Batiste and Justin Bieber will
compete for the top prize - album of the year -
along with Rodrigo, Billie Eilish, R&B artist
Doja Cat, singer-songwriter H.E.R, rapper Kanye
West, Bennett's collaboration with Lady Gaga,
Taylor Swift and rapper Lil Nas X.
The Grammys, the highest honors in the music
industry, will be handed out at a ceremony in
Los Angeles on Jan. 31.
Nominees in each of the top three categories -
album, song and record of the year - were
increased to 10 from eight for the first time.
"Adding more nominees is a way to cast a wider
net for more music, more artists and more
genres," Recording Academy chief executive
Harvey Mason Jr. said, announcing the change on
Tuesday.
Eilish ("Happier Than Ever"), Rodrigo ("Drivers
License"), Bieber ("Peaches") and Batiste
("Freedom") were among the 10 nominees for
record of the year, along with Swedish band
Abba's new comeback single, "I Still Have Faith
in You."
Swift, an 11-time Grammy winner, snagged a best
album nod for her best-selling "Evermore" but
was shut out of the other races, disappointing
fans who felt she had been snubbed.
"NO PROBLEMS TODAY JUST CHAMPAGNE," Swift
tweeted. "SO stoked evermore has been honored
like this."
Rodrigo, 18, who burst onto the U.S. charts in
January when her single "Drivers License" went
viral, got seven nods, including best new artist
and album ("Sour").
Batiste, who also leads the band on "The Late
Show with Stephen Colbert," scored nominations
across the board, ranging from classical
composition and American roots to his music
video "Freedom" and album "We Are," which was
inspired by the Black Lives Matter protests of
2020.
"WOW!! Thank you God!! I love EVERYBODY! I’m so
grateful to my collaborators and to my
ancestors," Batiste wrote on Twitter.
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Rapper Jay-Z became the most
Grammy-nominated artist of all time when he took
his total to 83, surpassing the previous record
held by music producer Quincy Jones. Paul
McCartney added two nods to take second place
with 81.
The Recording Academy earlier this year changed
the way nominations and winners are chosen after
allegations that the process was open to rigging
and Canadian artist The Weeknd received zero
nods. Nominees this time were
selected by all 11,000 voting members of the
Recording Academy, instead of smaller committees
whose names were not revealed. Winners are also
chosen by the musicians, producers and
songwriters who belong to the academy.
K-pop band BTS, which has yet to win a Grammy
despite dominating the U.S. music charts for
almost two years, scored a single nod on Tuesday
for the performance of their top-selling single
"Butter" in the pop group field.
West, who's had a contentious relationship with
the Grammys, got five nods from his hit album "Donda,"
which was dedicated to his late mother.
Bennett, 95, who has Alzheimer's disease, and
Gaga got five nods for their Cole Porter duets
album "Love for Sale," which is expected to be
Bennett's last.
The eligibility period for the Grammys ran from
September 2020 to September 2021, meaning the
new album by Adele will have to wait until next
time.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Nick
Zieminski and Leslie Adler)
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