Competition at the 2025 Grammys will be fierce, judging from the list of nominees that were just unveiled today. If you pay any attention to the music industry—or simply to what's playing on the radio—then many of the names on the list will likely come as no surprise. Fresh off of her genre-exploding country album Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé leads the pack with a whopping 11 nominations, a number that has smashed new records and made her the most-nominated artist of all time. She's joined by fellow Recording Academy favorites Billie Eilish and Taylor Swift, who scored seven and six nominations respectively.
The 2025 Grammys also embraced a wave of new talent. This year's star-making ascent for the likes of Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX, and Chappell Roan shaped major categories, with the pop darlings earning nods everywhere from Album of the Year to Best New Artist. And while there's much to celebrate, other stars were mystifyingly excluded from categories fans expected them to pull off—and some singers weren't included at all.
Ahead, we break down the top five biggest takeaways from the 2025 Grammy nominations.
Beyoncé's Country Domination
Longtime members of the Beyhive know better than to get their hopes up when it comes to the Grammys, but you can't say the Recording Academy didn't recognize the magic of Cowboy Carter. Beyoncé's genre-bending country concept album featured collaborations with the likes of Miley Cyrus, Shaboozey, Linda Martell, Dolly Parton, and more. This year, the album swept the Grammys as the most nominated single project and helped propel the superstar to become the most Grammy nominated artist of all time with 99 lifetime nominations—surpassing a previous tie with her husband, Jay-Z.
Most notably, Cowboy Carter granted Beyoncé her first official nominations in the Recording Academy's country categories as well — a major feat for any Black artist and a subtle middle finger to the CMAs who famously shut out the singer's eighth studio album from their most recent ceremony. Even if she doesn't win Album of the Year, winning Best Country Album could potentially symbolize so much more—and maybe that was the goal all along.
The Year of the Woman
In 2024, the gifts just kept on coming for pop music fans, with many of the world’s biggest female superstars releasing new albums back-to-back. So, when the nominations for the 67th annual Grammy Awards were announced this morning, it was no surprise to see that pop queens dominated in categories like Album of the Year and Song of the Year. However, now it’s gonna be a tight race between Grammy darlings like Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, and Billie Eilish, alongside newly-recognized stars like Charli XCX, Chappell Roan, and Sabrina Carpenter.
Even though 2023 was deemed by many as the “Year of the Woman,” 2024 actually felt that way in terms of music. In the spring, Swift set music record sales with The Tortured Poets Department and Queen Bey shifted the culture with Cowboy Carter. Then, once summer rolled around, Charli XCX turned us all into brats, while Carpenter had us sipping espresso and Chappell Roan had us spelling out “H-O-T T-O G-O” like the Village People.
Throughout the past few years, women have been dominating the Grammys, and that only became truer this go-around. But while it’s agonizing trying to pick amongst all our faves, we can rest easy knowing one thing: they’re all deserving of wins.
Ariana Grande's Shocking Snub
While female pop stars dominated in the Album of the Year category this year, perhaps the most glaring omission was Ariana Grande’s seventh studio album, Eternal Sunshine. With rave reviews from critics and two number-one singles, the LP was considered one of the most cohesive and mature releases of Grande’s career. Still, it was mostly overlooked once nominations came around.
The album did earn a nod in the Best Pop Vocal Album category, while “Yes, And?” was recognized in Best Dance Pop Recording and “The Boy Is Mine” remix got nominated in Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Still, another surprise was the complete shut-out of Grande’s transcendent “We Can’t Be Friends (Wait for Your Love),” which got zero nominations.
One explanation could be the forthcoming release of Wicked, which has been a big focus for Grande all year and may have taken top priority over campaigning for the Grammys. Also, with Eternal Sunshine coming out all the way back in March, it may have gotten lost amidst more recent buzz from artists like Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter. If there’s any consolation, let’s hope that Grande gets some Oscar nominations to make up for it.
The Rise of the New Guard
There was no doubt that Sabrina Carpenter, Chappell Roan, and Charli XCX—three artists who saw the fruits of their labor materialize after they each experienced a blockbuster, career-defining year—would get recognition at the 2025 Grammys. The only question was by how much? Charli, riding off the coattails of Brat summer, led the new vanguard with seven nominations. Meanwhile, Carpenter (who recently released her sixth studio album Short n' Sweet) and Roan (who earned acclaim for her 2023 debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess and 2024 single “Good Luck, Babe!”) garnered six nominations each. All three earned nods in the top two marquee categories, Record of the Year and Album of the Year. Carpenter and Roan also earned spots amongst the nominees for Song of the Year and Best New Artist.
Snubs and Surprises
It's been a particularly big year for Dua Lipa, Hozier, and Jack Antonoff, but all three missed out on nominations in major, albeit differing, ways.
Despite heavily promoting her highly-anticipated third studio album, Radical Optimism, Lipa received zero nods in the general and pop categories. (Her 2021 album, Future Nostalgia, previously won the Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Album.)
Hozier had a stellar year with his chart-topping pop rock single, “Too Sweet,” which wound up being his first-ever No. 1 hit. Still, the Irish singer was excluded from the 2025 Grammys.
In perhaps one of the most-surprising snubs, Antonoff notably did not receive a nomination for Producer of the Year, a non-classical category that he had previously won for the last three years in a row. At least Antonoff can still lick his wounds with the other nominations he picked up, including two nods for Song of the Year.
Irish Acts Make Their Mark
While the Grammy nods for Beyoncé, Swift, and Eilish were expected, Irish acts also made their mark. Belfast rapper and multi-instrumentalist Jordan Adetunji has been nominated for Best Melodic Rap Performance for his global smash hit single ‘Kehlani’, which has amassed over 300 million stream across its various versions, propelling Adetunji to over 14million monthly listeners on Spotify.
While the nominations for these Irish acts are a cause for celebration, the lack of a Grammy nod for Hozier, who had a breakout year with “Too Sweet,” has left some fans questioning the Recording Academy's choices. Hozier's song topped Billboard charts worldwide, but his nomination drought continues. Only time will tell if he'll ever be recognized by the Grammys, but his fans know he's already a winner in their hearts.
The 67th annual Grammy awards take place on February 2nd 2025. The ceremony is sure to be a night of celebration and excitement, with a few surprises along the way.
