For yet another year, a slate of LGBTQ individuals — mostly women — are up for Grammy nominations ahead of the January 31 awards ceremony recognizing top stars in the music industry.
The nominations include some well-established out LGBTQ figures, such as Kaytranada, who is under consideration for Best Pop Duo/ Group Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album. But there are also LGBTQ stars getting nods for the first time, including out bisexual rapper Chika, out gay DJ and record producer Kaytranada, and out bisexual indie star Phoebe Bridgers, who all received nominations for Best New Artist.
Brittany Howard leads the way among LGBTQ stars with a half-dozen nominations
Bridgers received two additional Grammy nominations for her song “Kyoto,” which yielded a nod for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance, and she is also under consideration for Best Alternative Music Album for her song “Punisher.”
Kaytranada also got nominated for Best Dance/ Electronic Album — as did Arca, an out trans woman —and for Best Dance Recording
Out lesbian Brittany Howard, who already had more than a half-dozen Grammy nominations under her belt, is in the best position yet to grab her first Grammy. She is being considered for a whopping six Grammy awards: Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, Best American Roots Performance, Best R&B Performance, Best Alternative Music Album, Best Rock Song, and Best Rock Performance.
Howard made waves last year when she rolled out her solo album “Jaime,” as well as her single “Stay High.”
Meanwhile, Gaga, who has collected nearly a dozen Grammy Awards, is competing for Best Pop Duo/ Group Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album following the release of her new album, “Chromatica,” earlier this year.
Out lesbian country star Brandy Clark, who won a Song of the Year Grammy in 2014 for her song “Follow Your Arrow,” is among those being considered for Best Country Album and Best Country Solo Performance as she continues to ride the success of the album she released this year entitled “Your Life Is a Record.”
Out lesbian singer and songwriter Brandi Carlile received a Best Song Written for Visual Media nomination for her song “Carried Me With You.” Carlile snagged six Grammy nominations ahead of the 61st Grammy Awards in 2019.
Big Thief, whose singer, songwriter, and guitarist recently told The New Yorker that she’s attracted to both men and women, dislikes labels, but is okay with being called queer, got a nod for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance for “Not.”
LGBTQ celebrities who are far removed from the music world also grabbed nominations. Journalist Ronan Farrow was nominated for Best Spoken Word Album for the audiobook version of his book “Catch and Kill,” while MSNBC host Rachel Maddow also landed a nod in that same category for her audiobook, “Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth.”
Some LGBTQ artists, however, missed out on Grammy nods this year. Out bisexual singer Halsey drew significant buzz with her album “Manic,” but that did not translate into recognition from the Recording Academy, and out singer Rina Sawayama was snubbed despite her successful debut studio album, “Sawayama.”
Last year out gay rapper Lil Nas X stole the show alongside Billy Ray Cyrus, grabbing multiple Grammy awards for the hit song “Old Town Road,” while out lesbian DJ Tracy Young and Tyler the Creator also came away with some gold hardware.
The Grammy Awards will air on January 31 on CBS.
To sign up for the Gay City News email newsletter, visit gaycitynews.com/newsletter.
