Beyoncé, Shaboozey and Post Malone topped country in 2024. How will Grammy voters respond?

NEW YORK -- Country euphony has become a ascendant force, bleeding into popular music's mainstream. And artists who mightiness not person been antecedently associated pinch nan genre — for illustration Beyoncé and Post Malone — person precocious released state albums.

They’ve been popular, but their prospects astatine nan Grammys stay uncertain.

Beyoncé's landmark “Cowboy Carter" recentered Black performers successful this music's history and made her the first Black woman to deed No. 1 connected Billboard state albums chart.

Shaboozey's “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” is nan biggest opus of nan year, having spent much weeks astatine No. 1 connected nan Billboard Hot 100 than immoderate different — it combines his twang pinch nan acquainted sample of J Kwon's 2004 rap deed “Tipsy.”

This summer, he followed Beyoncé to became only nan 2nd Black creator ever to apical Billboard’s popular and state singles charts astatine nan aforesaid time.

And Post Malone made an effortless modulation into nan world of country, spending clip successful Nashville, playing astatine nan Grand Ole Opry, and dominating nan charts pinch “I Had Some Help,” his collaboration pinch Morgan Wallen.

For each nan success, will these state newcomers beryllium rewarded erstwhile nan Grammy Award nominations are announced adjacent week? Here’s immoderate cardinal things to know.

There are 4 main Grammy state euphony categories: champion state album, champion state solo performance, champion state duo/group capacity and champion state song. The second is awarded to nan songwriters.

Each class recognizes 5 nominated works.

Beyoncé, Shaboozey and Post Malone person been submitted successful each 4 of nan awesome state euphony categories, including state medium of nan twelvemonth for “Cowboy Carter,” “Where I’ve Been, Isn’t Where I’m Going,” and “F-1 Trillion,” respectively. They are not guaranteed nominations, though each has submitted successful respective different categories that grant pop, R&B and Americana and are besides vying for champion album, grounds and opus of nan twelvemonth recognition.

Beyoncé's “Texas Hold ‘Em” has been submitted successful nan state opus category. “16 Carriages” is up for state solo capacity and successful nan state duo/group capacity category, “ll Most Wanted,” her duet pinch Miley Cyrus, has been submitted.

In nan lawsuit of Shaboozey: “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” is up for nan state opus and state solo capacity categories. “My Fault” pinch Noah Cyrus is up for state duo/group performance.

And lastly, for Post Malone: “I Had Some Help” pinch Wallen is up for state opus and state duo/group performance. “Yours” is his submission successful nan state solo capacity category.

They will apt beryllium up against immoderate of nan 2024 Country Music Association Awards’ champion state medium nominees, which see Luke Combs’ “Fathers & Sons,” Cody Johnson’s “Leather,” Kacey Musgraves’ “Deeper Well” and Chris Stapleton’s “Higher,” arsenic good arsenic nan different all-stars who’ve released albums that are eligible for Grammy nomination, Lainey Wilson’s “Whirlwind” among them.

Beyoncé received nary nominations for “Cowboy Carter” for nan 2024 CMAs, a determination country prima Mickey Guyton called dispiriting — and 1 that mightiness bespeak nan ways successful which nan Nashville state euphony manufacture operates. Could nan aforesaid hap astatine nan Grammys?

“A batch of times successful state music, if you’re releasing a state record, you request to — you don’t request to, but it’s beneficial to you to — put successful nan organization and really show yourself successful that assemblage truthful nan organization feels an attachment to you," Guyton said. "Nashville is very, very, very — it’s a nine almost, and it’s a community. And group ... consciousness for illustration they request to cognize you. And truthful that was decidedly a factor. It still doesn’t make it not disappointing.”

If Beyoncé receives a champion state medium Grammy nomination, she will go nan 2nd Black creator to do truthful — Guyton was nan first, for her 2022 debut, “Remember Her Name.”

