Photos: Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kendrick Lamar by Mike Windle, Lorde by James K. Lowe, Robin Thicke by Trae Patton/NBC & Justin Timberlake Courtesy DirecTV

There’s no denying, 2013 has been one incredible year of music—full of comebacks, reunions, unexpected releases, surprise hits and breakout stars. But with the year soon coming coming to a close, it’s time once again for the Recording Academy to do its thing, as the GRAMMY nominations will be announced on Friday (Dec. 6).

GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live!! — Countdown To Music's Biggest Night will air live on CBS from Los Angeles' Nokia Theatre on Friday at 10 p.m. ET/PT, setting the stage for the 56th Annual GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2014. Be sure to check variancemagazine.com for the full list of nominees.

As this year is rather full of possible nominees, anything could happen. But below are some of the best bets. It’s worth noting that because the eligibility period runs Oct. 1 to Sept. 30, mainstream hits like Eminem’s The Marshall Mathers LP 2, Arcade Fire's Reflektor, Miley Cyrus’ Bangerz, Katy Perry’s PRISM and Lady Gaga’s ARTPOP will not be considered for nominations until 2015, although their singles released earlier in the year are still eligible.

ALBUM OF THE YEAR
There’s no way Justin Timberlake is not nominated. His two-part album, The 20/20 Experience: The Complete Experience, is the only guarantee in this category. There will surely be a country album, and it would seem logical for Taylor Swift’s Red to take that nod, but you can’t rule out Blake Shelton or Luke Bryan. Another obvious contender would be Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ The Heist, which was released at the beginning of the eligibility period (Oct. 9, 2012), but exploded after the first of the year. And although it’s hard to imagine two hip-hop sets in the elite tier, it’s difficult to ignore Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city, as both Lamar and Macklemore have dominated so much of this year’s music conversation. Considering his 2010 album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, was previously nominated, it’s likely Bruno Mars’ Unorthodox Jukebox could show up once again. What’s interesting is that Mars went up against Adele last time for most of his categories—and we all know how that turned out. This time around, it’s the year of Timberlake (more on that later) and Mars again has stiff competition. In place of any of the aforementioned, you might also see Daft Punk’s explosive hit, Random Access Memories; Nine Inch Nails’ revival album, Hesitation Marks; Alicia Keys’ Girl on Fire; Drake’s Nothing Was the Same; or Elton John’s T Bone Burnett-produced The Diving Board.

RECORD OF THE YEAR
This will be an interesting race. Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines,” featuring T.I. and Pharrell, is the safest bet in this category, as the top-selling track of the year with 12 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. It's also a critical favorite. Beyond that, things get murky. Lorde’s “Royals” would seem to be an easy nod, as would Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky,” featuring Pharrell. Although Timberlake’s 20/20 is a lock for Album nod, the singer hasn’t had a “Rolling in the Deep”-like hit, but No. 2-peaking “Mirrors” would seem fit for a nomination, alongside competition from Bruno Mars’ “Locked Out of Heaven.” Although Mars is loved by the Academy, it would hardly be a surprise to see Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ “Same Love” ("Thrift Shop" was reportedly not submitted for the ballot) or Imagine Dragons’ hit “Radioactive” in the mix. And while I imagine a Lorde-against-the-guys scenario, it’s possible Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” or Taylor Swift’s “I Knew You Were Trouble” may be on the list. Less likely would be Katy Perry’s “Roar” or P!nk’s “Just Give Me a Reason,” featuring Nate Ruess. We could also see Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise,” featuring Nelly—but hopefully that doesn’t happen.

SONG OF THE YEAR
To clarify (for those who forget or don’t know), this is awarded to the songwriter. And while Record of the Year is full of likely contenders, the Song race is fairly wide open, although Lorde’s “Royals” (written by Ella Yelich O’Connor aka Lorde, Joel Little) would be a given. “Mirrors” (Timberlake, Timothy "Timbaland” Mosley, Jerome "J-Roc” Harmon and James Fauntleroy) will probably be nominated, as might “Wrecking Ball” (Lukasz Gottwald, Maureen "Mozella” McDonald, Stephan Moccio, Sacha Skarbek and Henry Walter)—it seems stronger for this category than for Record of the Year. Other possibilities: “Just Give Me a Reason” (P!nk, Jeff Bhasker and Nate Ruess), “I Knew You Were Trouble” (Swift, Max Martin and Shellback), “Radioactive” (band members Ben McKee, Dan Platzman, Dan Reynolds and Wayne Sermon, with Alexander Grant and Josh Mosser). A long shot would be Capital Cities’ “Safe and Sound” (Ryan Merchant, Sebu Simonian). And if the Academy feels the urge to include Adele, you could even see “Skyfall” (Adele Adkins, Paul Epworth).

BEST NEW ARTIST
This is an incredibly crowded field. Lorde is arguably the frontrunner, and it would seem Macklemore & Ryan Lewis and/or Kendrick Lamar are increasingly likely contenders as well. Likewise, Ariana Grande deserves to be included, as do Imagine Dragons. Those five seem solid. The sixth slot could go to Avicii, HAIM, Jake Bugg, Earl Sweatshirt, Alt-J, Phillip Phillips or Florida Georgia Line (unfortunately, they'll probably sweep the country vote here). I’d also love to see Rudimental or The Neighbourhood nominated, but I don't know that they'd have the votes.

