Most Grammy Award-nominated individuals of all time

As of 2022, Jay-Z and Beyoncé had received the most nominations for a Grammy Award of all time, with 88 nominations throughout their respective careers. Jones, who came in at third place with 80 nominations, is a prominent figure in the media world and has received multiple honors and awards for his contribution to the arts during sixty years in the industry, notably for his film scores, production work and jazz composition.

Second in the list is Paul McCartney with 78 nominations, including 41 as part of The Beatles. Following McCartney is the American hip-hop artist and rapper Jay-Z. However, along with Quincy Jones the ranking also features a number of composers, including Henry Mancini, Pierre Boulez and well-known film score composer John Williams, the latter of whom received 71 nominations for his work over the course of his career in the industry.

A closer look at the work of John Williams

  John Williams is an admired and prolific composer famous for his film scores, and is the father of Joseph Williams, the singer of American rock band Toto. Williams has composed original scores for multiple blockbuster movies, ranging from American disaster film ‘Earthquake’ in 1974 to ‘Jurassic Park’ in 1993, as well as films in the Star Wars, Harry Potter and Indiana Jones franchises.

Williams has won a number of awards throughout his career, winning seven BAFTA Awards for ‘Best Film Music’, three Emmys, four Golden Globe Awards and five Academy Awards, and has been nominated for many more besides. The composer also made the list of most Grammy Award-winning individuals of all time, with 24 wins as of 2019 for films including ‘Jaws’, Schindler’s List’, ‘Saving Private Ryan’ and ‘Memoirs of a Geisha’.

How do the Grammy Awards work?

  Grammy Award nominations are made online, and a copy of nominated work is sent to the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: NARAS) to be reviewed by industry experts. Those able to make nominations include media companies and individuals registered with NARAS, as well as other professionals deemed to meet certain criteria. After voting has taken place, the winners are announced at the awards ceremony which is televised each year and reaches millions of people in the United States alone.