Kendrick Lamar Leads Grammy Nominations With 11

The Recording Academy announced the Grammy Award nominations this morning. Kendrick Lamar leads the field with 11 nods. The Weeknd and Taylor Swift both received seven Grammy nominations. Other top nominees include Drake, John Legend, and Kanye West.
The Academy is committed to celebrating a diverse blend of talented entertainers, musicians, and producers, and this commitment is evident in the nominees for the Album of the Year category.  According to Grammy.com. Lamar has been nominated for his “jazz-infused rap,” Alabama Shakes for their “alternative and soulful rock,” Swift for her pop, Chris Stapleton for his “classic country sounds,” and The Weeknd for his “genre-bending R&B style.”
D’Angelo and The Vanguard are nominated for Record of the Year, along with Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars, Ed Sheeran, The Weeknd, and Swift.
The Grammy ceremony will be held Feburary 15, 2016 in Los Angeles. A list of nominees follows below:
Record Of The Year

• “Really Love” — D’Angelo And The Vanguard
• “Uptown Funk” — Mark Ronson Featuring Bruno Mars
• “Thinking Out Loud” — Ed Sheeran
• “Blank Space” — Taylor Swift
• “Can’t Feel My Face” — The Weeknd

Album Of The Year

• Sound & Color — Alabama Shakes
• To Pimp A Butterfly — Kendrick Lamar
• Traveller — Chris Stapleton
• 1989 — Taylor Swift
• Beauty Behind The Madness — The Weeknd

Song Of The Year

• “Alright” — Kendrick Duckworth, Mark Anthony Spears & Pharrell Williams, songwriters (Kendrick Lamar)
• “Blank Space” — Max Martin, Shellback & Taylor Swift, songwriters (Taylor Swift)
• “Girl Crush” — Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna & Liz Rose, songwriters (Little Big Town)
• “See You Again” — Andrew Cedar, Justin Franks, Charles Puth & Cameron Thomaz, songwriters (Wiz Khalifa Featuring Charlie Puth)
• “Thinking Out Loud” — Ed Sheeran & Amy Wadge, songwriters (Ed Sheeran)

Best New Artist

• Courtney Barnett
• James Bay
• Sam Hunt
• Tori Kelly
• Meghan Trainor

Following is a sampling of nominations in the GRAMMY Awards’ other 29 Fields:
For Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, the nominees are “Ship To Wreck” by Florence & The Machine; “Sugar” by Maroon 5; “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson Featuring Bruno Mars; “Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift Featuring Kendrick Lamar; and “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa Featuring Charlie Puth.
The nominees for Best Dance Recording are “We’re All We Need” by Above & Beyond Featuring Zoë Johnston; “Go” by the Chemical Brothers; “Never Catch Me” by Flying Lotus Featuring Kendrick Lamar; “Runaway (U & I)” by Galantis; and “Where Are Ü Now” by Skrillex And Diplo With Justin Bieber.
The Best Rock Performance nominees are “Don’t Wanna Fight” by Alabama Shakes; “What Kind Of Man” by Florence & The Machine; “Something From Nothing” by Foo Fighters; “Ex’s & Oh’s” by Elle King; and “Moaning Lisa Smile” by Wolf Alice.
The nominees for Best Alternative Music Album are Sound & Color by Alabama Shakes; Vulnicura by Björk; The Waterfall by My Morning Jacket; Currents by Tame Impala; and Star Wars by Wilco.
For Best Rap Album, the nominees are 2014 Forest Hills Drive by J. Cole; Compton by Dr. Dre; If You’re Reading This Its Too Late by Drake; To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar; and The Pinkprint by Nicki Minaj.
The nominees for Best Urban Contemporary Album are Ego Death by the Internet; You Should Be Here by Kehlani; Blood by Lianne La Havas; Wildheart by Miguel; and Beauty Behind The Madness by The Weeknd.
The Best Country Album nominees are Montevallo by Sam Hunt; Pain Killer by Little Big Town; The Blade by Ashley Monroe; Pageant Material by Kacey Musgraves; and Traveller by Chris Stapleton.
The nominees for Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical are Jeff Bhasker, Dave Cobb, Diplo, Larry Klein, and Blake Mills.
For Best Music Video, the nominees are “LSD” by ASAP Rocky; “I Feel Love (Every Million Miles)” by the Dead Weather; “Alright” by Kendrick Lamar; “Bad Blood” by Taylor Swift Featuring Kendrick Lamar; and “Freedom” by Pharrell Williams.
article by Annika Harris via uptownmagazine.com