The world according to Dan.

Jimmy Kimmel reveals his pay for hosting Oscars

Jimmy Kimmel has nothing to hide when it comes to his compensation for hosting the Oscars this year.

The talk show host discussed his upcoming debut as the award show’s MC on KROQ’s Kevin & Bean morning show Wednesday, where he revealed he’ll be hauling in $15,000 for the gig, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Seemingly unimpressed with the relatively modest figure, the Jimmy Kimmel Live!host added, “You know why? I think it’s illegal to pay nothing.”

Asked if his pay is on par with famous past hosts like Billy Crystal and Chris Rock, Kimmel replied “that’s what they told me.”

At one point, he wondered if he was allowed to divulge salary details with the public. “I’m not sure I was supposed to reveal this,” he said with a laugh. “But nobody told me not to. I consider this their fault.”

Kimmel, who was announced as the Oscars host on Dec. 5, also admitted he was surprised to get the nod. “They asked like 14 people and they all said no and then there was me,” he joked. “I absolutely was surprised.”

The 89th Annual Academy Awards air Feb. 26 on ABC.

What to make of Monday’s Golden Globes nominations

Awards season broke into song over the last 24 hours, with musical La La Land winning big at Sunday’s Critics’ Choice Awards and scoring the most nods (seven) during Monday’s Golden Globes nominations.

But Damien Chazelle’s new film wasn’t alone in standing tall during awards season’s nascent stages: Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight and Kenneth Lonergan’s Manchester by the Sea continued to hold firm as serious contenders, with Hacksaw Ridge, Lion, and more hanging strong. But what does it all mean? Nothing is certain since none of the actual groups that make up the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences have yet to weigh in – that will begin on Wednesday when the Screen Actors Guild, many of whom are also Academy members, gives us their nominees – but let’s muddle through what these early nominations and wins tell us about this year’s race.

– La La Land is the picture to beat
With seven nominations from the Golden Globes, La La Land is the belle of the ball. Racking up nods in the actor, actress, picture, director, screenplay, song, and score categories, Chazelle’s film is on track to go all the way. The question is can anything unseat it? The guess right now is no, but it’s still only December and anything can happen.

– Manchester By the Sea and Moonlight are the ones with the greatest upward momentum
If La La Land falters then, look toward either Moonlight or Manchester By the Sea. Jenkins’ coming of age drama landed six nominations at the Golden Globes (and won best ensemble from the Critics’ Choice Awards), while Manchester By the Sea snagged four nominations. Both films have serious Oscar contenders in the acting categories, too: Mahershala Ali and Naomie Harris for Moonlight (Ali has emerged as the favorite in the supporting actor category) and Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges, and Michelle Williams for Manchester By the Sea. (Hedges, however, was overlooked by the HFPA, which added another head-scratcher to the supporting actor category: Aaron Taylor-Johnson over Michael Shannon in Nocturnal Animals.)

– Fences best picture momentum on the wane
Denzel Washington’s film, which opens on Christmas Day, has earned a lot of love in the actor categories, and the HFPA followed suit on Monday, rewarding the adaptation of August Wilson’s stage play with nominations for Viola Davis in supporting and Denzel Washington in lead. But the movie was omitted from both the director category for Washington and the picture category, opting to reward Mel Gibson and Hacksaw Ridge instead. Will this trend continue to Oscars?

– Hacksaw Ridge showing signs of strength
The Mel Gibson war film starring Andrew Garfield landed nominations for actor, director, and picture from the Globes. The film about war hero and conscientious objector Desmond Doss already landed on AFI’s best of the year list, too. Will the Academy go for Gibson’s movie in the same way?

– HFPA completely ignores Martin Scorsese’s Silence
You would think the man who landed the organization’s Cecil B. DeMille award in 2010, won three other golden globes for Hugo, The Departed, and Gangs of New York, and was nominated five other times, would get some consideration for the film that took him 28 years to make. But clearly, the foreign body didn’t connect to the auteur’s meditation on faith viewed through the eyes of a Jesuit priest (Garfield) trying to survive in Japan. It’s a big snub and we will see if the film proves to be as polarizing to the Academy.

