Since Lady Gaga is no stranger to the award show, which is why you may be wondering why Gaga's Joanne wasn't nominated at the 2017 Grammys. Don't worry, it wasn't a snub and you definitely don't need to be hate tweeting at the Grammys. Instead, the answer to why Gaga's Joanne wasn't nominated is actually a very simple one, Gaga wasn't eligible for this year's Grammys. According to the award show's official website, to be nominated, albums "must be released between Oct. 1, 2015 and Sept. 30, 2016." It's the same reason why Adele's 2015 album 25 is up for this year's awards and not last year's. Gaga's fifth studio album, named for her dad's late sister, simply missed the cutoff. Joanne was released on Oct. 21, 2016.
Her latest album won't be up for any awards this year, but Gaga's single "Perfect Illusion" can pick up some gold. How is that, you ask? Well, the single was released digitally on Sept. 9, which happens to be before that Sept. 30 deadline I previously mentioned. But, it's really a rule change that made "Perfect Illusion" eligible for a 2017 Grammy, but doesn't make it a lock in a crowded year. You see, back in June the Grammys updated their guidelines to include streaming-only releases for eligibility, not just physical releases.
To make things all just a little more confusing, Joanne will be up for the Grammys in 2017, but "Perfect Illusion" will not be eligible next year. A song can't be nominated in more than one year, unless it is a different version of the song. For example, Taylor Swift's "Shake It Off" was nominated for three awards in 2015, because it was released before the Grammy deadline. But, the following year, when her album 1989 was nominated (and Swift won Album of the Year for the second time), "Shake It Off" was not eligible for any awards, despite being on that record. Like Swift, Gaga's other singles off "Joanne," like "Million Reasons" could be nominated in the song categories.
This is all to say, don't worry, Joanne will have a chance to bring home some more gold for Gaga, who currently has six awards to her name, including Best Dance Recording for "Poker Face" off The Fame and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Bad Romance," which also won Best Short Form Music Video. Besides, Gaga will likely be a little too busy with her 2017 Super Bowl halftime performance on Sunday, Feb. 5 to even think about the Grammys, which happens the following week (Feb. 12.) Next year, though, Gaga will be able to really focus on the biggest night in music. So, Little Monsters, mark your calendars now.
