It’s already been a huge year for Taylor Swift, thanks to her blockbuster Eras Tour that sold out stadiums across the country and is now going global, but she could move a step closer to musical history Friday when nominations are announced for the 66th annual Grammy Awards.
Swift’s “Midnights” is virtually guaranteed to land a nomination for Album of the Year, an honor she has won three times previously for “Fearless,” “1989” and “Folklore.” If she goes on to win the prize for “Midnights,” she will become the only artist to ever win Album of the Year four times.
Swift is already the only female artist to win the award three times. The others to accomplish the feat are Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder and Paul Simon.
She is also likely to land in the categories of Record of the Year and Song of the Year for her hit “Anti-Hero,” potentially setting her up for a possible sweep of the Grammys’ top categories.
But the competition will be tough. SZA is among the favorites for Album of the Year for her release “SOS,” along with Olivia Rodrigo’s “Guts.” Other potential contenders in the category include the Foo Fighters for “But Here We Are,” Morgan Wallen for “One Thing at a Time.”
Likely challengers to Swift for Record of the Year include SZA for “Kill Bill,” Miley Cyrus for “Flowers,” Luke Combs for “Fast Car” and Olivia Rodrigo for “Vampire.” Swift, who has 12 Grammy wins in her career, has never won a Record of the Year prize.
Many of the same contenders for Record of the Year are likely to also be considered for Song of the Year — an honor that goes to the songwriters. Others potentially landing a nod include Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves for “I Remember Everything” and Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up.”
Competition for the top categories is a little tougher this year, since the Santa Monica-based Recording Academy reduced the number of nominees from 10 to eight.
The Grammy nominations will be announced at 8 a.m. during a virtual ceremony. Among those who will be helping to make the announcement are Vince Gill, Amy Grant, Jimmy Jam, Jon Bon Jovi, Jeff Tweedy and “Weird Al” Yankovic, along with “CBS Mornings” co-hosts Gayle King, Nate Burleson and Tony Dokoupil.
The announcement will stream at live.grammy.com.
The Grammy Award ceremony — dubbed “Music’s Biggest Night” — will be held Feb. 4 at Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles.