On Tuesday, Nov. 28, the 2017 nominations were announced for the 60 Annual Grammy Awards. The awards will be airing Jan. 28. The revelation of the nominees has left some fans disappointed at the lack of popular artist nominees for the major award categories. Wildly popular artists, Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift, have been shut out of the major categories such as; Album, Record and Song of the Year, despite having released their albums this year and having dominated the major Grammys categories in recent years.
In the previous 2016 Grammys, Ed Sheeran took home both the Pop Solo Performance and the song of the Year award with his hit single, Thinking Out Loud. His most recent single, Shape of You peaked at number one on the singles charts of 44 countries, including the Billboard Hot 100, as well as the UK, Australian and Canadian singles charts. Along with hitting number one on multiple single charts is the fact that his album, Divide, is 2017’s second-best-selling album. With this data in mind, it is only natural for fans to assume that he would have the same success as last year.
Junior Sophia Kegley is a fan of Ed Sheeran and his work. She was able to see him this year when he came to Bankers Life Fieldhouse Sept. 8.
“I think that his album should have been nominated because every song has its own unique sound and all of his lyrics have a special meaning,” Kegley said. “They are amazing songs and the album as a whole should be recognized.”
With Ed Sheeran’s Divide being the second-best-selling album, Taylor Swift’s, Reputation has taken the spot as number one. Although her album was a huge success, selling more than 1.2 million copies in its first week since release, she did not make the cutoff date to be eligible for the 2018 Grammys.
Wishing Taylor Swift had dropped her album before the Grammy eligibility cutoff date, sophomore Brianne Arnold is confident she would have been a popular nominee.
“I think [Reputation] should have been nominated because [the album] reflects her as a person and how’s she been feeling throughout these past few years, which I think provides a really unique experience for anyone listening,” Arnold said. “The album is cohesive, yet it still provides a variety of music for all kinds of different moods. The outcome of the album is incredible and had so much success.”
