The breakthrough singer-rapper scored a whopping eight nominations, including bids for the top four awards, making her the show’s top-nominated act.
Lizzo picked up nominations for album of the year with her major-label debut, “Cuz I Love You”; song and record of the year with her anthemic No. 1 hit, “Truth Hurts”; and best new artist.
Like Lizzo, other new artists dominated with Grammy nominations on Wednesday: Billie Eilish and Lil Nas X earned six nominations apiece.
Lizzo’s “Cuz I Love You,” Eilish’s “When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?” and Lil Nas X’s “7” — an 8-song EP — will compete for album of the year along with Ariana Grande’s “Thank U, Next,” Bon Iver’s “I,I,” Vampire Weekend’s “Father of the Bride,” H.E.R.’s “I Used to Know Her” and Lana Del Rey’s “Norman (Expletive) Rockwell!”
Lizzo’s road to the Grammys has been a long one: The 31-year-old, who performed with Prince on his “Plectrumelectrum” album, ground as an independent and touring artist for years before signing a major-label deal, releasing her first album in 2013. But this year marked her major breakthrough: Her song “Truth Hurts” topped the charts for seven weeks; she’s wowed audiences with her live performances — including her twerking while playing the flute. She’s also graced several magazine covers, earning praise for promoting body positivity and denouncing fat shaming.
But Lizzo has also had her fair share of critics: Some felt she shouldn’t qualify for the best new artist at the Grammys since she’s been on the music scene for years. Others thought since “Truth Hurts” was originally released in 2017, it shouldn’t qualify for the 2020 Grammys. The Recording Academy said “Truth Hurts” qualified because the song was never submitted for contention in the Grammys process and it appears on an album released during the eligibility period for the upcoming show.
“Truth Hurts” was co-written by Tele, Jesse Saint John, and Ricky Reed, who is nominated for producer of the year (non-classical). Mina Lioness, the British singer who Lizzo gave writing credit to after using some of her viral tweets in the hit song, didn’t appear on the list of writers nominated for song of the year for “Truth Hurts.” Lizzo’s label, Atlantic Records, told The Associated Press last week it was in the process of adding Lioness to the song’s credits.
Lizzo’s other nominations include best urban contemporary album, best pop solo performance for “Truth Hurts,” best traditional R&B performance for “Jerome” and best R&B performance for “Exactly How I Am,” which features Gucci Mane and marks the rapper’s first Grammy nomination.
The 2020 Grammys will hand out awards in its 84 categories live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles on January 26. Nominees were selected from more than 20,000 submissions, and the final round of voting runs from Dec. 9 until Jan. 3.
