Powered by her hit album “Lemonade,” Beyonce scored a leading nine nominations Tuesday for the 59th annual Grammy Awards, while Kanye West, Drake and Rihanna each collected eight.
Beyonce and British songstress Adele each earned nominations in the top Grammy categories of album, song and record of the year. Beyonce was nominated for top album for “Lemonade,” while Adele was tabbed for her release, “25.” Also nominated in the category were Drake for “Views,” Justin Bieber for “Purpose” and Sturgill Simpson for “A Sailor’s Guide to Earth.”
Adele’s ballad “Hello” landed her in the record of the year category, along with Beyonce for “Formation,” Lukas Graham for “7 Years,” Rihanna featuring Drake for “Work” and Twenty One Pilots for “Stressed Out.”
“Formation,” “Hello” and “7 Years” were also nominated for song of the year, which is presented to the songwriters. Also nominated in the category were Mike Posner’s “I Took A Pill In Ibiza” and Bieber’s “Love Yourself.”
Neil Portnow, president of The Recording Academy, hailed the wide variety of musical styles represented by the top nominees, and also said the artists were being rewarded for pushing the boundaries of their personal styles.
“Just as we see emerging musicians experimenting, we’re also seeing established artists resisting what’s expected of them and, instead, embracing the creative freedom they’ve been afforded through their success, blurring the lines between music’s mainstream and artistic edge,” Portnow said.
A pair of country singers — Kelsea Ballerini and Maren Morris — were among the nominees for best new artist, along with the DJ duo The Chainsmokers and a pair of rap artists, Chance the Rapper and Anderson .Paak.
Beyonce’s “Lemonade” was also nominated for best urban contemporary album, a category that also includes Rihanna’s “Anti” and Anderson .Paak’s “Malibu.” Gallant’s “Ology” and KING’s “We are King” round out the field.
Adele and Bieber will square off in the best pop vocal album category for “25” and “Purpose,” respectively. Ariana Grande was nominated in the category for “Dangerous Woman,” along with Demi Lovato for “Confident” and Sia for “This Is Acting.”
Beyonce also scored a nomination for best music video for “Formation,” competing against Leon Bridges for “River,” Coldplay for “Up & Up,” Jamie XX for “Gosh” and OK Go for “Upside Down & Inside Out.”
The list of Grammy nominees includes at least one sentimental nod, with the late David Bowie nominated for best alternative music album for his release “Blackstar.” He will be challenged in the category by Bon Iver for “22, A Million,” PJ Harvey’s “The Hope Six Demolition Project,” Iggy Pop’s “Post Pop Depression” and Radiohead for “A Moon Shaped Pool.”
The Grammys will be held Feb. 12 at Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, hosted by talk show host/actor James Corden.
