BEST POP VOCAL ALBUMThe Lion King: The GiftBEYONCÉIt wasn’t enough for Beyoncé to voice
Nala in Disney’s live-action remake of artist also produced and curated this companion album for the film, grace-fully bringing into the streaming age its classic themes of resilience and The Lion King. The multitalented
the triumph of good over evil. The project, which Beyoncé has called a “love letter to Africa,” features
artists from across the continent, like WTiwa Savage, incorporating tribal sounds and chants in Swahili with songs interspersed with dialogue interludes that guide listeners along izkid, Burna Boy, Mr. Eazi and
the movie’s storyline. But the songs are fit for out-of-context listening, too, as plead single, “SPIRIT,” and the feel-good “Mentered the Hot 100.roved by Beyoncé’s anthemic OOD 4 EVA,” both of which
When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?BILLIE EILISH“I have taken out my Invisalign, and this is the album,” Eilish announces to crazed laughter in “!!!!!!!,” the
14-second intro to her debut LP. It’s an oddly perfect introduction to the 17-year-old pop disrupter, who is up for six awards at her first-ever Gram-mys. Eilish unleashes inner darkness in unexpected, funny and unavoidably
catchy ways on this album, to the tune of growling bass hooks (“Bad Guy”), deceivingly chipper ukulele (“8”) and even someone sharpening a knife (“You Should See MUpon release, 12 of the album’s 13 e in a Crown”).
tracks landed on the Hot 100, while the full set — entirely co-written and produced by her brother, Finneas, who is up for producer of the year — debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.Thank U, NextARIANA GRANDEJust six months removed from her August 2018 album, won this category at the Grammys in February, the pop star delivered Sweetener, which
another full album, created as she pro-cessed the death of ex-boyfriend MMDavidson. The R&B-flavored project both honors the past and welcomes the future with an array of dance-iller and breakup with fiancé Pete ac
floor gems like the shiny titular track. Grande’s fifth studio album — which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with the biggest streaming week ever for a pop album — is also striking for its honesty. For example, she weighs
the complexities of mourning Mamid finding new love on the tender, violin-backed lullaby “Ghostin”; the moment of quiet reflection makes the album’s more forward-looking jams even more potent. iller
No. 6 Collaborations ProjectED SHEERANBefore he signed to Win 2011, Sheeran made an EP called No. 5 Collaborations Projectof grime artists. This year, he fulfilled arner M with a slew usic U.K.
his longtime dream of releasing a follow-up, and boosted its starpower with this pop music showcase that features 22 artists from across the genre spectrum — from Chance theRapper to Chris Stapleton, Ella MEminem, and YEBBA to Young Thug. The project marked Sheeran’s third No. 1 album, and includes the crisp, bubbly “I Don’t Care” with Justin Bieber — which reached No. 2 on the ai to
Hot 100 — and the hand-clapping ode to misfits “Beautiful People” with Khalid — which hit No. 13.LoverTAYLOR SWSwift turns 30 this year, which means that for nearly half her life she has been famous for writing about love. Still, she manages to find new ground IFT
on the Jack Antonoff-produced Loverreputationkinds of relationships. Schoolchildren share gloves in the snow on the steel drum-accented “It’s Nice to Have a , trading the snakes and snark of for a clear-eyed look at all
Friend”; the folk tune “Soon You’ll Get Better,” which features the Dixie Chicks, is about her mother’s ongoing battle with cancer; and “Paper Rings” is a cheery wedding song. All 18 tracks charted on the Hot 100 simultane-
ously — a record among women. But Swift’s penchant for gorgeous, hyper-specific imagery is intact, as on the nostalgic “Cornelia Street,” where she describes a particular drunken cab ride: “We were a fresh page on the
desk/Filling in the blanks as we go.”Pop
Stadium in Madrid Sheeran at Wanda Metropolitano on June 11.
Swift at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Oct. 19.
GRAMMYAWARDS
HOEERAN:^ RICARDS^ RUBIO/EUROPA^ PESSS/GETTY^ IMAGER.^ SWIFT:^ KEVIN^ WNETER/GETTY^ IMAGIS.^ SOCIAL:^ PARS
Wthe Grammys will make this year?SOCIAL HOUSE hat’s the biggest change you hope “We hope A.ARA^
to see mtelevised wthe advent of technology now allowing more diversity in the ore possibilities of ins, especially with
sounds and instrumthan ever before.” entations
76 BILLBOARD • DECEMBER 7, 2019