As each Grammys night nears a close, there’s a moment of seeming redundancy. Record of the Year highlights an individual standout track… but so does Song of the Year.
The difference between the categories is who receives nominations: performers and production contributors for Record of the Year, and songwriters for Song of the Year. And understanding the difference between categories can elucidate an interesting aspect of Grammys strategy that’s clearly on display in some of this year’s major submissions.
Some artists will opt to put forward a single eligible track as their strongest sample of both producing and songwriting. That’s what Olivia Rodrigo is doing with “The Cure,” her second single off Album of the Year frontrunner You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love and the easy-answer pick for the release’s best song. Olivia Dean, a favorite in both Record of the Year and Song of the Year, is doing the same with “The Man I Need.”
But others, like Taylor Swift, submitted different tracks in the two top song categories, each playing to the criteria for its category. And she’s not alone. Several of the year’s biggest contenders are taking an optimized approach to Record and Song of the Year, and here are just a few.
Taylor Swift
Roughly a year after the launch of her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, Taylor Swift submitted its lead single, “The Fate of Ophelia,” to Record of the Year, but not Song. The latter she is gunning for with “I Knew It, I Knew You,” her original contribution to the Toy Story 5 soundtrack. And here, the distinction between the two categories’ sensibilities is perfectly clear. “Ophelia” fits in with the rest of The Life of a Showgirl as a highly produced pop song, born out of Swift’s renewed collaboration with super producers Max Martin and Shellback. Meanwhile, “I Knew It, I Knew You” taps into Swift’s country roots for more stripped-down sound.
Bruno Mars
The opening seconds of “Risk It All,” with its soft classical guitar, make it obvious why it was Bruno Mars’ Song of the Year submission instead of the lead single from The Romantic, “I Just Might.” Just a voice and a guitar on the track allow the songwriting to come through, where “I Just Might” is a feat of old-school mixing and layering.
Sombr
Around the release of “My Body Isn’t Ready,” Sombr spoke candidly about the vulnerability he put into the song. It’s that kind of sentiment that comes through with the Songwriting branch, whereas “Homewrecker,” his Record of the Year submission, features a propulsive beat and disco-influenced production that show off the hefty talent backing him in the studio.
Brandi Carlisle
Even for an artist squarely in the folksier side of the singer-songwriter space, Brandi Carlisle can have a more production-heavy song like “Human” that fits better in Record of the Year than the more subtle, personal craft showing on something like “Return to Myself,” her Song the Year submission.
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 30: (L-R) Leon Thomas III and Ty Dolla Sign attend the 2024 BET Awards at Peacock Theater on June 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for BET)
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 30: (L-R) Leon Thomas III and Ty Dolla Sign attend the 2024 BET Awards at Peacock Theater on June 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for BET)
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 04: Alex Warren performs at the Spotlight: Alex Warren event at GRAMMY Museum L.A. Live on February 04, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Araya Doheny/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)
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