The 67th annual Grammy Awards will be held in Los Angeles on Feb. 2, bringing together the biggest names in music for a night of unforgettable performances and major wins.
Newcomers Doechii and Chappell Roan, Charli XCX’s “Brat” and Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” have seen breakthrough commercial success. Alongside them are the established names in pop: Billie Eilish, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, not to mention Kendrick Lamar. We will take a stab at predicting who will take home the gold gramophone for the best record, album, song and new artist of the year.
Record of the Year
The Record of the Year award specifically focuses on a song’s production, making “Birds of A Feather” the likely favorite to win. While the category is incredibly competitive this year with many standout performances, “Birds of a Feather” has the edge in terms of precedent, considering Eilish’s win for “What Was I Made For” in 2024. “Birds of a Feather,” was the album’s sleeper hit, taking off gradually on social media with its wistful lyrics. In an interview with Mix With the Masters, Eilish’s brother and producer Finneas O’Connell revealed that the track came together through many subtle layers: vocal harmonies, feedback delays and faded synths.
Album of the Year
With 32 Grammy wins, Beyoncé is easily a Grammy favorite. Yet, even after 20 years, she has still yet to snag the coveted Album of the Year — which she might just do this year with “Cowboy Carter.” “Cowboy Carter” was a risk and deviation from “Renaissance,” shining light on the underlooked black history of country music. According to Beyoncé, it was “born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed.” Her biggest competition, though, will be with other Grammy darlings Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift, alongside the artist with arguably the greatest critical acclaim last year, Charli XCX. However, Beyoncé’s longevity and consistency with Grammy wins indicates she will be the potential winner.
Song of the Year
No one could escape the Kendrick Lamar-Drake beef last year. Out of all the disses, “Not Like Us” easily caused the biggest reaction and just may win Song of the Year. Aside from the clever and quotable bars like “A-minor,” “Not Like Us” was a significant moment for West Coast hip-hop, which saw a minor resurgence. It became even more iconic when Lamar performed it at The Pop Out: Ken & Friends five times in a row. Now, it is even predicted to be included in the upcoming Super Bowl setlist. While this pick may be too ambitious considering the Grammy’s history of neglecting hip hop, it would be a crime to ignore Lamar in the 2025 general categories.
Best New Artist
For Best New Artist, this year’s strongest two contenders are undoubtedly the “midwest princess” Chappell Roan and the “short and sweet” Sabrina Carpenter. Although Carpenter holds the lead in chart-topping songs (“Espresso”, “Please Please Please”) Roan edges her out in the Grammy “artist” criteria. Specifically, the Grammys look for those willing to take creative risks. Even in an industry oversaturated by pop music, the award has even gone to boundary-breaking Jazz artist Esperanza Spalding. Roan, who has already won Best New Artist at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) in 2024, has gone the extra mile on that front through her distinctive costumes, performances and powerful songwriting.
