53rd Annual Grammy Nominations
See some of the nominees for the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards.
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Nicki Minaj - The Harajuku Barbie continues to rack up nominations. This time, she earns her first Grammy nod for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for her verse on Ludacris' "My Chick Bad."
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T.I. - The King of the South has a shot at winning a Grammy behind bars. He'll be competing for Best Rap Solo Performance honors for his "I'm Back" song.
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Kanye West - Yeezy's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy may have missed the cut because it hit stores too late, but the LP's lead single, "Power," was released just in time to get nominated for Best Rap Solo Performance.
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Bilal - Almost a decade after his debut album, the neo-soul crooner comes back strong with a Best Urban/Alternative Performance nomination for his single "Little One" off his new LP Airtight's Revenge.
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Janelle Monáe - The visionary funkstress' LP The ArchAndroid is nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album.
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Michael Jackson - Long live the King of Pop! MJ receives a posthumous nomination for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "This Is It."
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Ryan Leslie - The second time's obviously the charm. R. Les' Transition, the singer's sophomore album, is nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album.
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Jaheim - The soulful balladeer's Another Round is nominated for Best R&B Album.
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Kelly Price - The singer-songwriter's "Tired" landed her a Best Female R&B Vocal Performance nomination.
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Monica - She's undoubtedly still standing, with "Everything to Me" being nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.
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Fantasia - The American Idol alum racked up three nominations: Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song and Best R&B Album.
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Jazmine Sullivan - "Holding You Down (Going in Circles)," nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, is the eighth Grammy nod for the Philly songbird.
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Faith Evans - The soon-to-be film star (she's preparing for the role of the Supremes' Florence Ballard in the biopic Blondie) is nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Gone Already"
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Young Jeezy - The rapper's "Lose My Mind," featuring Plies, is nominated for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group.
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El Debarge - It's been a triumphant return for the smmoth soul singer. Fresh off show-stealing performances at the BET and Soul Train Awards, he receives two nods. "Second Chance" is nominated for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song.
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Sade - The timeless vocalist is also a double nominee. "Soldier of Love" is nominated for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals, while "Babyfather" is nominated for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals.
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Ludacris - "My Chick Bad,", his collaboration with Nicki Minaj, and "How Low" received a nominations for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group and Best Rap Solo Performance respectively.
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Usher - Ush's "There Goes My Baby" got nominated for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, and his LP Raymond Vs. Raymond will compete in the Best Contemporary R&B Album category.
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Justin Bieber - Bieber Fever has spread to the Grammys. The teen sensation's "My World 2.0" is nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best New Artist.
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Beyoncé - Despite being off-cycle, the multi-talented diva managed to get a few nods. "Halo (Live)" is nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. She was also nominated for her appearance on Lady Gaga's "Telephone."
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R.Kelly - When it comes to making chart-topping hits, the Chi-town native is nothing but consistent. His "When a Woman Loves" is nominated for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, and his Untitled is up for Best Contemporary R&B Album.
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Chris Brown - C. Breezy's phenomenal comeback is far from over. The R&B singer's Graffiti may not have sold as expected, but it still earned a nod for Best Contemporary R&B Album. Brown also received a Best Rap/Sung Collaboration nom for his highly popular "Deuces" single, while "Take My Time," featuring Tank, is nominated for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals.
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Alicia Keys - The inspirational hook she delivered on Jay-Z's "Empire State of Mind" got the songstress three nominations. The song is nominated for Record of the Year, Best Rap/Sung Collabo and Best Rap Song.
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Cee-Lo - Like Yeezy's new album, Lo’s The Lady Killer hit stores too late to get Grammy consideration, but his highly popular single “Forget You” will be competing in several big categories, including Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Urban/Alternative Performance.
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Rihanna - Infectious hooks have earned the pop princess three nods via Eminem’s “Love the Way You Lie," including Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Rap/Sung Collabo. Ri-Ri’s also nominated in the Best Dance Recording category for “The Only Girl (In the World).”
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Drake - Last year he got nominated twice off a mixtape, but now that his debut, Thank Me Later, has finally hit stores and sold over 1 million units, the Canadian MC has doubled his nominations: he's up for Best New Artist, Best Rap Album, Best Rap Solo Performance for "Over" and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Fancy."
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Jay-Z - Six is the magic number for the veteran rapper-cum-author. "Empire State of Mind" is competing for Record of the Year, Best Rap/Sung Collabo and Best Rap Song, while "On to the Next One" featuring Swizz Beatz, is nominated for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Jigga's Blueprint 3 is also nominated for Best Rap Album.
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John Legend & The Roots - The R&B piano man and rap's best band received nods in several categories for their collaborative effort. They're nominated for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals for "Shine," Best R&B Album for Wake Up!, Best R&B Song for "Shine" and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for "Hang on in There." The Roots are also nominated for Best Rap Album for How I Got Over.
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B.o.B - Bobby Ray is a first-time nominee who will be competing in several categories. "Nothing on You," featuring Bruno Mars, is nominated for Record of the Year, Best Rap/Sung Collabo and Best Rap Song, while "Airplanes, Part II" is up for Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals. His B.o.B. Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray is also nominated for Best Rap Album.
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Bruno Mars - The singer/songwriter/musician is being nominated for his solo work as well as his collaborations. His own "Just the Way You Are" is nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance; Cee Lo's "Forget You," which he co-wrote, and B.o.B's "Nothin on You," which he sings on, are both up for three awards.