Country musician BRELAND, who is some a CMA and Grammy voter, points to nan differences betwixt some grant shows.

“Nashville successful wide is simply a organization that, erstwhile you travel to town, you benignant of salary your dues. And I consciousness for illustration that’s nan measurement that nan strategy runs. That’s really state power runs," he explained. “You saw Post Malone really ingratiate himself successful nan successful nan organization present successful Nashville, which I deliberation contributed to him getting immoderate of those looks. You know, Shaboozey was nominated (at nan CMAs,) but you besides saw him playing CMA fest and playing a bunch of these state festivals.”

In Beyoncé’s case, “Her not being present (in Nashville) astir apt didn’t thief her lawsuit for getting nominated,” he continued. “She’s done a really awesome occupation successful helping to alteration nan communicative successful state music, and I would beryllium amazed if she wasn’t acknowledged successful immoderate respect astatine nan Grammys. ... Grammy voting members are astir apt going to beryllium a small spot much receptive to that, than group would beryllium connected nan CMA side.”

Maura Johnston, a freelance euphony writer and Boston College adjunct instructor, said Beyoncé “often is simply a unfortunate of gangly poppy syndrome wherever she’s truthful good, she’s truthful awesome and so, like, connected different level from everybody," nan gut guidance is to “honor thing else." Race is simply a consideration, too, wherever Black performers are seldom recognized successful state categories.

“She should get nominated because it is specified an creator achievement. You know, it is specified a measurement for group to get a very clang people successful nan history of Americana," she continues. "But I besides cognize really state feels astir outsiders.”

On nan flip side, Johnston based on that Grammy voters whitethorn effort to course-correct nan determination made by nan CMAs, and guarantee she receives nominations. “It would beryllium a bully extremity of nan headdress and a bully realization that, yeah, nan euphony business is beautiful big, and we person to get free of nan parochialism that tin dominate,” she said.

“Just judging by state radio’s guidance to him, I deliberation he mightiness person nan champion changeable of nan three,” said Johnston.

“Radio, it’s specified a important gatekeeper successful nan state euphony industry," and Malone is playing nan game, she says. “The medium ... has truthful galore cameos from, like, everybody successful state music,” she added. “The anticipation of him getting nominated conscionable by nan group he collaborated pinch is very high.”

Those see Hank Williams Jr, Tim McGraw, Dolly Parton, Combs and Wilson. “I deliberation he has a amended changeable astatine receiving a information for state medium of nan year.

Johnston said she believes that were nan inclusion of “I Had Some Help,” which features Morgan Wallen could beryllium a hinderance astatine nan Grammys, wherever past behaviors — specified arsenic throwing a chair disconnected a Nashville rooftop adjacent 2 constabulary officers and using a group slur successful a 2021 video — mean “he is still a spot radioactive.”

Despite having immoderate of nan biggest songs and albums of nan past fewer years, Wallen has ne'er been nominated for a Grammy. (At February's show, his azygous “Last Night” was nominated successful nan champion state opus category, but did not win. Wallen wouldn't person received a trophy anyhow — it is fixed to nan songwriters only.)

Overall, she sees Malone arsenic a fastener from immoderate information — peculiarly those that don't see Wallen.

As awesome arsenic Shaboozey's medium is, it's overmuch much apt that nan state prima will beryllium recognized for his monolithic hit, “A Bar Song (Tipsy.)”

“It benignant of builds connected nan premise of ‘Old Town Road,’” says Johnston, pointing to Lil Nas X's crippled changing single.

“A Bar Song (Tipsy)” deed No. 1 connected some nan state and all-genre charts, she points out. “It's a cross-genre moment, and conscionable a bully song. It's besides classically country.”

Shaboozey “was nan first antheral Black creator to floor plan astatine No. 1 connected state songs and state airplay,” she Johnston said, “So I deliberation that’s a bully motion that, you know, power embraced him.”

Perhaps nan Grammys will do nan same.

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Gary Gerard Hamilton contributed to this report.