GRAMMYAWARDS
IRL^ NAS^ X:^ TAYLOL^ HILL/GETTY^ IMAG
S^.^ LIZZO:^ BRYANEBEDDER/GETTY^ IM
GNES.^ EILISH:^ JOA^ KOPALOFF/FILMM
GSIC/GETTY^ IMAGEA.^ PUMAS:^ JEFF^ K
ACVITZ/FILMMAGIR/GETTY^ IMAGES.Best New Artist
Eric Burton formed the soul-funk group Black Pumas with Adrian Quesada two years ago in Austin, after performing there and in Los Angeles as a street busker. Now, the duo is one of the major success stories of ATO Records, which released Black Pumas’ self-titled debut album in June. Quesada, previously a BLACK PUMAS
Grammy winner for best Latin rock/alternative/urban album with El Grupo Fantasma, tells nomination, “I went through every range of emotions. First the adrenaline came out — I felt like I had just dunked in the NBA Finals and went to Eric right away. I eventually sat there and shed some tears, too.” Prior to issuing their first full-length together, Burton and Quesada performed at this year’s South by Billboard that when he found out about the best new artist
Southwest festival and won a pair of trophies at the Austin MPumas have dates in North America and Europe lined up for early 2020.usic Awards. Black
Lil Nas X will likely never release a bigger song than “Old Town Road,” because there have been few songs bigger than “Old Town Road” in the modern music era. Aided by a remix featuring Billy Ray Cyrus, the hip-hop spin on cowboy tropes spent a record-setting 19 weeks atop the Hot 100. Yet even as the reign of LIL NAS X
“Old Town Road” refused to let up, Lil Nas X established himself as more than a one-hit wonder, scoring a No. 2 debut with his EP, of the year), and collecting another top 10 hit with the slippery hip-hop track “Panini.” Along with recruiting artists like Young Thug, MBTS member RMrated with Cardi B, Travis Barker and DaBaby. And since publicly coming out for various “Old Town Road” remixes, the rapper has collabo- 7 (nominated for album ason Ramsey and
in June, Lil Nas X has become an important figure for LGBTQ representation in the hip-hop community. “As an artist building myself up,” he recently told Billboard, “I’m going to have to continue to make other moments.”
Before Eilish turned 15 years old, she released the haunting ballad “Ocean Eyes,” which became a sensation on SoundCloud and established her dark yet poignant approach to pop songcraft. Now 17, the Los Angeles native is the youngest artist to earn Grammy nominations in all four general categories: BILLIE EILISH
album of the year, record of the year, song of the year and best new artist. tine pop that dominated top 40 radio at the beginning of the decade. A total of established herself as a streaming juggernaut, and an alternative to the pris-“Ocean Eyes” and including the recent new single “Everything I WW17 Eilish songs have charted on the Billboard Hot 100 to date — starting with ith her 2019 debut album, When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?anted.”, Eilish
In the 2017 music video for “Truth Hurts,” Lizzo is dressed as a bride, and the person she ends up marrying is herself. The visual underscores the unflappable confidence at the heart of the flutist-singer-rapper’s music and persona, which helped guide her through years as a mixtape artist releas-LIZZO
ing projects and singles that struggled to gain traction. That is no longer the case: After “Truth Hurts” slowly grew into a No. 1 smash on the Hot 100, “Good As Hell,” another anthemic shot of self-motivation, followed the song into the chart’s top 10. Both tracks are featured on the deluxe version of Cuz I Love Youat No. 4 on the Billboard 200, and lingered near the top of the chart for , Lizzo’s proper Atlantic Records debut, which has peaked
months. Lizzo’s slow-and-steady grind paid off with eight Grammy nomina-tions, leading all performers in 2019. As she told “I’ve always had to turn haters into congratulators.”Billboard earlier this year,From left: Lil Nas X, Lizzo, Eilish and Burton of Black Pumas.
68 BILLBOARD • DECEMBER 7, 2019