PEOPLEEEEE!!
I am so excitedddd!!!
I’ve been a blushing bride throughout this week. It’s that time of the year again! The Grammy Awards 2016 Nominations are out! Whoop Whoop!
The 58th Annual Grammy awards will hold on the 15th of February 2016 at the Staples Center, Los Angeles, California. (This information is for those of you that plan to attend; Biko remember me abeg Madam Peters never pay this month’s salary). But before the big day comes (which of course Press Play will be covering), we can gamble away our savings (for those who have any) and place our bets on who goes home with what, because the list of nominees has been announced. It was done on the 7th of December (last Monday, don’t rack your brain) and well, it was a list to behold.
Congratulations are in order for the reigning king of rap, Kendrick Lamar, who is leading the pack with a total of 11 nominations; thus breaking Eminem’s record as the rapper with the most Grammy nominations in a single night. Maybe the Grammys are finally compensating Kendrick for his long overdue acclaim. Well done Baby!
Not too far behind are this year’s remarkable trailblazers, The Weeknd (that’s actually how to spell it) and Taylor Swift with seven nominations each, after both releasing phenomenal music in this past season. Florence and the Machine, Drake and Tom Coyne all garnered 5 nominations each, John Legend, Kanye West, Ed Sheeran, Pharell Williamsand Alabama Shakes had four, J.Cole , Nicki Minaj, Wiz Khalifa, Common, Charlie Puth and Mark Ronson all had three nominations per person.
All well deserved. Well let’s see what for, here goes the full list:
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
• Traveler
Chris Stapleton
• 1989
Taylor Swift
• Beauty Behind The Madness
The Weeknd
Song of the Year
• Alright
Kendrick Duckworth, Mark Anthony Spears & Pharell 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
Best Pop Solo Performance
• Heartbeat Song
Kelly Clarkson
• Love Me Like You Do
Ellie Goulding
• Thinking Out Loud
Ed Sheeran
• Blank Space
Taylor Swift
• Can’t Feel My Face
The Weeknd
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
• Ship To Wreck
Florence + the Machine
• Sugar
Maroon 5
• Uptown Funk
Mark Ronson Featuring Bruno Mars
• Bad Blood
Taylor Swift Featuring Kendrick Lamar
• See You Again
Wiz Khalifa Featuring Charlie Puth
Best Pop Vocal Album
• Piece By Piece
Kelly Clarkson
• How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful
Florence + the Machine
• Uptown Special
Mark Ronson
• 1989
Taylor Swift
• Before This World
James Taylor
Best Dance Recording
• We’re All We Need
Above & Beyond Featuring Zoë Johnston
• Go
The Chemical Brothers
• Never Catch Me
Flying Lotus Featuring Kendrick Lamar
• Runaway (U & I)
Galantis
• Where Are Ü Now
Skrillex and Diplo with Justin Bieber
Best Dance/Electronic Album
• Our Love
Caribou
• Born In The Echoes
The Chemical Brothers
• Caracal
Disclosure
• In Colour
Jamie XX
• Skrillex And Diplo Present Jack Ü
Skrillex and Diplo
Best Rock Performance
• Don’t Wanna Fight
Alabama Shakes
• What Kind Of Man
Florence + the Machine
• Something From Nothing
Foo Fighters
• Ex’s & Oh’s
Elle King
• Moaning Lisa Smile
Wolf Alice
Best Rock Song
• Don’t Wanna Fight
Alabama Shakes, songwriters (Alabama Shakes)
• Ex’s & Oh’s
Dave Bassett & Elle King, songwriters (Elle King)
• Hold Back The River
Iain Archer & James Bay, songwriters (James Bay)
• Lydia
Richard Meyer, Ryan Meyer & Johnny Stevens, songwriters (Highly Suspect)
• What Kind Of Man
John Hill, Tom Hull & Florence Welch, songwriters (Florence + the Machine)
Best Rock Album
• Chaos And The Calm
James Bay
• Kintsugi
Death Cab for Cutie
• Mister Asylum
Highly Suspect
• Drones
Muse
• .5: The Gray Chapter
Slipknot
Best Alternative Music Album
• Sound & Color
Alabama Shakes
• Vulnicura
Björk
• The Waterfall
My Morning Jacket
• Currents
Tame Impala
• Star Wars
Wilco
Best R&B Performance
• If I Don’t Have You
Tamar Braxton
• Rise Up
Andra Day
• Breathing Underwater
Hiatus Kaiyote
• Planes
Jeremih Featuring J. Cole
• Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey)
The Weeknd
Best Traditional R&B Performance
• He Is
Faith Evans
• Little Ghetto Boy
Lalah Hathaway
• Let It Burn
Jazmine Sullivan
• Shame
Tyrese
• My Favorite Part Of You
Charlie Wilson
Best R&B Song
• Coffee
Brook Davis & Miguel Pimentel, songwriters (Miguel)
• Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey)
Ahmad Balshe, Stephan Moccio, Jason Quenneville & Abel Tesfaye, songwriters (The Weeknd)
