Welcome to the Adele show. Just as she dominated radio this past year, Adele will likely walk away with a handful of shiny gramophones on Sunday night (8 p.m., WJZ/CBS). But this is show business - there are no guarantees (except that host LL Cool J will make us cringe at least 12 times). There will be performances, of course - Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Nicki Minaj and even Adele, taking a stage for the first time since vocal cord surgery. And then there are the awards. Check out our breakdown of the four major categories, including predictions on who should and will win.
Album of the Year
Adele, "21"
Foo Fighters, "Wasting Light"
Lady Gaga,"Born This Way"
Bruno Mars, "Doo-Wops & Holligans"
Rihanna, "Loud"
Will win: Adele, "21"
Should win: How did Kanye West get shut out from this category? "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" and "Watch the Throne" deserve a spot over the Foos. Anyway, Adele should and will win because her serious break-up album is Grammy committee catnip.
Record of the Year
Adele, "Rolling in the Deep"
Bon Iver, "Holocene"
Bruno Mars, "Grenade"
Mumford & Sons, "The Cave"
Katy Perry,"Firework"
Will win: Adele, "Rolling in the Deep"
Should win: Remember this award is for the producers/engineers/mixers, so it's about how the song sounds. It's hard to argue with "Deep" producer Paul Epworth - he made a ubiquitous song with a vintage feel, which might explain the track's gravitational pull to all age groups. "Firework" was great, as well, in creating a pop song that soars so high, it feels like sparklers are shooting from your chest. Wait a second…
Song of the Year
Kanye West, "All of the Lights"
Mumford & Sons, "The Cave"
Bruno Mars, "Grenade"
Bon Iver, "Holocene"
Adele, "Rolling in the Deep"
Will win: Hard to imagine Adele not taking this one, too. Dark-horse would be Bruno Mars, whose ear for hooks seems formulated to win Grammys.
Should win: Throw Kanye a bone! He deserves the prize for somehow making a Fergie guest-verse the most badass section of an already bigger-than-life song.
Best New Artist
The Band Perry
Bon Iver
J. Cole
Nicki Minaj
Skrillex
Will win: Nicki Minaj
Should win: Yup, the female Weezy deserves it and her Grammy promo work with LL makes it all the more likely. Bon Iver, rightfully nominated for other major categories, hurt his chances by essentially throwing the Grammys under the bus with a who-cares attitude. He even turned down performing on the show.
Other Grammys randomness:
Wild-card performance: Coldplay and Rihanna will take the stage together. Will Chris Martin steal the spotlight with his awkward gyrating? Let's hope not!
Biggest performance disguised as jingoism: If Bruce Springsteen does his new single, "We Take Care of Our Own." A Clarence Clemons tribute would balance it out nicely.
Biggest missed opportunity: Drake, the guy with the insane amount of hit records, is only a presenter. Huh?
Weirdest Grammys 2012 fact: We will now refer to him as the Grammy-nominated ex-emo-kid-turned-dubstep-posterboy Skrillex.
wesley@bthesite.com
twitter.com/louder_now
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Grammys 2012: Stay home if you're not Adele
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