Every music fan's favorite topic of bitter and indignant conversation is here: the Grammy Awards. The ceremony will take place just a few days from now on Sunday, March 2 at Los Angeles' Crypto.com arena, with broadcasts from CBS and the Paramount+ streaming network. Also, the event will specifically focus on raising funds for the city's wildfire relief. In any case, there's a lot more conversation around these Grammys that goes beyond anger over what they get right and wrong.
Whether it's diss tracks poised to (maybe) take home some big awards, award season snubs with their last chance to hit it big, or emerging industry darlings, the 2025 Grammy Awards have a lot to live up to. So, from a hip-hop and R&B-centric perspective, let's take a look at the relevant awards, predict who will win, and pick who we think deserves the golden gramophone.
The Best R&B Performances
First up we have the Best R&B Performance category, which includes nominees like Jhené Aiko with "Guidance," Chris Brown with "Residuals," and Coco Jones with "Here We Go (Uh Oh)." While these are all pretty solid selections, we'd have to pick SZA with "Saturn" for the award thanks to its multiple sticky vocal runs, additional harmonizations, and well-fitting dreaminess given the instrumental. However, when it comes to what the Grammys will pick, we're predicting Muni Long with "Made For Me (Live On BET)." It just fits better with the precedent of previous winners, boasts the most expressive and powerful vocal performance, and its live recording adds that extra award season kick.
Next, for Best Traditional R&B Performance, the race is a bit tighter due to strong showings from Lucky Daye, Marsha Ambrosius, and another Muni Long highlight (she's got big chances!). When talking about that classic soul, the tenderness of the cut leads us to pick Kenyon Dixon with "Can I Have This Groove." We wouldn't be mad at all, though, if our prediction of Lalah Hathaway with "No Lie" featuring Michael McDonald comes true, which is more dramatic. They're both very warm records with rich musicianship, so no love lost there.
The Best Hip-Hop Performances
The Best Rap Performance category is where we first meet a recurring character at the 2025 Grammys: Kendrick Lamar. And we see him twice. Dot's feature on Future and Metro Boomin's "Like That" – plus our prediction, "Not Like Us" – are very strong contenders, and either one could please fans. But when it comes to the performance aspect, no nominee is more fiery, dynamic, and exciting than our pick: Doechii on "NISSAN ALTIMA." As solid as Cardi B, Common & Posdnuos, Eminem, and GloRilla's contributions are, the Swamp Princess puts on a marathon of a performance without losing even the slightest bit of charisma.
Best Melodic Rap Performance is a more exciting and unpredictable showdown by comparison, with Beyoncé and Jordan Adetunji adding some more genre flair into the mix alongside Latto's "Big Mama." Just based off of the popularity and strength of other nominations for this duo at this year's Grammy Awards, we'd have to predict Future and Metro Boomin with "We Still Don't Trust You" featuring The Weeknd. It's by no means a bad pick, but for our money, we'd pick Rapsody and Erykah Badu with "3:AM" for its compelling contrast and lyrical angle.
The Best Rap/R&B Songs
We have our first full lock-in for the Grammy Awards thanks to the Best R&B Song category, in which we're picking and predicting SZA with "Saturn." While the bouncy vibe of Kehlani's "After Hours" and the crisp calm brought by Tems' "Burning" would also be welcome recognitions, the multiple melodies, addictive tones, and wistful lyricism on this SOS Deluxe: LANA cut is undeniable. Also, this is where the Grammys tend to pick the big hit and eschew other performance considerations, although we think that it's a deserved play this time around.
We can honestly say the same for the Best Rap Song category, in which Kendrick Lamar once again has a win right in front of him. We'd pick and predict "Not Like Us" over "Like That" if only for its more consistently progressive performance and structure, and we're wishing GloRilla, Rapsody, and the VULTURES duo better luck next time. Still, the Recording Academy could turn around and pick the less combative and less "defamatory" Kendrick banger, which would also make sense as an earned victory.
Read More: Top 10 Hottest R&B Albums Of 2024
Which R&B Albums Will Take It Home?
