2016 Grammy Awards: Staff Picks & Predictions

February 14, 2016 Kevin John Coyne 19

The good folks at NARAS know how to keep things interesting, producing yet another diverse crop of nominees in the general, country, and country-adjacent fields.

Here are the personal picks from some of our contributing staff, along with who we predict will take home the gold tomorrow.

The Best Albums of 2015, Part Two: #10-#1

December 28, 2015 Jonathan Keefe 6

The upper half of our albums list reflects the revitalization of country music in 2015, courtesy of mostly younger artists with fresh perspectives in their lyrics and arrangements. There is still a legend or two in the mix, but if this year has proven anything, it’s that the genre’s future is in good hands.

2016 Grammy Nominations

December 8, 2015 Kevin John Coyne 3

Country music is well represented in the major categories – numerically, at least – and the overall nominee list proves once again that NARAS voters have the widest, most diverse, and yes, best taste of all industry award voters.

Here are this year’s nominees in the big four and all country and country-related categories. It’s worth noting that because Miranda Lambert won Best Country Album last year for Platinum, nothing from that set was eligible in any of the Country categories.

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Sara Watkins, Sara Watkins

April 7, 2009 William Ward 15

Since the “indefinite hiatus” of progressive acoustic darlings Nickel Creek, despite a history of diverging solo work, releases from Chris Thile and Sean Watkins have been shackled by expectations of a Creek-like sound. Much like releases from her former band mates, Sara Watkins self-titled debut is not a surrogate Nickel creek album. Instead, it is an album that is purely individual, combining the talent that we have already witnessed with more than a few surprises.