+the news

Kanye West and Adele lead Grammy nominations

Written by . Published: December 01 2011

Kanye West looks set to be the king of the 54th annual Grammy Awards next year (12) after landing seven nominations.


The Stronger rapper leads the way with the most amount of nods - his star-studded collaboration All Of The Lights is up for Song of the Year and Best Rap Song, while he also earns a nod in the latter category for his Jay-Z duet Otis.


British soul singer Adele is not far behind West with a total of six nominations. She is in the running for Song of the Year for Rolling in the Deep, while her critically-acclaimed 21 will fight for the prestigious titles of Record of the Year and Album of the Year.


Rockers Foo Fighters and R&B singer Bruno Mars were also revealed as six-time contenders for the 2012 ceremony on Wednesday (30Nov11) during the televised Grammy Nominations Concert Live, which was hosted by LL Cool J from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles.


Mars took to Twitter.com after the nominations were announced to write, "I've been trynna (trying to) think of something clever to say... But the only thing that comes to my mind is... Frikikikiki (sic)!! We Did It!"


He will battle it out with Adele for Album of the Year with Doo-Wops & Hooligans, as well as Rihanna (Loud), Foo Fighters (Wasting Light) and Lady Gaga (Born This Way).


The Poker Face hitmaker was surprisingly left out of the Song of the Year category for her mega-hit Born This Way.


Another star to miss out on the top honours was country star Taylor Swift, who along with Gaga had one of the fastest-selling albums of the year with her Speak Now record, but she missed out on a mention in the Album of the Year category.


However, Swift did pick up three nominations - her track Mean garnered nods for Best Country Solo Performance and Best Country Song, while Speak Now was named in the Best Country Album category.


Other musicians to win multiple mentions included Lil Wayne and dub step star Skrillex with five nominations each, Rihanna and folk group Mumford & Sons are up for four, along with Bon Iver.


Coldplay, Katy Perry, Radiohead and Maroon 5 also picked up nominations.


Late soul star Amy Winehouse, who died in July (11) aged 27, collected a posthumous nomination for her duet with veteran star Tony Bennett on Body and Soul, which is up for Pop Duo Or Group Performance.


Unlike this year's (11) shock winner in the Best New Artist category, which saw relatively unknown singer Esperanza Spalding take the prize from favourite Justin Bieber, the 2012 event looks set for less controversy - Nicki Minaj, Bon Iver, The Band Perry and Skrillex are up for the award.


Performance highlights from the Grammy Nominations Concert Live came from Usher, who remembered late songwriters Nickolas Ashford and Jerry Leiber with a medley of their hits.


Common, Lupe Fiasco and LL Cool J also hit the stage to pay tribute to rap icon Grandmaster Flash with a rousing rendition of hip-hop anthem The Message with the legend himself and his longtime collaborator Melle Mel to mark the recording's recent addition to the 2012 Grammy Hall of Fame.


There were also two unlikely country collaborations - Jason Aldean and rapper Ludacris teamed up to perform the singer's track Dirt Road Anthem, and Lady Gaga, who opened the event wearing skeletal face paint to sing Marry The Night, was joined by Sugarland to close the show with the pop superstar's hit single You and I.


The 54th annual Grammy Awards will take place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on 12 February (12).


The main list of nominees is as follows:

Record of the Year:


Adele - Rolling in the Deep


Bon Iver - Holocene


Bruno Mars - Grenade


Mumford + Sons - The Cave


Katy Perry - Firework

Song Of The Year:


Kanye West - All of the Lights


Mumford + Sons - The Cave


Bruno Mars - Grenade


Bon Iver - Holocene


Adele - Rolling in the Deep

Best New Artist:


The Band Perry


Bon Iver


J. Cole


Nicki Minaj


Skrillex

Album Of The Year:


Adele - 21


Foo Fighters - Wasting Light


Lady Gaga - Born This Way


Bruno Mars - Doo-Wops + Hooligans


Rihanna - Loud

Best Pop Solo Performance:


Adele - Someone Like You


Lady Gaga - You And I


Bruno Mars - Grenade


Katy Perry - Firework


Pink - F**kin' Perfect

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:


Tony Bennett + Amy Winehouse - Body and Soul


The Black Keys - Dearest


Coldplay - Paradise


Foster The People - Pumped Up Kicks


Maroon 5 + Christina Aguilera - Moves Like Jagger

Best Pop Vocal Album:


Adele - 21


Cee Lo Green - The Lady Killer


Lady Gaga - Born This Way


Bruno Mars - Doo-Wops + Hooligans


Rihanna - Loud

Best Rock Song:


Mumford + Sons - The Cave


The King Is Dead - Down By The Water


Coldplay - Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall


The King of Limbs - Lotus Flower


Foo Fighters - Walk

Best Rock Album:


Jeff Beck - Rock 'n' Roll Party Honoring Les Paul


Foo Fighters - Wasting Light


Kings of Leon - Come Around Sundown


Red Hot Chili Peppers - I'm With You


Wilco - The Whole Love

Best R+B Song:


Marsha Ambrosius - Far Away


Cee Lo Green + Melanie Fiona - Fool For You


Kelly Price + Stokley - Not My Daddy


Ledisi - Pieces of Me


Charlie Wilson - You Are

Best R+B Album:


Chris Brown - F.A.M.E.


El DeBarge - Second Chance


R. Kelly - Love Letter


Ledisi - Pieces of Me


Kelly Price - Kelly

Best Rap Song:


Kanye West - All of the Lights


Wiz Khalifa - Black and Yellow


Dr. Dre, Eminem + Skylar Grey - I Need A Doctor


Chris Brown, Lil Wayne + Busta Rhymes - Look At Me Now


Jay-Z + Kanye West - Otis


Lupe Fiasco - The Show Goes On

Best Rap Album:


Jay-Z + Kanye West - Watch The Throne


Lil Wayne - Tha Carter IV


Lupe Fiasco - Lasers


Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday


Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Best Country Song:


Thompson Square - Are You Gonna Kiss Me or Not


Blake Shelton - God Gave Me You


Trace Adkins - Just Fishin'


Taylor Swift - Mean


Vince Gill - Threaten Me With Heaven


Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter - You And Tequila

Best Country Album:


Jason Aldean - My Kinda Party


Eric Church - Chief


Lady Antebellum - Own The Night


Blake Shelton - Red River Blue


George Strait - Here For A Good Time


Taylor Swift - Speak Now.

Error! Unable to retrieve any Images!