For the two distinct Best R&B Album categories, the main one is a bit more of a tough call. Chris Brown had a huge moment with his deluxe, Usher came home with his comeback, and our pick Lucky Daye dropped another acclaimed and vibrant project in his sea of acclaimed and vibrant projects. Muni Long has a lot of momentum with her other nominations, but at the end of the day, we're predicting Lalah Hathaway with VANTABLACK. It has more artist crossovers, which the Grammys always appreciate, and it has the contemporary sheen to a classic sound that the Recording Academy usually goes wild for.
As for the Best Progressive R&B Album, this is perhaps the most underrated of these categories thanks to sleeper gems from Avery*Sunshine and Durand Bernarr. Our pick, Kehlani's Crash, also made a huge splash, and Childish Gambino's Bando Stone & The New World is so progressive that it could've landed in any number of categories this year. But the Grammy Awards love their favorites, which is why we're predicting NxWorries with Why Lawd? Anderson .Paak is an industry darling, and working with Knxwledge again after that process added a lot of charisma, shine, and circumstance to their more off-kilter sensibilities.
What's 2025's Best Rap Album?
The Best Rap Album category warrants a process of elimination, as they all have their merits. Common and Pete Rock are beloved old guard defenders with plenty of industry pull, but they don't have the contemporary crossover hit. Eminem is a giant, but the Recording Academy hasn't shown him much love since the mid-2010s. J. Cole is also a titan, but if The Off-Season didn't win, Might Delete Later seems unlikely. So which is it, Doechii's kaleidoscopic versatility or Future and Metro Boomin's triumphant hit parade? While right now, today, this writer would pick Alligator Bites Never Heal, we can't deny that commercial power and the cultural battle craze of 2024 leads us to predict We Don't Trust You. The Grammys love a good vehicle for a mega-hit, and they're only a few spots away from each other on our 2024 albums list, so either one is deserved.
Read More: Top 40 Hottest Hip-Hop Albums Of 2024
The AOTY Debate
To quickly comment on the Album Of The Year race, we sadly have to predict that neither André 3000 nor Beyoncé is taking home the award. If New Blue Sun wins, then the music industry will frankly look older but also cooler than ever, and as for Queen Bey, history has disappointed us too much in the past to really muster up much hope. Cowboy Carter hasn't really gotten the love that it not only deserves, but that many thought it would get from the industry. For some reason, she's always just slightly out of reach of the big accolade despite her many other awards and nominations. We pick Bey or BRAT because Charli XCX has deserved this moment ever since "Vroom Vroom" and the subsequent Pop 2. We're predicting Taylor Swift because... How could we not? The "ERAS" tour only wrapped up not even two months ago.
Will Kendrick Lamar Sweep The Grammys?
Finally, we want to guess whether or not Kendrick Lamar will take home his Record Of The Year (production) and Song Of The Year (songwriting) nominations for "Not Like Us." Pardon our rap bias, but of course, we're picking it in both categories. It topped our Best Rap Songs of 2024 list – and so many others – for a reason. Other solid picks are Charli's "360" for Record, Beyoncé's "Texas Hold 'Em" for Song, and Billie Eilish's "Birds Of A Feather" for both.
However, it's one thing for Childish Gambino to win both Record and Song Of The Year for "This Is America," a politically charged and musically genre-bending track bolstered by its blunt music video. It's another thing entirely for Kendrick Lamar to sweep the Grammys with a diabolical dance on Drake's grave whose visual treatment adds even more insult to injury. For that reason, we don't see "Not Like Us" taking home the big awards... Although, if it does, it would be an astonishing moment if only to laugh at Drizzy's UMG lawsuit a little more. We're instead predicting The Beatles for Record because the music industry loves a good self-suck-off over "the good ol' days," and predicting Chappell Roan for Song because it gives you such a wondrous feeling. But we wouldn't be entirely surprised if a diss track dominates the 2025 Grammys.
Read More: Top 50 Hottest Hip-Hop Songs Of 2024