I Listened to All the 2024 Grammy Album of the Year Nominees
…so you don’t have to! Why did I do this? Well, you see, I’m painfully unemployed at the moment. And also, I suffer for your education! Here’s what I thought about all of the Grammy nominees for Album of the Year for the 2024 ceremony. Some are better than others. Like, a lot.
World Music Radio - Jon Batiste
Can an album be Grammy bait, just like an overly pretentious film can be Oscar bait? World Music Radio says yes. Batiste won in 2022 for We Are, an album I haven’t heard. But after this experience, I’m not going to go back and check that out. Absolutely no interest.
It’s not the worst thing I’ve heard; at times, it’s even pleasant. But there’s just such a generic sense of needing to be everything to everyone that distracts from the actual music. It’s well-produced, and I do appreciate the effort to include sounds from across the genre spectrum, but I felt absolutely nothing during its entire hour and five minutes of runtime.
Also, Jon, the “album as radio station” thing is starting to show its age. I’m talking to you too, The Weeknd!
Can it win? Unfortunately, it’s possible. The Grammys like this guy a lot.
the record - boygenius
First of all, the fact this album is here at all is such a triumph for people with taste like mine. These three have been absolutely killing it, and they haven’t had to sacrifice anything about their artistry to get to the Grammy stage. the record is just banger after banger, each song more anthemic and poignant than the last.
I love how it also doubles as a document of a realistic relationship, whether its with a romantic partner or with a close friend you might, I don’t know, have toured with for way too long. Sometimes you’re all good, laughing, enjoying each other’s company, and other times you’re suffering through the awful song they insist on playing in the car. Relatable!
Can it win? In an ideal world, sure! Phoebe especially has momentum, and the girls have been surprisingly present in the media the last year. But my gut says it rocks just a little too hard for the Academy.
Endless Summer Vacation - Miley Cyrus
I’m not exactly a Miley Cyrus fan, but she’s had a fascinating career. It always seems like she’s trying to find an identity with a new album, as opposed to coming into a record with a clear concept. This is another of those. I think she’s going for “Grammy-appropriate adult-contempo pop record.”
It’s fine? It has moments of catchiness, but some strange production choices (Miley’s still working with Mike Will Made-It!) and a few too many moments of blandness bring the project down.
Can it win? While this is the first Miley record to feel like it could, I just don’t see the Academy honoring such a divisive figure. Yeah, still.
Did You Know There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd.? - Lana Del Rey
Lana’s best record since Norman Fucking Rockwell!, which should have won AOTY in 2020. There are certainly beautiful arrangements and transcendent moments here, but they’re balanced by some questionable (and pace-destroying) interludes.
“A&W” by itself, however, is better than most of her catalog, featuring one of the most genre-shattering transitions I’ve ever heard in a song. It isn’t enough to make the whole hour and seventeen minutes feel fresh, though, and it doesn’t feel like a whole piece as much as NFR! did.
Fun fact: I live in walking distance from Ocean Blvd.! Obviously haven’t been to the tunnel.
Can it win? It would be weird if Lana wins for this and not when she should have, but the Academy does love giving belated AOTYs. I’m gonna say no.
The Age of Pleasure - Janelle Monae
Can pure vibes win you a Grammy? For Janelle’s sake, I hope so. It wasn’t my favorite album of 2023, personally, but Mike loved it so much it was his AOTY. Must be doing something right!
The Age of Pleasure does everything you want a Janelle record to do, delivered with such confident swagger it’s ridiculous.
Can it win? I think Janelle’s star has shone brighter in years prior, so I have my doubts. Also, rewarding such a party record in a year that got significantly darker since its release would feel odd.
GUTS - Olivia Rodrigo
I’ll just link my review here. Olivia topped her debut in almost every way, and established herself as a pop/rock force to be reckoned with.
Can it win? Probably not.
Midnights - Taylor Swift
I don’t really need to tell you how I feel about Midnights if you’re a regular listener to our show, but I guess I should recap my opinion briefly for those of you who don’t listen: I like Midnights. A lot.
I think it’s weird in a way that Taylor really doesn’t have to be anymore, but chooses to be anyway. It’s a pop album that takes its time, with a lead single that is wordy and self-deprecating and somehow also her longest-running number one hit. Weird! It’s packed with Taylor-isms and eccentricities, and no bum tracks in the bunch (“Vigilante Shit” is on the bubble, but it’s at least interesting). Sure, it’s not as special as Folklore, as personal as Speak Now, or as catchy as 1989, but it’s proof Taylor is still firmly at her peak.
Can it win? Maybe! Taylor has been everywhere as of late. That cultural dominance could certainly influence the vote. It would be a record fourth AOTY trophy for her.
SOS - SZA
Now here’s a winner. SZA took what’s essentially a double album, released it in December 2022, and still gets radio play for its two biggest singles, an entire calendar year later. It’s expansive, luxurious, sounds amazing, and as deep as the ocean on the cover. It might be the actual best album on this list.
SZA explores so much here, but it never feels overwrought. There are wild genre shifts and surprising guests (Phoebe? Again?). She’s relatable and kick-ass at the same time, whether she’s murdering her ex or trying to pick up the pieces after the breakup.
Can it win? I think this is the one. SZA has been omnipresent on both Billboard charts, and the Academy is more than due to finally award a Black woman for their indelible impact on the art form of the album. My pick, with a bullet.