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\n\tLeading up to the Grammy nominations on Nov. 16, <\/em>Rolling Stone is breaking down 11 different categories. For each, we\u2019re predicting the nominees, as well as who will (and who should) win on Grammy night.<\/em><\/p>\n \n\tWith the country album nominations now split into traditional and contemporary categories, things are a bit more interesting (and complicated) when it comes to records with twang. What\u2019s not complicated, though? Ella Langley<\/a>\u2019s dominance<\/a> this year. Her sophomore LP Dandelion<\/em> is the one to beat, which is probably an impossible feat. \u201cWe\u2019re talking about a cultural phenomenon here,\u201d says RJ Curtis, executive director of Country Radio Broadcasters, Inc.\u00a0Still, it\u2019s a category rich with dynamic records made by some of the genre\u2019s biggest stars.<\/p>\n \n\tLuke Combs<\/a>, The Way I Am<\/em> \n\tElla Langley, Dandelion<\/strong> \n\tCarter Faith, Cherry Valley<\/em><\/strong>\n\t\tBest Contemporary Country Album \u2013 Our Predictions\t<\/h2>\n
Carter Faith<\/a>, Cherry Valley<\/em>
Ella Langley, Dandelion<\/em>
Megan Moroney<\/a>, Cloud 9<\/em>
Kacey Musgraves<\/a>, Middle of Nowhere<\/em><\/p>\n\n\t\tWho Will Win?\t<\/h2>\n
<\/em>Once again, everything is coming up Ella Langley. But it\u2019s a tough category, primarily led by boundary-pushing records made by female artists. \u201cIt\u2019s a statement year for women,\u201d says Ward Guenther of Nashville\u2019s live institution Whiskey Jam and a country music host for Apple Music. \u201cElla, Kacey, and Megan with huge projects. Carter Faith has an outside, but critically deserved, chance to join them. It\u2019s fun to hypothesize, but realistically this goes to Ella.\u201d Dandelion<\/em> is deserving: an excellent, expansive country album co-produced by Langley, Miranda Lambert, and Ben West, with scores of memorable moments that aren\u2019t just \u201cChoosin\u2019 Texas.\u201d Leslie Fram, a country music executive who leads the artist-development company FemCo, agrees. \u201cContemporary country voters reward big, crossover-friendly albums that still feel rooted in the genre,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd this fits perfectly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\t\tWho Should Win?\t<\/h2>\n
Langley will take the prize, but it shouldn\u2019t outshine the creative, vibrant songwriting and vocal performances on Faith\u2019s Cherry Valley<\/em>. Fully formed debut albums don\u2019t come around that often, but Faith\u2019s Tofer Brown-produced concept LP shows an artist who knows exactly who she is. It\u2019s the kind of project that will never be fully embraced by country radio, but deserves the spotlight, and new audiences, that a Grammy can bring. \u201cShe is truly writing because she feels what she feels,\u201d Brown told Rolling Stone<\/em>.<\/a><\/p>\n