SZA Says Kendrick Deserves Album of the Year Grammy: 'It’s Past Due'

Give 'Damn' all the Grammys.

SZA
Photography by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for NARAS
SZA

In a just world, Kendrick Lamar's Damn would walk away with the Album of the Year honor at next year's 60th Annual Grammy Awards. But do we live in a just world? Fuck no. We live in a world so egregiously fucked up that even The Chainsmokers could end up winning the night's big award.

In a "best new artist hopefuls"-themed interview with Billboard alongside Khalid and Julia Michaels, fellow Top Dawg artist SZA touted Damn as the obvious Album of the Year choice.

"I don't know Ed ­[Sheeran] personally, though I love him and his music," SZA said Thursday when asked who she'd root for between Sheeran and Lamar. "But I watched [Lamar's] process—he's a true, genuine genius. Dot doesn't play any instruments, but he designed and ­produced his whole album. From scratch. Like... it's too much. It's too incredible. I've never witnessed anyone do that, except for maybe Frank [Ocean]. It's past due. He's the most inspiring person I've ever met in my entire life."

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After Khalid chimed in with his own thoughts on the importance of Damn in 2017 America, SZA continued, "He somehow manages to be an ­activist with a platinum album. It's very rare."

Thus far, Lamar has bagged seven Grammys over the course of his career. His first, in 2015, was for his To Pimp a Butterfly single "i." The album was nominated for Album of the Year, but ultimately lost to *clears throat, vomits, clears throat again* Taylor Swift's 1989.

Lamar himself considers Damn cut "Fear" to be his strongest work to date. "It's completely honest," Lamar toldi-D in a recent interview. "The first verse is everything that I feared from the time that I was seven years old. The second verse I was 17, in the third it's everything I feared when I was 27. These verses are completely honest."

If Damn doesn't get Album of the Year, I give up.

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