the pop culture map.

Full Winners List: 61st GRAMMY Awards

H.E.R.

H.E.R.

Photo: Sue Kwon

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Meet The First-Time GRAMMY Nominee: H.E.R. On Being Born Into Music & Why R&B Is "At The Core Of Everything"

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"It feels like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be," the R&B singer/songwriter, who is up for five GRAMMYs, told us
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Feb 7, 2019 - 2:17 pm

California native singer/songwriter H.E.R. may just be 21, but her honest and thoughtful approach to R&B, with personal lyrics and '90s throwback slow-jam beats, reveal an old soul. Her smooth yet powerful voice offers insights on love and identity with vulnerability and plenty of straight-up feelings.

While her music is communicative, and even her moniker is an acronym for "Having Everything Revealed," the rising star still operates with an air of mystery. She has chosen to reveal minimal details about herself and, always pictured behind large sunglasses, seems to ask us to focus on her music first.

We recently caught up with the talented multi-instrumentalist, who, as a first-time nominee, is up for five awards at the 61st GRAMMY Awards. (In addition to being nominated for the all-genre Best New Artist and Album Of The Year categories, she is also up for Best R&B Song, Best R&B Performance and Best R&B Album. H.E.R., the album in consideration, is a release combining her two EPs plus B-sides—she has yet to release a debut LP.)

During our conversation, H.E.R. told us how grateful she is for all she's achieved thus far, growing up in a musical household, the importance of keeping "real people" around you and what we can expect to hear on her forthcoming debut album. 

"I didn't think I would get this far so soon, so I'm focusing on elevation and really dreaming bigger." 

How did you first learn about your first GRAMMY nomination? When you found out you were up for five awards, what was your initial reaction?

Oh my god! There were a lot of tears. I was with my tour squad; we had all just woken up early after a show. I was actually really sick, and kind of sad and down the day before. My manager gave us the news and it changed my entire mood and attitude. It made my day. I immediately called my mom, dad and sister. I was on cloud nine.

Your five nominations include Best New Artist, along with Album of the Year and Best R&B Album. What does that recognition mean to you?

It feels like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. It's so easy to question your art, even to question what you're doing, to question the path that you're on. But this is such confirmation for me; "you're exactly where you need to be, you're doing all the right things." It just feels amazing, it feels like I found my objective and I'm fulfilling it. I'm so blessed.

Was there a moment when you were younger that made you want to make music? Were there other artists you admired that made you want to make R&B?

Music was something that was a given for me, like out of the womb. At parties I was always the center of attention, singing and dancing and playing instruments. I never made that decision of "I'm going to do music." My dad had a band that would rehearse in our living room, so all the instruments were in there and I gravitated towards them at a super-young age.

My mom would try to find talent shows and festivals for me to be in around the Bay Area, even when I was only seven or eight years old, because she knew I loved to do it. It was never a career goal or what I was planning on doing as soon as I graduated high school. I just did it. It came super naturally to me.

One artist I really respect is Alicia Keys. Because she plays piano and sings, and because I love instruments so much, she definitely paved the way for a young black musician and young black woman like me who wants to play instruments and find my voice in the industry. She played a big role.

Related: 2019 GRAMMYs Host Alicia Keys: GRAMMY Rewind

I never really thought about the idea of being an R&B artist. R&B is kind of the core of everything, rhythm and blues. I grew up listening to a lot of soul and blues, so those influences shine through me. When I started making my first project, H.E.R. Vol. 1, it was so honest. It has a '90s R&B influence, but you could feel the soul reflecting my background and where I came from.

"Focus" is one of your songs up for a GRAMMY; the lyrics feel very personal and are really relatable. Can you talk about what that song means to you and how you think the honesty in your music helps you connect with fans?

My music is my diary. When I'm writing a song it's what I feel in that moment. With "Focus," I was afraid to leave it on my first project because it was so personal for me, it's so vulnerable. I was really young when I wrote it and was just feeling like, "put your phone down, pay attention to me." It's crazy how it's gone deeper and resonated with so many women; women who are even five and ten years into marriage, and able to relate that small feeling I felt then.

What's your favorite part of being an artist?

I don't know if I have a favorite part of being an artist. I do love being onstage and performing with my band. I also love rehearsing with them and creating the show, that's always a fun part. But there's also nothing like being in the studio and being able to get back to myself and get back to my feelings. The studio is the place for me to really confront my feelings and get it all out. I love being in that space and creating, doing what I love, making art.

We Are Music

Outside of music, how do you feel the success you've experienced in this past year has influenced or changed who you are?

I've learned a lot about myself through my music and the way people perceive it, and the goal is for the success not to change me. I feel like the same person I was when I released it, I've just grown. The success has definitely taught me a lot about keeping real people around you, and about purpose. It's taught me about the people and the things that you really need you to ensure success, and how important it is to keep those things around you and block out anything else, and about being positive.

Also, seeing the world has given me a better perspective on life. The fact that I can travel around the world doing what I love is such a blessing. I've learned that traveling is such an important thing; there's so many beautiful things out there and we get worried about such little things.

MAJORRRRR. UP IN TIMES SQUARE!!!!!!!! #mtvpush @mtv

A post shared by H.E.R. (@hermusicofficial) on

What are you most looking forward to about the GRAMMYs? How will you celebrate if you win?

It's going to be like a movie. The fact that I'm nominated for five [awards] is just, wow. And the fact that people are going to really see me, because as you know I haven't revealed too much of myself. It's going to be my first red carpet!

After the GRAMMYs, I just want be with the ones I love and to reminisce. I love to think about memories and all the things that got me up to this point, so that would be celebratory, looking at old videos and old pictures of where I came from.

Read More: Something About Her: The Mystery Of H.E.R.

What's on the horizon for H.E.R.—can we expect new music this year?

Absolutely. I'm going to release a debut album, which I'm excited about. It's crazy because my project that's nominated for Album Of The Year is the combination of my two EPs. So there will be the new album and I'll be touring more. Also, I'm starting a foundation called Bringing The Noise to help bring music back into schools that have lost their music programs. I'm really excited that I'm now in a position to be able to help people.

There's so much happening this year, I couldn't even tell you. Like performing at Coachella! I didn't think I would get this far so soon, so I'm focusing on elevation and really dreaming bigger.

Meet The First-Time GRAMMY Nominee: TOKiMONSTA On Authenticity & Why 'Lune Rouge' Is "A Celebration Of Life"