Kendrick Lamar leads Grammys with 11 nominations

The 2015 Grammy Awards nominations are in – and as expected both Taylor Swift and The Weeknd walked away with 7 nominations a piece. They attempted to rectify that embarrassment last year, awarding him two trophies for his uplifting single “i” in 2014, and nominating him for 11 awards this year – just one shy of Michael Jackson’s all-time record of 12 (1984), and ahead of Eminem (2001), Beyoncé (2010), Kanye West (2005), and Lauryn Hill (1999), who all had ten. With not one clunker in the bunch, the candy-coated album’s exclusion from this year’s Grammy nominations is inexcusable, and further dashes our hopes for the comeback that Jepsen deserves.

For those looking for a “Swift vs. Lamar” narrative, however, things aren’t so simple: the Best Pop Group/Duo Performance and Best Music Video nominees include their collaboration “Bad Blood”. And local singer and keyboardist PJ Morton, son of gospel vocalist and preacher Bishop Paul S. Morton of Greater St. Stephen Church, is nominated as a member of Maroon 5 in the best pop duo/group performance category for the song sugar. “That being said, what a wonderful treat to be recognized by your peers for the work that you have done”, Stapleton said in an interview with The Associated Press by phone on Monday.

The Grammys will be held February 15. No host is announced yet. Gotye also took out the Best Alternative Music Album Grammy for Making Mirrors – the same category Tame Impala are nominated in this year.

“The nominees for album of the year are 1989 (Taylor Swift), Beauty Behind the Madness (The Weeknd), To Pimp a Butterfly (Kendrick Lamar), Sound + Color (Alabama Shakes) and Traveller (Chris Stapleton)”.

English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran’s viral ballad “Thinking Out Loud” was also nominated for both Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

We’re in the middle of award season for films but also for music, as the Grammy nominations were announced this morning. Unlike the American Music Awards or the Billboard Music Awards, the Grammys think of themselves as an arbiter of quality and importance, a beacon for what matters (or what ought to, anyway).

Lamar is running the show this year and leading in nominations with a whopping 11 – that’s 4 more than reigning Grammy Queen Taylor Swift!

Erotic drama “Fifty Shades of Grey” powered The Weeknd to three of his Grammy nods for single “Earned It” which was featured on the movie’s soundtrack.

The 2016 Grammy Award nominations are brimming with snubs and surprises, from Madonna to Foo Fighters to D’Angelo and the Vanguard.

Best rock performance: Alabama Shakes, “Don’t Wanna Fight”; Florence + The Machine, “What Kind Of Man”; Foo Fighters, “Something From Nothing”; Elle King, “Ex’s & Oh’s”; Wolf Alice, “Moaning Lisa Smile”. Lamar’s “Butterfly” could be the first hip-hop project to win album of the year since Outkast took home the prize in 2004 with “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below”.

On its website, to be eligible for a Grammy, they state: “For the 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards, albums must be released between October 1, 2014 and September 30, 2015”.