– Strong showing for both Lion and Foster Florence Jenkins
Neither film landed director nods but they did get some love in the picture and acting categories. Lion stars Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman was cited for their work in the drama based on one man’s long journey to find his family, while Florence Foster Jenkins leads Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant scored citations for their work in the nimble comedy. Jenkins likely doesn’t have the gravitas to get recognized by the Academy, but it would be a surprise if the Lion love doesn’t gain more momentum as we head into the guilds.

– Hell or High Water looking good for the Academy
The modern-day western by director David Mackenzie scored in the picture category and a nod for Jeff Bridges in the supporting category. Taylor Sheridan’s screenplay was also rewarded, though Mackenzie was left off the director list. Don’t be surprised when this movie, which debuted in August and has earned $27 million, lands a best picture Oscar nomination.

– Little boost of love for Deadpool, Sing Street, and War Dogs
Will these movies land an Oscar nod? It’s unlikely but it feels like the HFPA put their comedy/musical category to a bit better use this year, giving Deadpool, the highest-grossing R-rated comedy of the year, a shout-out in the best comedy/musical category. Sing Street, a delightful indie musical that died at the box office when it opened in April, was also nominated in the category. Both will, of course, lose to La La Land. But for Sing Street, the nod may at least get more people to check out the film (available now on Netflix).

But despite all this, a clearer picture should form on Wednesday when the SAG nominations are announced. Until then, go watch some movies!

Golden Globes: La La Land, Westworld, The People v. O.J. Simpson up for awards

Movies La La Land, Moonlight and Manchester By The Sea, and TV productions Westworld and The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story are among the central nominees for the Golden Globe Awards.

Contenders for one of Hollywood’s highest-profile honours were unveiled in Beverly Hills, Calif., early Monday morning, with actors Don Cheadle, Laura Dern and Anna Kendrick on hand to reveal the latest batch of nominees.

The Golden Globes honour North American and foreign movies, TV and streaming productions shown in the U.S.

Modern-day Hollywood-set musical La La Land leads the race among films with seven nominations, including best musical or comedy film, best director for Damien Chazelle, and for lead actors Emma Stone and Canadian Ryan Gosling.

However, the celebrated coming-of-age story Moonlight isn’t far behind with six nominations, including for best dramatic film, best director for Barry Jenkins, and supporting actor nods for Naomi Harris and Mahershala Ali.

Best motion picture, drama

Hacksaw Ridge.
Hell or High Water.
Lion.
Manchester by the Sea.
Moonlight.

Best motion picture, musical or comedy

20th Century Women.
Deadpool.
Florence Foster Jenkins.
La La Land.
Sing Street.

Along with Gosling, who’s from London, Ont., and portrays a struggling jazz musician in La La Land, Canadians in the running include Vancouver’s Ryan Reynolds, for his lead turn in the R-rated comic book tale Deadpool — they’re rivals for best actor in a film musical or comedy trophy.

Chris Williams of Kitchener, Ont., is also a nominee as one of four directors behind Disney’s recent Polynesian-inspired hit Moana, which is up for best animated film.

TV series, drama

The Crown.
Game of Thrones.
Stranger Things.
This is Us.
Westworld.

TV series, musical or comedy

Atlanta.
Blackish.
Mozart in the Jungle.
Transparent.
Veep.

The critically acclaimed television miniseries The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story leads the television contenders with five nominations. Another miniseries, the British crime drama The Night Manager, based on the John le Carré novel, picked up four nods.

Edgy cable fare such as Game of Thrones and Westworld earned nominations alongside more traditional broadcast network fare, like popular new family drama This is Us and sitcom black-ish. Streaming series such as the monarchy tale The Crown and retro-feeling cult favourite Stranger Things, were also recognized.

Though decided by the relatively small, 93-member Hollywood Foreign Press Association — made up of Los Angeles-based journalists for foreign media outlets — the Golden Globes are considered an important precursor to the Academy Awards, which are voted on by the more than 6,000 members of the U.S. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep, who earned her 30th Golden Globe nomination Monday morning for the comedic biopic Florence Foster Jenkins, will be honoured with the Cecil B. DeMille lifetime achievement award at the upcoming ceremony.

Hosted by the Tonight Show’s Jimmy Fallon, the 74th annual Golden Globe Awards gala takes place Jan. 8 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, and airs live on NBC starting at 8 p.m. ET.

Complete list of nominees for the 74th annual Golden Globe Awards

Best picture, drama

Hacksaw Ridge.
Hell or High Water.
Lion.
Manchester by the Sea.
Moonlight.

