We’re less than one week away from the 2025 Grammys. The Big 4 are rightfully stacked, but so are the other categories—specifically R&B.
The genre has been dominating in recent years and this year’s nominees represent each aspect of R&B. Muni Long leads with four nominations across the five categories. Other nominees include Kehlani, Lalah Hathaway, Kenyon Dixon, Lucky Daye, SZA, Jhené Aiko, and more.
We took it upon ourselves to predict which artists would take home a coveted win, and these decisions weren’t made lightly. Before we get into the list, allow us to clarify things to keep in mind, per the Recording Academy.
They amended its criteria for the Best Traditional R&B Performance “to more accurately represent recordings that embody the classic elements of R&B/soul music, distinguishing them from contemporary interpretations of the genre.” Also, note that the eligibility period was between Sept. 16, 2023, and Aug. 30, 2024.
With that order of business out of the way, here are the R&B stars we feel deserve to win a Grammy in their respective categories. We could get into which acts were snubbed and should replace a select number of nominees, but we’ll let you argue about that amongst yourselves.
Check out R&B predictions below and remember Music’s Biggest Night takes place Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, live in Los Angeles. It will be broadcast at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS and will be available to stream on Paramount+.
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Best R&B Song
Image Credit: Anna Webber/Getty Images for Spotify A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.
Nominees:
“After Hours” — Diovanna Frazier, Alex Goldblatt, Kehlani Parrish, Khris Riddick-Tynes & Daniel Upchurch, songwriters (Kehlani)
“Burning” — Ronald Banful & Temilade Openiyi, songwriters (Tems)
“Here We Go (Uh Oh)” — Sara Diamond, Sydney Floyd, Marisela Jackson, Courtney Jones, Carl McCormick & Kelvin Wooten, songwriters (Coco Jones)
“Ruined Me” — Jeff Gitelman, Priscilla Renea & Kevin Theodore, songwriters (Muni Long)
“Saturn” — Rob Bisel, Carter Lang, Solána Rowe, Jared Solomon & Scott Zhang, songwriters (SZA)
Who Should Win? SZA
Kehlani’s “After Hours” may have been the song of the summer, but SZA dominated R&B all year. Even though LANA didn’t arrive until after the 2025 Grammy eligibility period, “Saturn” was among the first releases to introduce the highly-anticipated album. Coincidentally, she previewed the record during her 2024 Grammys performance.
Aptly fitting the state of the world, SZA sings, “Stuck in this paradigm/ Don’t believe in paradise/ This must be what hell is like/ There’s got to be more, got to be more.” Like nearly all of her records, the lyrics are the most relatable part of the song with the melody being an added bonus. While each single is deserving in its own right, this one belongs to SZA.
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Best R&B Performance
Image Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images For new vocal or instrumental R&B recordings.
Nominees:
“Guidance” — Jhené Aiko
“Residuals” — Chris Brown
“Here We Go (Uh Oh)” — Coco Jones
“Made For Me (Live On BET)” — Muni Long
“Saturn” — SZA
Who Should Win? Muni Long
As soon as this performance hit the airwaves, we knew it was one of them ones. Muni is such a beast, not only as a vocalist but also a songwriter. “Made For Me” was another viral smash that consumed TikTok, radio, and beyond. However, the live performance at the 2023 Soul Train Awards with the choir completely elevated the record. It brought back the beautiful marriage between R&B and gospel and delivered a chilling, new dynamic to the love song.
No other song on this list comes close to the initial impact of “Made For Me,” but particularly this live version.
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Best Traditional R&B Performance
Image Credit: Arturo Holmes/Getty Images For new vocal or instrumental traditional R&B recordings.
Nominees:
“Wet” — Marsha Ambrosius
“Can I Have This Groove” — Kenyon Dixon
“No Lie” — Lalah Hathaway Featuring Michael McDonald
“Make Me Forget” — Muni Long
“That’s You” — Lucky Daye
Who Should Win? Lucky Daye
This category is stacked, but we strongly believe Lucky is taking home the win. The sultry ballad has had fans in a chokehold since its 2023 release. It was the lead single of Algorithm and set the tone for the captivating LP. With production from D’Mile and Bruno Mars, the tune was destined to be a hit. It’s sensual and heartwarming, and somehow, Lucky makes it feel like he sings to one person. Racking up over 22 million streams was well-deserved and this Grammy win will be equally justified.
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Best Progressive R&B Album
Image Credit: Kelly Sullivan/Getty Images for Grey Goose For albums containing greater than 75% playing time of newly recorded progressive vocal tracks derivative of R&B.
Nominees:
So Glad to Know You — Avery*Sunshine
En Route — Durand Bernarr
Bando Stone & the New World — Childish Gambino
Crash — Kehlani
Why Lawd? — NxWorries (Anderson .Paak & Knxwledge)
Who Should Win? Kehlani
We know how y’all like to tussle and we also know how many of you didn’t understand how special CRASH is. It wasn’t a standard Kehlani album; It wasn’t meant to be. CRASH felt like R&B’s spin on soft rock. It was daring, bold, and experimental, but sprinkled with elements that Kehlani has been known for. “Crash” is the older, wiser sister of 2015’s “You Should Be Here.” “After Hours,” “8,” and “Sucia” are a trilogy—an introduction, seduction, and climax. We’re not saying it was a flawless album, but “Chapel,” “Next 2 U,” and “Lose My Wife” are the epitome of progressive R&B. This is not to shade any other album nominated because again, everyone deserves their flowers.
However, y’all may have moved on too fast from Crash, but the Recording Academy didn’t.
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Best R&B Album
Image Credit: Paras Griffin/Getty Images For albums containing greater than 75% playing time of new R&B recordings.
Nominees:
11:11 (Deluxe) — Chris Brown
VANTABLACK — Lalah Hathaway
Revenge — Muni Long
Algorithm — Lucky Daye
COMING HOME — Usher
Who Should Win: Lalah Hathaway
For us, this was the clear winner. The other albums fell short of feeling like a complete body of work from start to finish. Lalah’s vision and theme for the album were clear and unapologetic. She didn’t do too much. She didn’t stray from what she set out to do—affirm her Blackness and take pride and joy in that. She basically showed us why it doesn’t get blacker than VANTABLACK. It’s an anthem, a melting pot, a soft place for love. It’s R&B, jazz, soul—all the elements that define Black music. With this album, she successfully showed the endless depth of her talent.
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