Olivia Rodrigo
Grant SpanierInterscope Geffen A&M led the pack among the record labels that racked up Grammy nominations in the “Big Four” categories of record of the year, album of the year, song of the year and best new artist. With Geffen breakout star Olivia Rodrigo leading with way with nominations in all four of those categories, IGA nabbed 10 nods, besting the Sony Music duo of RCA (6) and Columbia (5), which came in second and third, respectively.
It’s the third time in four years that IGA has grabbed the top spot, since the Grammys expanded the top categories beyond the five nominees that had been standard for the past 50 years. (The past three years had increased the nominees to eight per category; this year it increased again, to 10.) The label also led the way in 2018, with eight, and 2019, with seven, while Republic led a tight race last year with five.
This year also marks the second time in three years that IGA has had a blossoming star grab a nomination in all four categories following Billie Eilish two years ago, who cleaned up at the awards show by winning them all. Joining Rodrigo in Interscope’s stable of nominees are Eilish’s three (record, album, song), one for Eilish’s brother and collaborator Finneas (best new artist) and two for the Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga collaboration: record of the year for “I Get A Kick Out Of You” and album of the year for Love For Sale. (Love For Sale was released by Columbia/Streamline/Interscope, but was distributed by IGA; similarly, Silk Sonic’s album was released on Aftermath/Atlantic, but distributed by Atlantic. In those cases, the distributing label was given credit for the release.)
Sony’s RCA and Columbia also had strong showings, with Doja Cat (record, album, song), perennial Grammy favorite H.E.R. (album, song) and the Alicia Keys and Brandi Carlile collaboration “A Beautiful Noise” (song) contributing to RCA’s big haul. Columbia, meanwhile, saw Lil Nas X return with a strong showing and three Big Four noms (record, album, song) as well as two best new artist contenders in The Kid LAROI and Baby Keem.
Def Jam came in fourth among all labels with four nominations, as Kanye West’s album of the year nom for DONDA joined a trio for Justin Bieber (record, album, song). Silk Sonic’s two (record, song) and Ed Sheeran’s one (song) added up to three for Atlantic, while Verve (led by overall top-nominated artist Jon Batiste), Republic (Taylor Swift’s Evermore for album and Glass Animals for best new artist) and Elektra (Brandi Carlile for record and song) landed two apiece. Warner and Capitol each earned one nomination, with Saweetie landing a best new artist nomination for the former and ABBA a surprise record of the year nom for the latter. Four indie labels also picked up a nomination as well, all for best new artist: Dead Oceans (Japanese Breakfast), New Amsterdam Records (Arooj Aftab), BBR Music Group (Jimmie Allen) and Transgressive (Arlo Parks).
Overall, the Universal Music Group racked up 19 nominations* through its labels, with Sony Music at 11, Warner Music at six and indies at four. Last year, UMG had 10 nominations total among the Big Four, with Sony at nine, Warner at seven and indies at six.
*That number increases to 20 when you include best new artist nominee Arooj Aftab, whose 2021 album Vulture Prince was released on indie New Amsterdam Records but who is now signed to — and distributed by — UMG’s Verve Label Group.
NEWS
Lorde returned to Governor’s Ball for the first time in nine years and gave fans a unique take on her collaboration with Charli XCX, ‘Girl, So Confusing’.
The New Zealand singer made her long awaited comeback to the New York festival on Friday (June 5), where she headlined the opening night.
Speaking to the crowd about stepping back onto the Governor’s Ball stage after almost a decade away, Lorde admitted it was “the most nervous I’ve been for a show in a while”. She then treated fans to a string of beloved tracks including ‘Royals’, ‘What Was That’, and ‘Hammer’.
One of the standout highlights of the evening arrived near the end of her 21 song performance when she performed ‘Girl, So Confusing’, the track she later reworked alongside Charli XCX.
The song first appeared on Charli XCX’s hugely successful 2024 album ‘Brat’ without Lorde’s involvement, though it was inspired by her. In the lyrics, Charli reflected on the complicated feelings between the two artists and revealed she had once felt “super jealous” of the New Zealander’s achievements during her early career.
The pair later teamed up for a remix after Charli shared the song’s meaning with Lorde ahead of the release of ‘Brat’. Following that conversation, Lorde proposed creating a collaborative version together.
At Governor’s Ball, Lorde performed the remix adaptation during the closing section of her set and added her own personal touch to the track.
Charli was not present for the performance, leaving Lorde to deliver the song on her own. The moment stood out even more because the track had only appeared sparingly throughout Lorde’s recent ‘Ultrasound’ tour. More footage from the show can be seen below.
In addition to revisiting fan favourites and reimagining ‘Girl, So Confusing’, Lorde also surprised the audience with a preview of brand new material.
Early in the set, she introduced a portion of an unreleased song from the side of the stage. Standing behind a synthesizer setup, she sang: “Don’t look for me now that I’m gone/ Don’t look for me, I’m gone.”
Lorde’s festival appearances this summer follow her recent ‘Ultrasound’ tour, which was launched in support of her newest album, ‘Virgin’.
Released last June, the record earned a four star review from NME, which stated: “‘Virgin’ is a vibrant combination of Lorde’s best qualities, and then some.”
“With her newfound candour, the record combines the emotional whirlwind of ‘Melodrama’, the chilling minimalism of ‘Pure Heroine’ and the breezy freedom of ‘Solar Power’,” it added. “This might be called ‘Virgin’, but Lorde proves she’s not afraid to strip herself bare.”
While ‘Girl, So Confusing’ was not a regular feature during the ‘Ultrasound’ tour, Lorde did perform it at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles last October, where she surprised fans by bringing Charli XCX on stage.
Since releasing ‘Virgin’ and launching the accompanying tour, Lorde has contributed more than $200,000 from merchandise sales to Minnesota immigrant funds. She has also been announced as a headliner for All Points East 2026 in London, where PinkPantheress, Zara Larsson and additional artists are also set to appear.
