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 Outspoken rapper Cardi B, whose music and personal life has
dominated pop culture for the past two years, leads the charge
on music's biggest night with a live performance and five Grammy
nominations, including for album and record of the year.
R&B singer Alicia Keys will host the Grammys for the first time,
while Miley Cyrus, Janelle Monae, Camila Cabello and Kacey
Musgraves are also among the performers at the Los Angeles
ceremony.
Adding to the star power, Motown legend Diana Ross will take the
stage to mark her 75th birthday in March, and hopes are high
that Lady Gaga will perform her Grammy and Oscar-nominated song
"Shallow" from the movie "A Star is Born."
Yet Cardi B is likely to grab most of the attention. The 26
year-old New York artist is one of only a handful of female
rappers and has captured attention with her message of female
empowerment, on and off marriage to rapper Offset, and a string
of hit records and collaborations, including "I Like It," "Girls
Like You" and "Taki Taki."
"Cardi B is a very strong woman who is in control of her career.
She is really talented and has something to say and she is just
fun. She is like a breath of fresh air," said Melinda Newman,
West Coast editor for Billboard magazine.
"Between Alicia Keys and all the female nominees, I think we
will have a very female-leading show. That's not necessarily by
design, that's just how it's shaking out this year," Newman
added.
It is a far cry from 2018, when the dearth of female nominees
and performers caused a media uproar and prompted the Recording
Academy, whose members choose the Grammy winners, to expand the
number of nominees in the top four categories to eight from
five.
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This year five of the eight nominees for the coveted album of
the year award are women - Cardi B's "Invasion of Privacy,"
Janelle Monae's "Dirty Computer", folk singer Brandi Carlile's
"By the Way, I Forgive You," country artist Kacey Musgraves'
"Golden Hour" and R&B newcomer H.E.R.'s self-titled "H.E.R."
Six of the eight musicians competing for best new artist are
also women, including "New Rules" British singer Dua Lipa, Chloe
& Halle, Bebe Rexha and H.E.R.
While the show may give the impression that girls run the world,
there is no guarantee how many will take home a Grammy.
Lamar leads with eight nods, many of them for writing most of
the "Black Panther" movie soundtrack album, which is up for
album of the year. Drake, the most commercially successful
artist of 2018, follows with seven nominations, including for
his album "Scorpion" and single "God's Plan."
It is not yet known whether either of the rappers will perform
on Sunday.
The Grammy Awards take place in Los Angeles on Feb. 10 and will
be broadcast live on CBS television at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT (0100
GMT).
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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