Picture, musical or comedy

20th Century Women.
Deadpool.
Florence Foster Jenkins.
La La Land.
Sing Street.

Actor, drama

Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea.
Joel Edgerton, Loving.
Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge.
Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic.
Denzel Washington, Fences.

Actress, drama

Amy Adams, Arrival.
Jessica Chastain, Miss Sloane.
Isabelle Huppert, Elle.
Ruth Negga, Loving.
Natalie Portman, Jackie.

Actor, musical or comedy

Colin Farrell, The Lobster.
Ryan Gosling, La La Land.
Hugh Grant, Florence Foster Jenkins.
Jonah Hill, War Dogs.
Ryan Reynolds, Deadpool.

Actress, musical or comedy

Annette Bening, 20th Century Women.
Lily Collins, Rules Don’t Apply.
Hailee Steinfeld, The Edge of Seventeen.
Emma Stone, La La Land.
Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins.

Supporting actor, motion picture

Mahershala Ali, Moonlight.
Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water.
Simon Helberg, Florence Foster Jenkins.
Dev Patel, Lion.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nocturnal Animals.

Supporting actress, motion picture

Viola Davis, Fences.
Naomie Harris, Moonlight.
Nicole Kidman, Lion.
Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures.
Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea.

Director

Damien Chazelle, La La Land.
Tom Ford, Nocturnal Animals.
Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge.
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight.
Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea.

Screenplay

Damien Chazelle, La La Land.
Tom Ford, Nocturnal Animals.
Barry Jenkins, Moonlight.
Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea.
Taylor Sheridan, Hell or High Water.

Original score

Nicholas Britell, Moonlight.
Justin Hurwitz, La La Land.
Johann Johannsson, Arrival.
Dustin O’Halloran, Hauschka, Lion.
Hans Zimmer, Pharrell Williams, Benjamin Wallfisch, Hidden Figures.

Original song

Can’t Stop the Feeling! (from Trolls).
City of Stars (from La La Land).
Faith (from Sing).
Gold (from Gold).
How Far I’ll Go (from Moana).

Foreign language

Divines (France).
Elle (France).
Neruda (Chile).
The Salesman (Iran/France).
Toni Erdmann (Germany).

Animated film

Kubo and the Two Strings.
Moana.
My Life as a Zucchini.
Sing.
Zootopia.

Television nominees:

Series, drama

The Crown.
Game of Thrones.
Stranger Things.
This Is Us.
Westworld.

Series, musical or comedy

Atlanta.
black-ish.
Mozart in the Jungle.
Transparent.
Veep.

Limited series or movie

American Crime.
The Dresser.
The Night Manager.
The Night Of.
The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.

Actress, drama

Caitriona Balfe, Outlander.
Claire Foy, The Crown.
Keri Russell, The Americans.
Winona Ryder, Stranger Things.
Evan Rachel Wood, Westworld.

Actor, drama

Rami Malek, Mr. Robot.
Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul.
Matthew Rhys, The Americans.
Liev Schreiber, Ray Donovan.
Billie Bob Thornton, Goliath.

Actress, musical or comedy

Rachel Bloom, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Veep.
Sarah Jessica Parker, Divorce.
Issa Rae, Insecure.
Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin.
Tracee Ellis Ross, black-ish.

Actor, Musical or Comedy

Anthony Anderson, black-ish.
Gael Garcia Bernal, Mozart in the Jungle.
Donald Glover, Atlanta.
Nick Nolte, Graves.
Jeffrey Tambor, Transparent.

Actor, limited series or movie

Riz Ahmed, The Night Of.
Bryan Cranston, All the Way.
Tom Hiddleston, The Night Manager.
John Turturro, The Night Of.
Courtney B. Vance, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.

Supporting actor, series, limited series or movie

Sterling K. Brown, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.
Hugh Laurie, The Night Manager.
John Lithgow, The Crown.
Christian Slater, Mr. Robot.
John Travolta, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.

Actress, limited series or movie

Felicity Huffman, American Crime.
Riley Keough, The Girlfriend Experience.
Sarah Paulson, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.
Charlotte Rampling, London Spy.
Kerry Washington, Confirmation.

