Snubs and Surprises at the 2024 Grammys

Many of the awards at the 2024 Grammy Awards went as expected. You had to know that Lainey Wilson’s Bell Bottom Country was going to win best country album. It had already won album of the year at both the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Country Music Association Awards. Joni Mitchell’s Joni Mitchell at Newport [Live] also seemed like a lock to win for best folk album. And Karol G’s Mañana Será Bonito seemed sure to win best música urbana album. Sure enough, all three of those albums won in those categories.

Some singles or songs also seemed like locks to win, including Tyla’s “Water” as the inaugural winner for best African music performance and Billie Eilish and Finneas’ “What Was I Made For?” for best song written for visual media. Yep, they won too.

But, as always, there were snubs and surprises. Trevor Noah, who hosted the show for the fourth year in a row, was nominated for best comedy album, but lost to Dave Chappelle’s What’s in a Name? That was a mild surprise, but Chappelle is such a giant in comedy – this was his fifth win in that category in the past seven years – that it doesn’t really qualify as a snub.

The 3-1/2-hour telecast, held at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, had something for everybody. Performers ranged from 20-year-old pop superstar Olivia Rodrigo to music legend Joni Mitchell, who is still adding to her considerable legacy at 80.

Here are snubs and surprises from the 2024 Grammy Awards.