Lewis Capaldi, who died for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist, lands his 2nd Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100

Capaldi was also bypassed for a performance slot at the 62nd Grammy Awards on January 26.

Lewis Capaldi has the last word. Almost nine months after the Scottish singer / songwriter was surprisingly nominated for a Grammy Award for Best New Artist, he landed his second top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 with “Before You Go”.

The song follows “Someone You Loved,” which led the charts for three non-consecutive weeks last November – and received a Grammy award for song of the year. (Capaldi co-wrote the ballad with Tom Barnes, Pete Kelleher, Benjamin Kohn, and Sam Roman.)

Nominations in the Big Four categories – Album, Record and Song of the Year as well as Best New Artist – are determined by a Nominating Review Committee that examines the top 20 votes from grassroots voting members. While the initial lists are being kept under wraps, it seems likely that Capaldi made it a voters’ favorite for Best New Artist.

Three of the best new nominated artists also (like Capaldi) had multiple Hot 100 top 10 hits. Winner Billie Eilish notched her third top 10 hit, “My Future”, last week. Lil Nas X and Lizzo each had two Top 10 hits.

None of the other five nominees have yet reached the Top 40 of the Hot 100, let alone the top 10. And only one of the five – Rosalía – has made the Hot 100 at all. She reached 66th place in June with “TKN”, a collaboration with Travis Scott.

The other four nominees – Black Pumas, Maggie Rogers, Tank and the Bangas and Yola – have had success on some genre charts, but not on BillboardThe list of the brand’s flagship singles, the Hot 100.

Of course, the Grammys aren’t strictly based on chart success, let alone traditional chart success alone. Success on other more specialized genre graphics also matters. But the vast majority of Best New Artist winners, from the first winner, Bobby Darin, to the most recent, Eilish, have been successful in the mainstream charts.

So why did the committee ignore Capaldi for a better new artist? The committee’s deliberations are confidential, so we can only speculate. They may have wondered if he would have a meaningful career in the United States beyond his first success. His breakthrough in the top 10 this week puts that problem to rest.

Perhaps the committee thought that one song of the year was enough recognition. Eilish and Lizzo were the only other new artists of the year to receive a song of the year. The committee may have decided, at least as far as Capaldi is concerned, “Let’s share the wealth”.

Or they may simply have bypassed it for the sake of gender and racial diversity.

Regarding gender diversity, the final list of top nominees for new artists consisted of five female solo artists, one male solo artist, one male duo and one mixed group.

In terms of racial diversity, the final list of nominees consisted of three black artists, two white artists, one Latina artist and two interracial groups or duos.

Capaldi was also bypassed for a performance slot at the 62nd Grammy Awards on January 26. Alicia Keys, who hosted the show for the second year in a row, performed a parody version of “Someone You Loved” in which she named her name. over a dozen artists including Rosalía, Beyoncé, BTS, HER and, yes, Capaldi. (“Hey, Lew, is it cool that I’m using your song right now? Are you okay?” Keys asked. Capaldi gave him a double nudge.)

But while Capaldi didn’t get all the nominations and the performance window he could have hoped for, his fans are keeping him at the forefront. And there is always next year.