Supporting actress, series, limited series or movie

Olivia Colman, The Night Manager.
Lena Headey, Game of Thrones.
Chrissy Metz, This Is Us.
Mandy Moore, This Is Us.
Thandie Newton, Westworld.

Bob Dylan skips Nobel Prize ceremony, cites Shakespeare in acceptance statement

For Bob Dylan, the nagging question of whether his songs qualify as literature was settled for good Saturday at the Nobel Prize ceremony in Stockholm — and his presence was not required to make the case.

As the always-slippery folk singer forewarned, he was not there to receive the 2016 prize in literature, but he sent a warm, humble statement accepting the honour, which was read by Azita Raji, the U.S. ambassador to Sweden, at an evening banquet in Stockholm.

Invoking William Shakespeare, whom Dylan imagined to have been too consumed with practical matters — “How should this be staged?” “Where am I going to get a human skull?” — to bother with whether what he was doing was literature. Dylan wrote: “I too am often occupied with the pursuit of my creative endeavors and dealing with all aspects of life’s mundane matters. ‘Who are the best musicians for these songs?’ ‘Am I recording in the right studio?’ ‘Is this song in the right key?’ Some things never change, even in 400 years.

“Not once have I ever had the time to ask myself, ‘Are my songs literature?’” Dylan, 75, concluded. “So, I do thank the Swedish Academy, both for taking the time to consider that very question, and, ultimately, for providing such a wonderful answer.”

Earlier in the day, the Swedish Academy defended its nontraditional selection of a musician — and a seemingly uninterested one, at that — for the literary honour.

In a speech in front of about 1,500 guests, including the Swedish royal family, Horace Engdahl, a member of the Nobel Committee, called Dylan “a singer worthy of a place beside the Greek bards, beside Ovid, beside the Romantic visionaries, beside the kings and queens of the blues, beside the forgotten masters of brilliant standards.

“If people in the literary world groan,” Engdahl added, “one must remind them that the gods don’t write, they dance and they sing.”

Engdahl’s speech was followed by a fittingly imperfect Patti Smith, who delivered an estimable Dylan impression on his 1963 song, “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall,” but also proved his inimitable nature, flubbing a lyric and halting the performance midway through. “I’m sorry,” she said before resuming. “I’m so nervous.” Still, some in the audience could be seen crying as she finished the song accompanied by a string section.

At the same time, Dylan, who cited only “pre-existing commitments” when he finally declined the Nobel invitation, was being spoken about in near-mythical terms outside of Stockholm, as well.

Exactly where the singer was Saturday during the Scandinavian festivities — which included an evening banquet, with its traditional parade of desserts, after the afternoon white-tie award ceremony — remained a mystery. He was not where he can most reliably be found these days — onstage — as his most recent batch of tour dates ended before Thanksgiving.

But even with no public appearances scheduled, Dylan was also a spectral presence around his other, more private, known haunts. Neighbors at properties across the country that are registered in Dylan’s name or that of his management company described a local legend who was hard to pin down and rarely, if ever, seen — somewhere between Thomas Pynchon and Sasquatch.

Locals, however, described the folk legend as a phantom-like presence who had been seen intermittently in recent years.

On Saturday morning during the Nobel ceremony, the home where Dylan is thought to live received visitors, including a white pickup truck advertising plumbing services. Two SUVs also gained entrance beyond the prominent “No Trespassing” sign and security cameras, but a voice on the intercom denied Dylan was inside.

Still, Dylan has not yet entirely ducked the Swedish Academy. To receive the award, which comes with 8 million Swedish krona ($870,000), Nobel laureates are required to give a lecture on their subject within six months of Saturday’s ceremonies, and though the academy said it had nothing on the books yet, there was hope.

“There is a chance that Bob Dylan will be performing in Stockholm next year, possibly in the spring,” the academy said in a statement, “in which case he will have a perfect opportunity to deliver his lecture. We will post more information as soon as we have it.”

Grammy Nominations Snubs & Surprises: David Bowie, Kanye West Shut Out of Top Awards

It’s certainly no surprise that, as many predicted, Adele and Beyonce dominated the 59th Annual Grammy Awards nominations, announced Tuesday morning by the Recording Academy.