BEST ROCK ALBUM
Vampire Weekend’s Modern Vampires of the City, Queens of the Stone Age’s …Like Clockwork and My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James’ Regions of Light and Sound of God would appear to be solid contenders in this category. It also wouldn’t be impossible for John Mayer’s Paradise Valley to show up. And given that their 2010 album, Come Around Sundown, was nominated, it’s possible Kings of Leon’s latest effort, Mechanical Bull, might be in the mix. Paramore’s self-titled album or Fall Out Boy’s Save Rock and Roll shouldn’t be ruled out either.

BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM
This is a tricky category. 2012 and 2013 winners Bon Iver and Gotye, respectively, offered two completely different sets appealing to varying audiences. This year, likely contenders would be Lorde’s Pure Heroine, James Blake’s Mercury Prize-winning Overgrown, Phoenix’s Bankrupt! and Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ Mosquito. Meanwhile, The Neighbourhood’s I Love You., The Flaming Lips’ The Terror and The National’s Trouble Will Find Me also seem worthy. Of course, MGMT’s selft-titled album or Depeche Mode’s Delta Machine may also be on the list. And, of course, it would be nice to see Jimmy Eat World’s Damage, Portugal. The Man’s Evil Friends or Capital Cities’ In a Tidal Wave of Mystery included as well—the latter being the least likely.

BEST RAP ALBUM
This is a really exciting field to watch this year. It’s a category where Kanye West has consistently appeared since his debut nearly a decade ago, and while it received mixed reviews, Yeezus has proven to grow its appeal as the months have passed. And it will likely earn a nomination. It’s been a big year for hip-hop, and this won’t be an easy field to compete in. But 2013’s winner Drake will likely return with Nothing Was the Same. Beyond these two, it’s unclear, but I believe J. Cole’s Born Sinner should (and will) receive a nomination. After giving Yeezus some unexpected sales/chart competition, Born Sinner proved to be one of the best hip-hop records of the year, without the overwhelming hype of some others in the field. Speaking of hype, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’ The Heist and Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city both enjoyed sweeping mainstream buzz, and they’ll likely coast to nominations. Although critically weaker than some of his previous efforts, JAY Z’s Magna Carta… Holy Grail will probably round out the Rap Album field. If any of the aforementioned don’t make the cut, A$AP Rocky’s Long.Live.A$AP or Wale’s The Gifted could appear, but it’s less likely. Because of the buzz surrounding this year's hip-hop LPs, I wouldn't surprised to see the Academy try to sneak in a less-expected "surprise" nod to prove they're not predictable.

POP VOCAL ALBUM
20/20 Experience and Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines album seem like safe bets here. Lorde’s Pure Heroine and HAIM’s Days Are Gone are strong in this category, while Alicia Keys’ Girl on Fire, Ellie Goulding’s Halcyon Days and Emeli Sandé’s Live at Royal Albert Hall could also appear in this category. Bruno Mars’ Unorthodox Jukebox and Rihanna’s Unapologetic are likely contenders as well, although the latter seems to be lacking a lot of the buzz that has accompanied her previous albums come nomination time, despite being an Academy favorite. Since this category is about the vocals, it would be a shame if Ariana Grande’s debut album, Yours Truly, didn’t earn a nod in this particular field.

PRODUCER OF THE YEAR
As it was in 2012, the Year of Adele, the Producers category will be in the spotlight once again this round, as it will be one of the most competitive years. Three names seem like locks for nominations: Pharrell Williams, Rick Rubin and Timbaland. In addition to his “Blurred Lines” and “Get Lucky” vocal/writing features, Williams has production credits for five albums year: Kelly Rowland’s Talk a Good Game, Mac Miller’s Watching Movies with the Sound Off, the Despicable Me 2 soundtrack, JAY Z’s Magna Carta… Holy Grail and Robin Thicke’s Blurred Lines. Interestingly, all five were released within about a month of each other. Rick Rubin produced for six albums: The Band Perry’s Pioneer, Black Sabbath’s 13, The Avett Brothers’ Magpie and the Dandelion, all three exclusively by Rubin, as well as Magna Carta, which featured a roster of producers. Also produced by Rubin, Eminem’s MMLP2 and Jake Bugg’s Shangri La released in November, thus outside of eligibility. Timbaland, of course, produced both of Timberlake’s 20/20 albums, along with credits on Magna Carta and Blurred Lines. You could also see Ryan Tedder (credits for OneRepublic, Ellie Goulding, others), Benny Blanco (for Rihanna, Ke$ha, Bruno Mars, others), Danger Mouse (Portugal. The Man), Dr. Luke (Robin Thicke, Katy Perry, Jessie J) and my personal favorite, Alex Da Kid (Imagine Dragons, Skylar Grey).

27 “GUARANTEED” NOMINEES
There will surely be some unexpected nods thrown into the mix come Friday, but if I were any of the artists below, I'd start working on my Taylor Swift "surprised" face.

Justin Timberlake
Robin Thicke
Lorde
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
Kendrick Lamar
Kanye West
Taylor Swift
Imagine Dragons
Bruno Mars
JAY Z
Pharrell Williams
Daft Punk
Ariana Grande
HAIM
Vampire Weekend
James Blake
J. Cole
Drake
Miley Cyrus
Avicii
Phoenix
Queens of the Stone Age
Rihanna
Icona Pop
Paramore
Nine Inch Nails
Ellie Goulding