THE Grammy nominees used to be familiar names to me. For the 2026 nominees, though, who are Doechii, Bad Bunny, Leon Thomas, Tyler, The Creator, and Clipse, Pusha T & Malice? Hmmm.
I guess I’m now officially old. But thanks to Spotify, I’m now listening to their songs. And will these songs make me young again?
I’m better off with the carnivore lifestyle if I want to feel young again. And thanks again to Spotify for this most pleasant surprise: Doechii is “Anxiety”!
I used to have anxiety and panic attacks, with the worst episode happening inside a subway train while I was traveling from Manhattan to Brooklyn after midnight. So, why did I not care to check out the artist’s name behind “Anxiety”? Tsk tsk.
I was also clueless about Typhoon Tino, not knowing that Cagayan de Oro was under Signal No. 1. I still went to the gym and learned about the city’s typhoon status from a gym classmate.
Yeah, we learn something new every day. “What It Is” is also by Doechii, with Kodak Black. And Tyler, The Creator is the guy behind “Sugar On My Tongue.”
There’s another name that didn’t ring the bell in my clueless brain when I saw it on Facebook: Josh Morgerman.
No, he’s not a Grammy nominee. He’s a storm chaser. He was in Pinas for Super Typhoon Yolanda, and he was here again for Super Typhoon Uwan.
Conclusion: if a Philippine typhoon is the super kind, Morgerman would chase it.
The 2026 Grammy nominees did have familiar names that my usually clueless brain recognized: Lady Gaga, Huntr/X: Ejae, Audrey Nuna & Rei Ami, Kendrick Lamar with Sza, Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, Justin Bieber, and Rose & Bruno Mars.
If you’re now asking why Rose & Bruno Mars have been nominated, please go back to Christmas 2024 when their “APT.” was the song that was played and danced to at every Christmas party in Pinas from Aparri to Jolo.
For Christmas 2025, you don’t have to make a wild guess what that song will be.
Taylor Swift’s “Opalite,” of course. Or Ejae, Audrey Nuna & Rei Ami’s “Golden”: “I’m done hidin’, now I’m shinin’ like I’m born to be/We dreamin’ hard, we came so far, now I’ll believe/We’re goin’ up, up, up, it’s our moment/You know together we’re glowing/Gonna be, gonna be golden.”
Its first two lines can already make anyone sing along with it: “I was a ghost, I was alone (hah)/어두워진 앞길 속에 (hah).” Operative word: hah. No, the Korean lyrics are not the operative words.
So, take your pick. “Opalite” or “Golden.” Here’s my unsolicited advice: Pick both.
Grammy nominees are not the only unfamiliar names to me. Oscar nominees, too.
That’s why I tend to watch movies that star familiar names. And that’s why I watched “Die My Love” which has Jennifer Lawrence, Robert Pattinson, Sissy Spacek, and Nick Nolte. And “Bugonia” which has Emma Stone and Alicia Silverstone.
Both films didn’t make me sleep. Therefore, they’re worth watching. Will Lawrence and Stone be nominated for Oscar best actress for their respective roles? Abangan.
