Like YouTube views, Facebook likes, and Instagram followers, Grammy nominations are an indicator of popularity and a necessary evil in the music industry. With that said, over the past few years, the Grammys seem to have someone in charge who likes and appreciates Hip Hop [Questlove…we’re looking at you], and they seem to be doing these categories a lot better with a mix of Hip Pop, underground Rap, and more.

Over the past two years, LiFTED has made some predictions when the Grammys come out and then checked on our predictions when the winners are announced. LiFTED is going the same again this year and we’ll be back in the beginning of February to see how we did.

We would usually list the nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Album of the Year, but we know that the music industry is so enthralled with Taylor Swift and all that she represents that it’s impossible to believe that anyone else has a chance in any of those categories.

Best New Artist

• Coco Jones
• Gracie Abrams
• Fred Again..
• Ice Spice
• Jelly Roll
• Noah Kahan
• Victoria Monét
• The War and Treaty

Fred Again..’s takeover of electronic music was a thing of beauty this past year as he put out one of the best Boiler Room’s of all time, sold out Madison Square Garden with Skrillex and Fourtet, and took over Frank Ocean’s ice rink at Coachella when he bailed on the second weekend because his first-weekend performance was so atrocious.

Ice Spice came from nowhere and put the Rap game in a chokehold with ‘Munch’ She was soon playing Rolling Loud stages and was featured on the biggest songs on the biggest soundtracks of the year [Barbie].

Jelly Roll is a 400-pound country rapper with tattoos on his face who was probably born in a Waffle House. This checks enough boxes to get him the award [even though he’s been putting out music since 2005!]

Best Rap Performance

• Baby Keem Featuring Kendrick Lamar ‘The Hillbillies’
• Black Thought ‘Love Letter’
• Coi Leray ‘Players’
• Drake & 21 Savage ‘Rich Flex’
• Killer Mike Featuring André 3000, Future & Eryn Allen Kane ‘Scientists & Engineers’

To see Black Thought get nominated for a Grammy brings a tear to the eye. He’s one of the most versatile MCs in the game and should be in everyone’s top-five MC list. Unfortunately, he won’t win even with Questlove on the committee. Baby Keem and Kendrick Lamar are Grammy darlings, but we’re going with Coi Leray’s ‘Players’ as that ‘Message’-like beat really mixed Old School with the New School, and we know that “Girls are players, too.”

Best Melodic Rap Performance

• Burna Boy Featuring 21 Savage ‘Sittin’ on Top of the World’
• Doja Cat ‘Attention’
• Drake & 21 Savage ‘Spin Bout U’
• Lil Durk Featuring J. Cole ‘All My Life’
• SZA ‘Low’

As much as we love Burna Boy at LiFTED, we want him to win the Best Global Music Performance and Best African Music Performance. ‘All My Life’ is an uplifting track with kids singing and two of the biggest stars in the game, Lil Durk and J. Cole, are pretty much guaranteed to win this one.

Best Rap Song

• Doja Cat ‘Attention’
• Drake & 21 Savage ‘Rich Flex’
• Killer Mike Featuring André 3000, Future & Eryn Allen Kane ‘Scientists & Engineers’
• Lil Uzi Vert ‘Just Wanna Rock’
• Nicki Minaj & Ice Spice Featuring Aqua ‘Barbie World’

Nicki and Ice Spice killed the Drill remix of ‘Barbie World,’ but nothing has been more influential than Lil Uzi Vert’s ‘Just Wanna Rock’ since half the songs coming out now have some kind of Jersey influence to them.

Best Rap Album

• Drake & 21 Savage Her Loss
• Killer Mike Michael
• Metro Boomin Heroes & Villains
• Nas King’s Disease III
• Travis Scott Utopia

Drake has put out four albums in two years and we think that’s enough for a while. He may have the numbers, but the heart is not there. Metro Boomin’s Heroes & Villains was good, as was Nas’ King’s Disease III and Travis Scott’s Utopia, but we’re picking a sleeper here for Killer Mike’s Micheal. If Outkast kept making music, it would sound like Killer Mike in 2023.