Beyonce lead the way with nine nominations. She’s up for Album of the Year (“Lemonade”), Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Music Video (all for “Formation”), Best Pop Solo Performance (“Hold Up”), Best Rock Performance (“Don’t Hurt Yourself” feat. Jack White), Best Urban Contemporary Album, Best Rap/Sung Performance (“Freedom” feat. Kendrick Lamar), and Best Music Film (“Lemonade”).

Adele received five nominations this year; for Album of the Year (“25”), Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance (all for “Hello”), as well as Best Pop Vocal Album.

Perhaps the biggest surprise, however, in this year’s nominations was the omission of David Bowie’s “Blackstar” in any of the night’s biggest categories. The late rocker did end up receiving four nominations overall: for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song (for the song “Blackstar”), Best Alternative Music Album (for the album “Blackstar”), and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Jonathan Barnbrook also received a nod for art direction on “Blackstar.”

The Recording Academy opted instead to honor more mainstream pop fare with Justin Bieber having a surprisingly strong showing with nods for both the Album of the Year (“Purpose”) and Song of the Year (“Love Yourself,” with Bieber, Benjamin Levin and Ed Sheeran as songwriters).

Drake’s “Views” received an Album of the Year nomination and the Canadian rapper received eight nominations overall. He’s also up for Record of the Year for being featured on Rihanna’s infectious “Work” (which is also up for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance), Best R&B Song for being featured on PartyNextDoor’s “Come See Me,” Best Rap Performance for “Pop Style” (feat. The Throne), Best Rap/Sung Performance for “Hotline Bling” (which is also up for Best Rap Song), as well as Best Rap Album.

Newcomers Twenty One Pilots (“Stressed Out”) and Lukas Graham (“7 Years”) round out the Record of the Year Category, facing off against Adele, Beyoncé, and Rihanna. Graham’s four songwriters are also nominated for Song of the Year for “7 Years,” as is Mike Posner for “I Took A Pill In Ibiza,” which face off against Adele, Beyoncé, and Bieber.

Although the big surprise out of all of the major four categories might be in the Album of the Year category where country artist Sturgill Simpson’s “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth” edged out albums by more well-known contenders including Bowie, Radiohead, Sia, Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, Coldplay, Paul Simon, and many more. Sturgill will be Nashville’s strongest representation this year on music’s biggest night, which is perhaps not a surprise at all to country music fans; his album debuted last March to huge critical acclaim.

Over in Best New Artist, it’s a wide open field this year, with two country newcomers leading the way – Kelsea Ballerini and Maren Morris. American electronic music duo The Chainsmokers have some a long way since 2014’s “#Selfie,” snagging a nod on the heels of hit singles “Closer” and “Don’t Let Me Down.” Chance The Rapper was no surprise choice, as he’s expected to play a big role overall in this year’s honors (with 4 overall nominations). Surprise nominee Anderson .Paak rounds out the often controversial category, which saw its rules changed this year to attempt to to more accurately reflect its often contested title.

Rihanna was well-recognized for her 2016 comeback, receiving six nominations overall, along with two more peripherally. In addition to Record of the Year — she was a featured artist on Drake’s “Views” album — she’s up for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for “Work,” Best R&B Performance for “Needed Me,” Best R&B Song for “Kiss It Better” (which goes to the songwriters), Best Urban Contemporary Album for “Anti,” as well as Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Performance for being featured on Kanye West’s “Famous.” “Anti” is also up for Best Recording Package and producer Nineteen85 is up for Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical for producing (amongst other tracks) Drake’s “Too Good,” in which Rihanna was also featured.

Like Bowie, Kanye West did not get a single nod in the general categories. However, the rapper isn’t going unrecognized this year. He’s up for a producing credit for Album of the Year for Drake’s “Views,” Best Rap Performance for being featured in ScHoolboy Q’s “That Part,” and Best Rap Album for “The Life of Pablo.” Kanye also will face off against himself for Best Rap/Sung Performance where his aforementioned “Famous” (feat. Rihanna) will face off against his “Ultralight Beam” (feat. Chance The Rapper, Kelly Price, Kirk Franklin & The-Dream).

In some of the more obscure amongst the Recording Academy’s 84 categories, comedian Amy Schumer received two nominations this year, for Best Spoken Word Album and Best Comedy Album. She’s joined in the latter by David Cross, Margaret Cho, Tig Notaro, and Patton Oswalt.

