This year's Grammy Awards feature the first nomination for trans pop singer Kim Petras, but she's not the first trans woman to garner a nomination. Several other trans women and some nonbinary artists have been nominated, and some have even won Grammys.
Here's a look back at eight groundbreaking trans artists who secured Grammy nominations!
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Sam Smith
Instagram (@samsmith)
Smith won four Grammys in 2015, but that was before they came out as nonbinary. With their nomination for “Unholy,” they get their first Grammy nomination (and win) as an out nonbinary artist.
Kim Petras
Instagram (@kimpetras)
Speaking of “Unholy,” trans pop singer Kim Petras picked up her first Grammy nomination (and win) for the collaboration with Sam Smith. She’s the first out trans artist to be nominated in the category of Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.
Wendy Carlos
Leonard M Delessio/Corbis via Getty Images
Electronic music composer Wendy Carlos was winning Grammys as a trans woman all the back in the ’60s. Her 1968 album Switched-On Bach revolutionized synthesizer music and won three Grammys.
SOPHIE
Screengrab via YouTube
Producer, DJ, and songwriter Sophie tragically passed away in 2021, but in her short life, she secured a Grammy nomination in 2019 for Best Dance/Electronic Album for her album Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides.
Jackie Shane
Screengrab via YouTube
Jackie Shane was originally from Nashville, Tennessee, but became famous performing in Toronto, Ontario in the ’60s. In 2017, her music was reissued on a double-LP called Any Other Way. The album was nominated for Best Historical Album at the Grammys.
Arca
Instagram (@arca1000000)
Venezuelan musician and producer Arca was nominated for her first Grammy in 2021 when her album Kick I was nominated for Best Dance/Electronic Album. She’s also been nominated for two Latin Grammys.
Teddy Geiger
Screengrab via YouTube
Geiger is a songwriter who has written for artists like Icona Pop, One Direction, John Legend, The Chicks, and Caroline Polachek. She was nominated for Song of the Year at the 61st Grammy Awards for writing the Shawn Mendes song “In My Blood.”
Honey Dijon
Instagram (@honeydijon)
Producer and electronic musician Honey Dijon is nominated for producing on Beyoncé’s album Renaissance. She’s nominated for Album of the Year as a songwriter and producer.
