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Beyonce Leads 2021 Grammy Nominations with 9 Nods

Beyonce. (AP)
Beyonce. (AP)
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Beyonce Leads 2021 Grammy Nominations with 9 Nods

Beyonce. (AP)
Beyonce. (AP)

Pop queen Beyonce's "Black Is King" musical film propelled her to the front of this year's Grammy pack with nine nominations, organizers said Tuesday ahead of the annual awards show.

Fellow pop stars Dua Lipa and Taylor Swift each snagged six nominations for second place, as did rapper Roddy Ricch.

As the music industry attempts to weather one of its most tumultuous years in modern history due to the coronavirus pandemic, danceable pop made a comeback in the Recording Academy's top categories.

Women scored big gains across all genres ahead of the 63rd annual Grammys, set to take place on January 31, with comedian Trevor Noah as host.

Beyonce's sweeping "Black Parade" -- released in June amid explosive nationwide anti-racism protests after another spate of police killings of Black Americans -- is vying for Record of the Year and Song of the Year honors.

Swift, a former Grammy darling who had fallen out of grace with the Academy in recent years, bagged a coveted Album of the Year nomination for her quarantine surprise album "Folklore," and its single "Cardigan" is up for Song of the Year, which honors songwriting.

Rivals in that category include "Black Parade" as well as songs penned by Ricch, last year's big winner Billie Eilish and warbling rapper Post Malone.

Bluesy rock singer and songwriter Brittany Howard -- known for her leading vocals with the band Alabama Shakes -- jumped into the spotlight on her own with five nominations after releasing her first solo album "Jaime."

Bieber back in the mix
Justin Bieber snagged four nominations in the pop categories as well as his first country nod, for his work on the song "10,000 Hours" by Dan and Shay.

After sweeping the general categories at last year's gala Eilish also picked up another four nominations, as did rapper DaBaby.

Following a banner year, Houston rapper Megan Thee Stallion received her first Grammy nominations, posting four.

The remix of her wildly popular song "Savage" featuring Beyonce is up for several awards including Record of the Year -- and helped Queen Bey jump to the lead spot.

The format for the 63rd Grammys remains unclear -- other awards shows have been forced to go partially or fully virtual in light of pandemic restrictions on large gatherings.

The nominations were rolled out by stars across the globe speaking via video chat.

The Academy's interim president Harvey Mason Jr. dedicated this year's ceremony to the resiliency of the music industry as well as frontline workers combatting the infection's spread.

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‘Superman’ Aims to Save Flagging Film Franchise, Not Just Humanity

David Corenswet, left, and Rachel Brosnahan participate in the ceremonial lighting of the Empire State Building on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in New York. (Photo by CJ Rivera/Invision/AP)
David Corenswet, left, and Rachel Brosnahan participate in the ceremonial lighting of the Empire State Building on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in New York. (Photo by CJ Rivera/Invision/AP)
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‘Superman’ Aims to Save Flagging Film Franchise, Not Just Humanity

David Corenswet, left, and Rachel Brosnahan participate in the ceremonial lighting of the Empire State Building on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in New York. (Photo by CJ Rivera/Invision/AP)
David Corenswet, left, and Rachel Brosnahan participate in the ceremonial lighting of the Empire State Building on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in New York. (Photo by CJ Rivera/Invision/AP)

Superman is often called upon to save the world from evildoers, but in his latest big-screen incarnation, he's also being asked to swoop in and save a franchise.

James Gunn's "Superman," which opened in theaters worldwide this week, is a reboot aimed at relaunching the so-called DC Universe of comic book-based superhero movies, which also features Wonder Woman and Batman.

The celluloid efforts of Warner Bros. and DC Studios have been widely eclipsed by Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe -- the world of Iron Man, Thor, Black Panther and the Fantastic Four, who are getting their own reboot later this month.

"Warner Bros. has invested a lot of energy and money in trying to refocus and renew DC Studios, and this is going to be the big release from that," analyst David A. Gross from Franchise Entertainment Research told AFP.

The heavy task falls on the shoulders of Gunn, the writer-director who won praise from fans of the genre with Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy" trilogy.

The movie's rollout has already encountered several headwinds, including a right-wing backlash to Gunn's comments on Superman's role as an immigrant, and skepticism from fans of the previous Superman films helmed by director Zack Snyder.

Gunn has shrugged off the high stakes surrounding the movie's box office success.

"Is there something riding on it? Yeah, but it's not as big as people make it out to be," he told GQ Magazine.

"They hear these numbers that the movie's only going to be successful if it makes $700 million or something and it's just complete and utter nonsense."

The hype around the movie is real -- the White House even superimposed President Donald Trump onto one of the movie's official posters with the caption "THE SYMBOL OF HOPE. TRUTH. JUSTICE. THE AMERICAN WAY. SUPERMAN TRUMP."

- 'A diminished genre' -

Warner Bros. hopes the DC Universe can catch up with Marvel which -- after years of huge successes with the "Avengers" movies -- has seen more muted box office returns with the recent "Thunderbolts" and "Captain America: Brave New World."

Gross explained that superhero films hit a peak right before the Covid-19 pandemic, with box office earnings and audience enthusiasm waning ever since that time.

"It's really a diminished genre," Gross said.

However, the analyst said early buzz for "Superman" was "really good."

The film stars up-and-comer David Corenswet as the new Superman/Clark Kent, with "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" star Rachel Brosnahan playing love interest Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult as arch-villain Lex Luthor.

The story follows the Man of Steel coming to terms with his alien identity as he finds his place in the human world.

The supporting cast boasts a selection of other DC Comics characters, from the peacekeeping Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion) -- who is scheduled to reprise the role in upcoming TV series "Lanterns" -- to the mace-wielding Hawkgirl.

Gross noted that July "is the top moviegoing month of the year," leading tracking estimates to forecast a total of more than $100 million for the film's opening weekend in North America.

- 'The story of America' -

DC Studios however must shake off a reputation for producing mediocre films that did not score well with audiences.

The last round of "DC Extended Universe" films included the well-liked "Wonder Woman" (2017) starring Gal Gadot -- but also box office flops like "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" (2023) and the under-performing "Aquaman" sequel with Jason Momoa.

"The success was mixed, and they were spending a lot of money on some of the new spinoff characters who were not working particularly well," Gross said, pointing at 2021's "The Suicide Squad" -- directed by Gunn -- as an example.

The last films featuring Superman, starring Henry Cavill and directed by Snyder, were relatively successful for Warner Bros. until "Justice League" -- DC's effort at recreating the "Avengers" vibe -- which lost millions of dollars.

Fans of Snyder have stirred up negative buzz for the new "Superman" movie, voicing hope online that the reboot fails out of a sense of loyalty to the previous films.

The backlash was further widened after right-wing pundits groaned about Superman's specific characterization as an immigrant, lamenting the superhero had become "woke."

Gunn addressed the criticism, telling The Times newspaper that "Superman is the story of America," with the character reflecting those who "came from other places and populated the country."

"I'm telling a story about a guy who is uniquely good, and that feels needed now," he added.

Ultimately, time will soon tell if Corenswet's chiseled looks and Gunn's directorial vision will be the superpowers that DC Studios need -- or prove to be its Kryptonite.