Tonight (February 15) the 58th annual Grammy Awards will air live on CBS from 8pm ET, and there are plenty of our country and Americana favorites nominated (as well as performances due from Little Big Town, Chris Stapleton, and Carrie Underwood/Sam Hunt). Check out my predictions for the winners below.
Best Country Solo Performance
Cam ‘Burning House’Chris Stapleton ‘Traveller’Carrie Underwood ‘Little Toy Guns’Keith Urban ‘John Cougar John Deere John 3:16’Lee Ann Womack ‘Chances Are’
Should win: With the exception of Keith Urban, this is a great category in my book and it’s truly hard to pick a winner. However, I think I’m going to opt for Cam’s ‘Burning House’, just for how it launched her career and how often it’s been stuck in my head during the last 8 months.
Will win: This is also tough to call. Carrie is generally a Grammy favorite, but Chris Stapleton’s crazy momentum following the CMAs and his critical appeal may likely see him sweeping the Grammys this year. Carrie also won last year for ‘Something In The Water’, so voters may shy away from giving it to her again. We’ll say Chris for this one.
Best Country Duo/Group Performance
Brothers Osborne ‘Stay A Little Longer’Joey + Rory ‘If I Needed You’Charles Kelley, Dierks Bentley, Eric Paslay ‘The Driver’Little Big Town ‘Girl Crush’Blake Shelton, Ashley Monroe ‘Lonely Tonight’
Should win: I like most of these, and would be content with any of them winning, but after radio was such a dick about ‘Girl Crush’ it would be great for that to win. Plus, I think it’s a little early to be awarding Charles Kelley (as a solo act) or Brothers Osborne.
Will win: As I said above, I think it’s too early for Brothers Osborne and Charles Kelley to get a Grammy, although the latter song’s triple star power could go in its favor. And let’s face it, while Joey + Rory are very talented and this nomination is deserved, it’s clear they were only nominated because of Joey’s much-documented battle with terminal cancer around the time of ballot deadlines. Given that she has managed to survive to see the awards but may not continue much longer, voters may give them this as something of a send-off (especially since Rory has said he will quit music following Joey’s passing). But also, ‘Girl Crush’ is very much supported in this arena and could easily add to its rapidly increasing cabinet. I’m going to say Joey + Rory for this one.
Best Country Song
Hayes Carll ‘Chances Are’(Recorded by Lee Ann Womack)
Barry Dean, Luke Laird & Jonathan Singleton ‘Diamond Rings & Old Barstools’(Recorded by Tim McGraw, featuring Catherine Dunn)
Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna & Liz Rose ‘Girl Crush’(Recorded by Little Big Town)
Brandy Clark & Mark Stephen Jones ‘Hold My Hand’(Recorded by Brandy Clark)
Chris Stapleton ‘Traveller’(Recorded by Chris Stapleton)
Should win: This is a win/win/win/win/win situation for me. I love all of these cuts, each very well-written and deserved. I cannot choose.
Will win: While I firmly believe that Chris Stapleton will take home at least one Grammy tonight (he’s nominated for four in total), I think ‘Girl Crush’ is likely to take Song, especially if it hasn’t won in one of the other categories. It’s a critical favorite and was one of the biggest stories of the year.
Best Country Album
Sam Hunt ‘Montevallo’Little Big Town ‘Pain Killer’Ashley Monroe ‘The Blade’Kacey Musgraves ‘Pageant Material’Chris Stapleton ‘Traveller’
Should win: I would be happy with anyone other than Sam Hunt winning this, but my personal favorite is ‘Pageant Material’. It was a sonically cohesive, heartfelt, witty and quirky record and has been my most-played from the selection this year.
Will win: This is between Chris Stapleton and Kacey Musgraves. Kacey won it two years for her debut ‘Same Trailer Different Park’ and has clearly marked herself as a favorite for Grammy voters. But Chris is riding a lot of momentum, both in critical praise and hard sales, and this could well be his year.
Originally posted here.
