Could Adele and Beyoncé tie for album of the year at the Grammys?
The announcement of the 2017 Grammy award nominations have left fans speculating who will take home the trophies on Feb. 12, 2017, with especially heated focus on the competition for album of the year.
The nominees are Adele for 25, Beyoncé for Lemonade, Justin Bieber for Purpose, Drake for Views and Sturgill Simpson for A Sailor's Guide to Earth, allowing for a potential showdown between the two female stars, both of whom dominated the past year's headlines.
Both Adele and Beyoncé were also nominated for record of the year, and Beyoncé's "Formation" and Adele's "Hello" received nominations for song of the year.
Beyoncé is the most-nominated woman in Grammy history, with a grand total of 62 nominations, nine of which came for the 2017 awards. And Adele is no slouch in the awards department — she has 10 Grammys of her own, and, in 2012, she won all six awards she was nominated for, including album of the year, song of the year and record of the year. Her album 25 received five nominations for the 2017 Grammys.
History of Grammy Ties
One possible outcome for Beyoncé and Adele is they will tie for album of the year. That's a possibility, but a rare one: Since 1959, the ceremonies have only seen 21 ties, and never for album of the year. In fact, the only tie in a major category took place in 1978, for song of the year between "Evergreen" from A Star is Born and "You Light Up My Life" by Joe Brooks.
The very first tie at the Grammys took place in 1959 for Broadway show album between Gypsy, starring Ethel Merman, and Redhead, starring Gwen Verdon. Ties have also been seen in the category of producer of the year (1984 and 1992) and album notes (1974 and 2001). Ties have also fallen in the categories of R&B duo or group performance, opera and tropical Latin performance, among others.
Both Beyoncé and Adele have already tied in one unofficial category: the record for female artists winning the most Grammys in one night. Beyoncé won six in 2012, and Adele won six in 2012.
Both women have spoken openly about their admiration for each other, with Beyoncé telling Vanity Fair, "When Adele sings you can hear that it's coming from an unfiltered honesty and purity. She creates songs that go deep and expose pain and vulnerability with her soulful voice. She takes you to places other artists don't go to anymore — the way they did in the '70s."
Adele has also never been shy about her admiration for Beyoncé; during her tour, she raved about Lemonade to her own audience, asking, "How is it possible that she only ever gets better?"
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