Jay-Z leads nominations for 60th Grammy Awards

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Hip-hop is going to be the highlight of the upcoming 60th Grammy Awards with the iconic Jay-Z leading the nominations for the awards' top categories with eight nods.

He landed all of the top three titles, namely the record, album and song of the year, for his 13th studio album "4:44".

Another strong contender was Kendrick Lamar, who, with his "DAMN", will face Jay-Z in the record of the year, album of the year, and best rap performance categories.

The two singers received 15 nominations in total and one-time rapper Childish Gambino received five nods for his more recent work "Awaken, My Love!".

In this July 7, 2017 file photo, Kendrick Lamar performs during the Festival d’ete de Quebec in Quebec City, Canada. /AP Photo

These three artists will all compete in the top category record of the year, along with Bruno Mars ("24K Magic") and Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee Featuring Justin Bieber ("Despacito").

Jay-Z led the nominations with eight nods, followed by Compton's Lamar with seven and Bruno Mars with six.

This year's nomination featured a broad diversity at work in today's pop music, which was reflected in the four general categories of record, album, song and new artist, with a notable absence of white males among the top artist nominees.

No rock or country acts were nominated in the top four categories.

The rap- and R&B-heavy nominations, which include numerous black and Latino artists, come after the Grammys were criticized earlier this year when some felt Beyonce's multi-genre "Lemonade" album should have won album of the year over Adele's "25." Adele also expressed that Beyonce should have received the prize.

Singer Adele during the 59th GRAMMY Awards at STAPLES Center on February 12, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. /VCG Photo

Ed Sheeran, who has the second best-selling album of the year with "Divide," was snubbed in the top categories. "Divide" earned a nomination for best pop vocal album, while his No. 1 hit, "Shape of You," is up for best pop solo performance.

Taylor Swift, who didn't earn nominations for her single "Look What You Made Me Do" – released before the Grammy cutoff date – did earn a nod for best country song for writing Little Big Town's No. 1 hit, "Better Man." Her new album, "Reputation", however, will qualify for nominations at the 2019 Grammys.

Albums and songs eligible in the 84 categories at the 60th annual Grammys had to be released between October 1, 2016 and September 30, 2017. This year is the first year the Grammys used online voting for its main awards show; it started online voting for the Latin Grammys last year.

The 60th Grammy Awards will air live from New York's Madison Square Garden on January 28, 2018.

Source(s): AP