NOMINEES:
"Brave" - Sara Bareilles
"Royals" - Lorde
"When I Was Your Man" - Bruno Mars
"Roar" - Katy Perry
"Mirrors" - Justin Timberlake
WHO SHOULD WIN: "Royals" - Lorde
What would 2013 have been without Lorde? The 17-year-old New Zealander completely changed the pop world with her breakthrough hit "Royals." From its subdued, stripped down beats to Lorde's dark, smokey vocals, she took away all pretense in music and gave fans something purely genuine. With complex production values layering her high register voice over and over itself, "Royals" is almost haunting. While "Roar" and "Brave" are nearly the same song, "Mirrors" is another Timberlake pop hybrid and "When I Was Your Man" is a classic love ballad, Lorde's pop song of the year is truly unique, something that the Grammys should celebrate. Girl was a total gamechanger.
Additionally, of the five nominees, "Royals" is far and away the most successful song, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for nine weeks in the fall. "Royals" was so inescapable, it's quite possible that fans could have gotten annoyed with the track and are now overlooking its masterful work.
Most importantly, Lorde has some insane vocal chops on it, something that needs to be considered highly for the Best Pop Solo Performance Grammy. What would Katy Perry be without a little bit of auto-tune? However, Lorde has shown that she has the voice of her generation time and time again in live performances.
WHO WILL WIN: "When I Was Your Man" - Bruno Mars
If you think about it, it seems like the Grammys have a total obsession with Bruno Mars. This year, he'll be performing at the ceremony for the fourth year in a row, he's been nominated for a Grammy 14 times and won the male version of this award (before it was combined in 2012) in 2011 for "Just The Way You Are." It's hard to imagine a Grammy year without a ton of Bruno Mars, so it seems like he's a shoe-in for this golden gramophone.
Not to say a Mars win would be wholly undeserved. Even though "When I Was Your Man" isn't quite the innovative track that Lorde's "Royals" is, he still sings the hell out of this song, truly expressing some pain in his voice and emphasizing the regret in the lyrics.
However, the award for Best Pop Vocal Performance seems like the category that's the biggest toss-up. The Grammys shocked the music world by giving underdog Sara Bareilles nods for two of the biggest categories, this one and Album Of The Year for The Blessed Unrest, so they clearly see something in her that may be enough to score her a surprise win. Justin Timberlake is music's male best friend, and he's won Best Male Pop Vocal Performance twice for "Cry Me A River" and "What Goes Around..." Lorde also has a solid chance at a win, for all the reasons listed above. While we certainly don't mean to shade Katy Perry, her "Roar" just isn't as loud as these other innovative pop songs.
Who do you think should win? Vote below!
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