The list of 2018 Grammy nominees is officially here — and while many awards shows have received criticism in the past for refusing to diversify their lists of honorees (#OscarsSoWhite, anyone?), it’s unlikely that the same will be said of this year’s nominees.
As Billboard reports, the list of artists up for the prestigious “Album of the Year” award includes four men of color and one woman: Childish Gambino for Awaken My Love!, Jay-Z for 4:44, Lorde’s Melodrama, DAMN. by Kendrick Lamar and Bruno Mars’s 24k Magic — making it the first year that the “Album of the Year” lineup hasn’t included a white male. Also up for awards are Alessia Cara, Cardi B and SZA.
Notice anything about the 2018 Grammy nominations for album of the year?
Childish Gambino: Awaken, My Love
Jay Z: 4:44
Kendrick Lamar: Damn
Lorde: Melodrama
Bruno Mars: 24K MagicThis is the FIRST TIME EVER no white guys have been nominated. EVER.#GRAMMYs #GrammyNominations
— Dani Deahl (@danideahl) November 28, 2017
Considering we’re talking about the awards show that once refused to televise the award for Best Rap Performance back in 1989, we’ve come a long way.
As for the snubs (because you know they happen every year), many fans are criticizing this year’s nominee list for noticeably leaving out Harry Styles’s solo debut album. Surprisingly, following the release of Divide earlier this year, Ed Sheeran only racked up two nominations this time — despite the fact that many predicted he and Kendrick Lamar would be 2018’s big winners.
We’ll see what happens on January 28th, when James Corden hosts the 2018 ceremony — until then, you can see the full list of nominees on the Grammys website.