The 2022 Grammy Awards are all set to light up the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas on April 3, after having been postponed from their original January date due to COVID.
When it comes to nominations for the annual music awards show, Oscar-winner Jon Batiste is leading the pack with an impressive 11 nods.
Batiste, who is also the bandleader on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, released his album We Are earlier in 2021 and is now up for record of the year and album of the year, among his many other chances to win.
Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R. are all tied for the second-most nominations this year with eight apiece, followed by Billie Eilish and Olivia Rodrigo who each scored seven.
Incidentally, Eilish and Rodrigo are two of the artists who have also been announced as performers for the event, along with BTS, Brandi Carlile, the Brothers Osborne, and Lil Nas X.
All of the performers so far are also nominees, with Lil Nas X and Carlile scoring five nominations apiece, Brothers Osborne picking up two in the country categories, and BTS earning one, in the Best Pop Duo/Group Performance category for ‘Butter.’
More acts are expected to be announced over the coming weeks, but we do know that comedian and late-night host Trevor Noah will once again take the stage as MC for the award show.
One big change to the 2022 Grammys is the increase of nominees in the categories of Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist — which now each feature 10 hopefuls instead of eight.
In a surprising move, Drake decided to withdraw his nomination in the Best Rap Album category for his 2021 record Certified Lover Boy, with the Canadian RnB artist also declining to accept his nomination in the Best Rap Performance category for his song ‘Way 2 Sexy’ featuring Future and Young Thug.
Meanwhile, the Best Rap Song category is also down a nominee after Marilyn Manson was removed from the list of contenders for his work on ‘Jail’ from Kanye West’s 2021 release Donda.
Manson’s nomination in the first place drew plenty of criticism, due to the ongoing investigation into the singer’s alleged pattern of sexual abuse against several of his former partners, including actress Evan Rachel Wood.
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