• Let It Burn
Kenny B. Edmonds, Jazmine Sullivan & Dwane M. Weir II, songwriters (Jazmine Sullivan)
• Really Love
D’Angelo & Kendra Foster, songwriters (D’Angelo and the Vanguard)
• Shame
Warryn Campbell, Tyrese Gibson & DJ Rogers Jr, songwriters (Tyrese)
Best Urban Contemporary Album
• Ego Death
The Internet
• You Should Be Here
Kehlani
• Blood
Lianne La Havas
• Wildheart
Miguel
• Beauty Behind The Madness
The Weeknd
Best R&B Album
• Coming Home
Leon Bridges
• Black Messiah
D’Angelo and the Vanguard
• Cheers To The Fall
Andra Day
• Reality Show
Jazmine Sullivan
• Forever Charlie
Charlie Wilson
Best Rap Performance
• Apparently
J. Cole
• Back To Back
Drake
• Trap Queen
Fetty Wap
• Alright
Kendrick Lamar
• Truffle Butter
Nicki Minaj Featuring Drake & Lil Wayne
• All Day
Kanye West Featuring Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom & Paul McCartney
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
• One Man Can Change The World
Big Sean Featuring Kanye West & John Legend
• Glory
Common & John Legend
• Classic Man
Jidenna Featuring Roman GianArthur
• These Walls
Kendrick Lamar Featuring Bilal, Anna Wise & Thundercat
• Only
Nicki Minaj Featuring Drake, Lil Wayne & Chris Brown
Best Rap Song
• All Day
(Kanye West Featuring Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom & Paul McCartney)
• Alright
(Kendrick Lamar)
• Energy
(Drake)
• Glory
(Common & John Legend)
• Trap Queen
(Fetty Wap)
Best Rap Album
• 2014 Forest Hills Drive
J. Cole
• Compton
Dr. Dre
• If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
Drake
• To Pimp A Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar
• The Pinkprint
Nicki Minaj
Best Country Solo Performance
• Burning House
Cam
• Traveller
Chris Stapleton
• Little Toy Guns
Carrie Underwood
• John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16
Keith Urban
• Chances Are
Lee Ann Womack
Best Country Duo/Group Performance
• Stay A Little Longer
Brothers Osborne
• If I Needed You
Joey+Rory
• The Driver
Charles Kelley, Dierks Bentley & Eric Paslay
• Girl Crush
Little Big Town
• Lonely Tonight
Blake Shelton Featuring Ashley Monroe
Best Country Song
• Chances Are
Hayes Carll, songwriter (Lee Ann Womack)
• Diamond Rings And Old Barstools
Barry Dean, Luke Laird & Jonathan Singleton, songwriters (Tim McGraw)
• Girl Crush
Hillary Lindsey, Lori McKenna & Liz Rose, songwriters (Little Big Town)
• Hold My Hand
Brandy Clark & Mark Stephen Jones, songwriters (Brandy Clark)
• Traveller
(Chris Stapleton)
Best Country Album
• Montevallo
Sam Hunt
• Pain Killer
Little Big Town
• The Blade
Ashley Monroe
• Pageant Material
Kacey Musgraves
• Traveller
Chris Stapleton
It’s Sam Hunt for the ladies!
Best Gospel Performance/Song
• Worth [Live]
Anthony Brown & Group Therapy
• Wanna Be Happy?
Kirk Franklin
• Intentional
Travis Greene
• How Awesome Is Our God [Live]
Israel & Newbreed Featuring Yolanda Adams
• Worth Fighting For [Live]
Brian Courtney Wilson
Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song
• Holy Spirit
Francesca Battistelli
• Lift Your Head Weary Sinner (Chains)
Crowder
• Because He Lives (Amen)
Matt Maher
• Soul On Fire
Third Day Featuring All Sons & Daughters
• Feel It
Tobymac Featuring Mr. Talkbox
Best Gospel Album
• Destined To Win [Live]
Karen Clark Sheard
• Living It
Dorinda Clark-Cole
• One Place Live
Tasha Cobbs
• Covered: Alive In Asia [Live] (Deluxe)
Israel & Newbreed
• Life Music: Stage Two
Jonathan McReynolds
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
• Whatever The Road
Jason Crabb
• How Can It Be
Lauren Daigle
• Saints And Sinners
Matt Maher
• This Is Not A Test
Tobymac
• Love Ran Red
Chris Tomlin
Best Roots Gospel Album
• Still Rockin’ My Soul
The Fairfield Four
• Pray Now
Karen Peck & New River
• Directions Home (Songs We Love, Songs You Know)
Point Of Grace
Best Latin Pop Album
• Terral
Pablo Alborán
• Healer
Alex Cuba
• A Quien Quiera Escuchar (Deluxe Edition)
Ricky Martin
• Sirope
Alejandro Sanz
• Algo Sucede
Julieta Venegas
Best Spoken Word Album
• Blood On Snow (Jo Nesbø)
Patti Smith
• Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic Moments, And Assorted Hijinks
Dick Cavett
• A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety
Jimmy Carter
• Patience And Sarah (Isabel Miller)
Janis Ian & Jean Smart
• Yes Please
Amy Poehler (& Various Artists)
Best Comedy Album
• Back To The Drawing Board
Lisa Lampanelli
• Brooklyn
Wyatt Cenac
• Happy. And A Lot.