After winning the 2014 Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album for its Broadway production, “Kinky Boots” is up for the award again, this time for its West End production. It’ll compete about the new Broadway productions of “The Color Purple” and “Fiddler On The Roof,” as well as “Bright Star,” and a Sara Bareilles led “Waitress.”

This year’s Grammy Awards will be hosted for the first time this year by “The Late Late Show” host James Corden and will take place on Sunday, February 12th, 2017, at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT.

The Grammys Stop Fighting the Future With 2017 Nominees

The nominations for the 59 Annual Grammy Awards were announced Tuesday (Dec. 6), and as the experts predicted (and as the show’s producers no doubt prayed for), it’s a battle of the biggest. The list of the most nominated artists doubles as the list of the artists who have dominated conversation for the last 12 months: Beyonce, Drake, Rihanna, Kanye West, and even Chance the Rapper. Despite Taylor Swift essentially taking the year off — nope, no nominations for Nils Sjoberg either — and Frank Ocean declining the pleasure of being nominated, the star power on display in this year’s Grammy crop is blinding.

Of course, the evening’s true heavyweight showdowns will come between perhaps the two most unanimously venerated figures in contemporary music, Beyonce and Adele. Long thought to be the evening’s likely frontrunners, the two planetary pop talents will indeed be squaring off in four separate categories, including the marquee three: Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year. Though smart money will never go against an artist who laps a depressed sales landscape by going diamond in a single year, early indicators seem positive for Beyonce, not just in the number of her nominations (9 to Adele’s 5), but in their variety — The Queen is recognized not only in Pop and R&B, but in Rock as well, suggesting her support is well-balanced among the voter pool’s many factions. (Of course, no matter who wins between the two superstars, CBS triumphs for the ensuing drama — as does Columbia Records, home to both artists.)

Speaking of rock, though, Beyonce’s Jack White-assisted undercover deployment into Best Rock Performance underlines the music’s own relative absence in the major categories. Excepting the presence of Twenty One Pilots as Song of the Year nominees — double agents to some degree themselves, with their “Stressed Out” also nominated for Best Pop/Duo Group Performance — rock is shut out of the Big Four this year, with potential Grammy favorites like Radiohead, Coldplay and the late David Bowie either consigned to their home genre or not recognized at all.

Instead, the Grammys have recognized with their nominees this year what the rest of the music-listening world has long accepted: that both its commercial and critical center lies with pop, hip-hop and R&B. Tellingly, the four albums with the four biggest first-week sales of the voting period are all up for Album of the Year: Adele’s 25, Beyonce’s Lemonade, Drake’s Views and Justin Bieber’s Purpose. That last artist would have seemed about as unimaginable an Album of the Year hopeful as Cannibal Corpse just a couple of years ago, but Purpose being acknowledged for the evening’s most prestigious honor serves as validation not only for Bieber — the final disavowing of his supposed bubblegum disposability — but for Top 40 entire. It’s proof that pop no longer needs to dress up as rock to be invited to the party; having Skirllex and Diplo as your +2 is good enough.

Whatever room remains for guitar-based music at the Grammys, this year’s nominations would indicate that future real estate may be occupied less by rock than by country. Nashville-based singer/songwriter Maren Morris was an expected contender for Best New Artist, but she’s also joined in that category by fellow CMA Awards performer Kelsea Ballerini. And if there is a Beck-type artist poised to play spoiler this year, it’s veteran Kentucky song-slinger Sturgill Simpson, whose acclaimed major-label debut A Sailor’s Guide to Earth is the outlier fifth nominee in Album of the Year, and who may end up rallying what’s left of the “How can they be real artists if they don’t write all their own songs?” crowd.

Even with Sturgill’s presence this year’s nominees show that the Grammys appear to be moving in the right direction towards relevance, by acknowledging the music that actually moves the cultural needle in 2016, and mostly avoiding the kind of head-smacking nominees that bring Kanye’s sense of righteousness to a boil. (Though with The Life of Pablo predictably snubbed for Album of the Year and “Ultralight Beam” shut out of Song and Record of the Year, he may end up with cause for complaint this year just the same.) The pop-leaning proceedings may not save the Grammys’ plummeting numbers among Millennials, but at least they’ll demonstrate that the Academy indeed recognizes that young people are out there, and that their perspective isn’t being totally dismissed. And with an Adele-Beyonce showdown at the night’s core, their parents might still get sucked in, too.