Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar lead Grammy 2018 nominations

The Recording Academy, Grammy has announced nominees for the 60th Grammy Awards with Kendrick Lamar and Jay-Z dominating a male-heavy list of nominees.

Every year the Grammy nominations are a combination of the near-inevitable and the unexpected, and the class of 2018 — the awards’ 60th anniversary — are no exception.

Jay-Z, at nearly 49 years old, and his 13th soul-baring studio album on love, life and social fractures, “4:44,” lead the nominees with eight nominations including for Album, Song and Record of the Year. His

He is followed by Kendrick Lamar, whose “DAMN.” album landed seven nominations; Bruno Mars with six; and Childish Gambino (aka actor Donald Glover), newcomers SZA and Khalid, and producer No I.D. (who worked on “4:44”) with five each.

“Despacito,” the hit from Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi featuring Justin Bieber and Daddy Yankee landed three nominations including record and song of the year.

Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, Childish Gambino and Bruno Mars each have nominations in Album and Record of the Year; Jay and Mars have different tracks nominated for Song of the Year as well.
 
Despite being one of the hottest predictions for Album of the Year, Ed Sheeran, was only nominated in two categories: Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Pop Vocal Performance ("Shape of You").

Lady Gaga and Kesha landed two nods each in the same categories as Sheeran.

Pop star Katy Perry, who is yet to win a Grammy award, did not score a single nomination for her “Witness” album.

The absence of some of the biggest female artists marked a stark contrast with the 2017 awards, when Beyonce led the nominations and Britain’s Adele swept the top awards. Neither released new music this year.

Sheeran released his third album ÷ [Divide] in March and broke several music industry records for sales and streaming.

The music’s biggest night honoring the year’s achievements across more than 80 categories, are scheduled for Jan. 28 at New York City’s Madison Square Garden.

Music released between October 2016 and September 2017 qualified for this year’s awards and will be voted for by members of the Recording Academy, made up of music industry professionals.

The Grammy Awards will be broadcast live from New York’s Madison Square Garden on CBS Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018.