Jay Mohr
• Just Being Honest
Craig Ferguson
• Live At Madison Square Garden
Louis C.K.
Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
• Empire: Season 1
• Fifty Shades Of Grey
• Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me
• Pitch Perfect 2
• Selma
Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
• Birdman
Antonio Sanchez, composer
• The Imitation Game
Alexandre Desplat, composer
• Interstellar
Hans Zimmer, composer
• The Theory Of Everything
Jóhann Jóhannsson, composer
• Whiplash
Justin Hurwitz, composer
Best Song Written For Visual Media
• Earned It (Fifty Shades Of Grey)
Ahmad Balshe, Stephan Moccio, Jason Quenneville & Abel Tesfaye, songwriters (The Weeknd)
• Glory
Lonnie Lynn, Che Smith & John Stephens, songwriters (Common & John Legend)
• Love Me Like You Do
Savan Kotecha, Max Martin, Tove Nilsson, Ali Payami & Ilya Salmanzadeh, songwriters (Ellie Goulding)
• See You Again
Andrew Cedar, Justin Franks, Charles Puth & Cameron Thomaz, songwriters (Wiz Khalifa Featuring Charlie Puth)
• Til It Happens To You
Lady Gaga & Diane Warren, songwriters (Lady Gaga)
Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical
• Jeff Bhasker
• Uptown Special (Mark Ronson) (A)
• Dave Cobb
• Traveller (Chris Stapleton) (A)
• Diplo
• Where Are Ü Now (Skrillex And Diplo With Justin Bieber) (T)
• Larry Klein
• Speaking In Tongues (Luciana Souza) (A)
• Blake Mills
• Sound & Color (Alabama Shakes)
Best Music Video
• LSD
ASAP Rocky
Dexter Navy, video director; Shin Nishigaki, video producer
• I Feel Love (Every Million Miles)
The Dead Weather
Cooper Roberts & Ian Schwartz, video directors; Candice Dragonas & Nathan Scherrer, video producers
• Alright
Kendrick Lamar
The Little Homies & Colin Tilley, video directors; Brandon Bonfiglio, Dave Free, Andrew Lerios & Luga Podesta, video producers
• Bad Blood
Taylor Swift Featuring Kendrick Lamar
Joseph Kahn, video director; Ron Morhoff, video producer
• Freedom
Pharrell Williams
Paul Hunter, video director; Candice Dragonas & Nathan Scherrer, video producers
Best Music Film
• Mr. Dynamite: The Rise Of James Brown
James Brown
Alex Gibney, video director; Peter Afterman, Blair Foster, Mick Jagger & Victoria Pearman, video producers
• Sonic Highways
Foo Fighters
Dave Grohl, video director; John Cutcliffe, John Silva, Gaby Skolnek & Kristen Welsh, video producers
• What Happened, Miss Simone?
Nina Simone
Liz Garbus, video director; Liz Garbus, Amy Hobby, Jayson Jackson & Justin Wilkes, video producers
• The Wall
Roger Waters
Sean Evans & Roger Waters, video directors; Clare Spencer & Roger Waters, video producers
• Amy
Amy Winehouse
Asif Kapadia, video director; James Gay-Rees, video producer.
Now there are a million and one categories for the Grammys, but let’s be honest, we both know the ones we really care about. Thus, I skipped the wonderful categories like Best Engineered Album, Best Choral Performance and all that jazz (literally, all the Jazz categories). Hopefully your favorite artists and or songs were nominated, but at this point I should note that there are many talented artists out there who are not nominated this year, or have never been and have never won a Grammy. Like Leonardo DiCaprio to an Oscar. I’m following this post with another for artists I feel were snubbed or under nominated this year. I’m especially happy for Fetty Wap, James Bay and The Empire Cast though! For the winners, we’ll just have to wait till February 15. Peace out.
