4 Debut Albums That Made Awards Show History

Most musicians struggle for years before they earn critical acclaim and recognition for their work. A select few in rock and pop history, however, created something so magical on their debut album that they captured the world's attention, as well as music industry plaudits. The Grammy Award for album of the year is one of the most prestigious prizes handed out to musicians, and only four solo artists have ever received it for the very first LP featuring their voices and talents front and center.

And the Grammys got it right: Not only are those four albums regarded as classics, but they were also the first stabs at greatness from artists whose mainstream careers lasted for years, if not decades. Barbra Streisand, Christopher Cross, Norah Jones, and Billie Eilish aren't some one-hit wonders who vanished after winning the Grammy Award for best new artist — they had real staying power. And they made a splash on Grammy night, winning the top prize for album of the year with their debut LP.

While many singers of standards and show tunes kept their long-standing careers afloat after rock music came to dominate pop culture, 

Barbra Streisand emerged after the arrival of guitar-toting rock bands, yet by possessing one of the most beautiful voices in soft rock history, her extraordinary talents were well-suited to interpreting the classics. After first coming to some prominence as a Tony Award-nominated supporting actor in the 1962 Broadway musical "I Can Get It for You Wholesale," Streisand decamped to the studio to record 1963's "The Barbra Streisand Album." It consisted of chestnuts by beloved songwriters like Cole Porter, as well as newer tunes written in the old-fashioned style, such as "Happy Days Are Here Again" and "Cry Me a River," respectively.

At the 1964 Grammy Awards, Streisand earned a nomination for record of the year (for "Happy Days Are Here Again" — once President Franklin Roosevelt's 1932 campaign song), while her debut LP "The Barbra Streisand Album" won the singer the award for best female vocal performance and album of the year.

Christopher Cross' self-titled debut LP, released in 1979, is a classic album that defines yacht rock. Cross' gentle guitar strumming and plaintive, vulnerable voice are all over its nine tracks, which, aside from the epic rocker "Ride Like the Wind," are extremely laid-back, understated, and sophisticated. This was post-disco pop rock for boomers entering their 30s, and that audience helped send four of the album's singles into the Top 20, including the soothing "Sailing," a No. 1 hit in the summer of 1980.

At the 1981 Grammy Awards, Cross set new benchmarks. Nominated for six prizes, he won in five categories. Along with best arrangement accompanying vocalist for "Sailing," Cross took home all four of the major, general field Grammys, the first artist to do so. "Sailing" won the singer-songwriter record of the year and song of the year, while his debut LP "Christopher Cross" secured best new artist and album of the year.

In the first few years of the 21st century, the hottest acts in music included rappers Eminem and Nelly. Both earned album of the year nominations at the 2003 Grammy Awards, and both lost to a velvety-voiced torch singer who made sultry, throwback piano bar jazz: Norah Jones, whose debut album, "Come Away with Me," was released in 2002. 

Featuring little more than Jones' dreamy voice, elegant piano, and the backing of a modest jazz combo, the album moved 12 million copies, making it the best-selling jazz album ever. The soft and subtle lead single "Don't Know Why" hit the Top 30, breaking into the much more pop-forward radio world of the time.

In 2003, Jones enjoyed one of the most fruitful Grammy nights ever for a brand-new artist. She claimed the prize for best new artist, as well as record of the year and best female pop vocal performance for "Don't Know Why." The entire "Come Away with Me" LP was voted the winner of the best pop vocal album award and the most important Grammy of all, album of the year.

With her remarkably honest, genre-agnostic bedroom pop-rock, Billie Eilish might just be the ethereal voice of Gen Z. Usually collaborating with her brother, Finneas O'Connell, Eilish racked up a staggering list of achievements within less than a decade. Between 2016 and 2024, Eilish issued four full-length albums and dozens of singles and EPs, all of which sold millions and have been streamed billions of times. In 2019, her trippy, synth-drenched "Bad Guy" from the album "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" hit No. 1.

In the lead-up to the 2020 Grammys, the narrative focused on a showdown between pop-R&B singer Lizzo and Eilish, both heavily nominated and both up for the "Big Four": best new artist, and record, song, and album of the year. After all the statuettes were passed out, Eilish had won in all those major categories. She joined Christopher Cross as the only act to ever do so, with "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" grabbing the album of the year. In subsequent years, Eilish has added to her Grammy haul, winning 10 as of 2026.