The 54th Grammy nominations are out… (that ellipsis is supposed to make it feel ominous)

Posted at December 1, 2011 by Julie J 1 Comment

It’s not a question of will Beyonce top MIA, but how? Who knows if she’s really pregnant, or if she is, when she is due, but after that VMA stunt, I wouldn’t put anything past her. Even MTV doesn’t believe her anymore.

Anyway, I distinctly remember writing last year’s version of this Grammy nomination post sitting poolside on Maui. So, boooo. At first I was a little nauseated from the fact that Katy Perry and Bruno Mars are nominated so much, but overall, these nominations are a little nauseating. They make me feel numb. Okay, maybe I am being a little dramatic, but it is kind of cold in my office, so maybe that’s why I feel numb. Or maybe I’m just bitter toward everything because I’m freezing my ass off in Washington instead of basking in the sun in Hawaii.

A basic Google search did not reveal that the Grammy nominations are typically indicative of sales, but that’s what I am assuming. In that respect, the nominations make sense, technically, and I can’t necessarily disagree with them, but they are still pretty wack. While Kanye has seven nominations, the biggest snub of the event is that My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was not nominated for Album of the Year. Adele, Bruno Mars, and Foo Fighters recieved six nominations, Lil Wayne and Skrillex earned five, and Drake, Rihanna, Nicki Minaj, Mumford & Sons, Radiohead, and Bon Iver received four nominations each.

Here are the rap nominations. I know you’ve been waiting all year for this. #Sarcasm.

Best Rap Performance
“Look at Me Now” – Chris Brown, Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes
“Otis” – Jay-Z & Kanye West
“The Show Goes On” – Lupe Fiasco
“Moment 4 Life” – Nicki Minaj & Drake
“Black and Yellow” – Wiz Khalifa

“Black and Yellow” is nominated… Honestly, I hope that “Look At Me Now” wins because that was one of the hottest tracks of the year to me. I would be happy for Lupe if he won, though. To be clear: I will give an Otis scream if “Otis,” “Black & Yellow,” or “Moment 4 Life” win. Is it worth mentioning that Wiz and Kanye are nominated? No? Okay, moving along.

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration
“Party” – Beyoncé & André 3000
“I’m on One” – DJ Khaled, Drake, Rick Ross & Lil Wayne
“I Need a Doctor” – Dr. Dre, Eminem & Skylar Grey
“What’s My Name?” – Rihanna & Drake
“Motivation” – Kelly Rowland & Lil Wayne
“All of the Lights” – Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie

Man, this category is a tough one! I never cared for “Party,” “What’s My Name” was alright but not Grammy worthy to me, and frankly, it’s pretty absurd that “I Need A Doctor” is even nominated. So that narrows it down to three. Next, I’m going to have to eliminate “I’m On One” for the mere mention of DJ Khaled’s name, even though I loved that track. “Motivation” was one hot track, but “All of the Lights” was execllent, so I’ll go with that. Final choice. Or, I think it would be amusing if “Motivation” beats “Party.”

Best Rap Song
“All of the Lights” – Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie
“Black and Yellow” – Wiz Khalifa
“I Need a Doctor” – Dr. Dre, Eminem & Skylar Grey
“Look at Me Now” – Chris Brown, Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes
“Otis” – Jay-Z & Kanye West
“The Show Goes On” – Lupe Fiasco

This category is literally a combination of the preceding two. “Look at Me Now,” final answer, although I wouldn’t be mad at “All of the Lights.”

Best Rap Album
Watch the Throne – Jay-Z & Kanye West
Tha Carter IV – Lil Wayne
Lasers – Lupe Fiasco
Pink Friday – Nicki Minaj
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy – Kanye West

Ha ha haaaaa…this is the worst. I guess I hope that My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy wins. Or is it possible to have a write-in? Or give it to no one? Hell, let’s just give it to Miguel.

Anyone mad at that? No? Okay, moving along.

Best New Artist
Bon Iver
The Band Perry
Nicki Minaj
J. Cole
Skrillex

LOL at J. Cole being nominated…and hasn’t Bon Iver dropped multiple albums? Is the Grammy board more out of touch than the Obama Administration? #yeahisaidit

Album of the Year
21 – Adele
Doo-Wops & Hooligans – Bruno Mars
Born This Way – Lady Gaga
Wasting Light – Foo Fighters
Loud – Rihanna

Adele will win.

Record of the Year
“Rolling in the Deep” – Adele
“Grenade” – Bruno Mars
“Holocene” – Bon Iver
“The Cave” – Mumford & Sons
“Firework” – Katy Perry

Adele will win.

Song of the Year
“Rolling in the Deep” – Adele
“Holocene” – Bon Iver
“Grenade” – Bruno Mars
“The Cave” – Mumford & Sons
“All of the Lights” – Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie

Adele will win, Kanye.

Best Pop Solo Performance
“Someone Like You” – Adele
“Yoü and I” – Lady Gaga
“Grenade” – Bruno Mars
“Firework” – Katy Perry
“F***in’ Perfect” – Pink

Adele will win.

Best Pop Vocal Album
21 – Adele
The Lady Killer – Cee Lo Green
Born This Way – Lady Gaga
Doo-Wops & Hooligans – Bruno Mars
Loud – Rihanna

Adele will win.

Best R&B Album
F.A.M.E. – Chris Brown
Second Chance – El DeBarge
Love Letter – R. Kelly
Pieces of Me – Ledisi
Kelly – Kelly Price

Go Breezy. I like that record.

But on the subject of r&b this year, so many great, free projects dropped, like The-Dream’s 1977, The Weeknd, and Frank Ocean’s Nostalgia, Ultra. I’m pretty sure that Drizzy’s mixtape So Far Gone had a Grammy nominated song, and it was rereleased for sale at one point. Will Grammy’s ever include free projects in their nomination pool? It’s something to consider, certainly.

Read the entire list of nominations for the 54th Grammy Awards

And if you’re bored, here is a scathingly hilarious account of the Grammy nomination concert last night written by Hadley Freeman for The Guardian titled “Grammy nominations concert: close to the complete tableau of American Hell: All that was lacking was background imagery of strip malls and the Kardashians.”