Kanye West, Adele and Bruno Mars lead Grammy Nominations

Rapper Kanye West led the way among Grammy contenderson Wednesday after he earned seven nominations for his album “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” and his collaboration with Jay-Z “Watch the Throne.”

Nominations for the top awards were announced on Wednesday during a televised concert in Los Angeles with performances from Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and The Band Perry.

Close behind West are London-born powerhouse singer Adele and R&B artist Bruno Mars, each of who earned six nominations apiece, including nominations for album, song and record of the year. Among the top contenders were alternative rock band Foo Fighters, snagging six nominations, with rapper Lil Wayne and newcomer Skrillex who each received five nominations.

Female rapper Nicki Minaj, hip-hop artist J. Cole, up and coming country artist The Band Perry, house and electropop performer Skrillex and American folk band Bon Iver all earned nominations for the best new artist category.

Indie rock band Bon Iver received a total of four nominations, including one for best artist, and song and record of the year for “Holocene.” Mumford & Sons, were once again nominated this year, receiving among their bids for song and record of the year for “The Cave.”
< a href= http://posttrib.suntimes.com/news/9179484-418/kanye-gets-7-grammy-noms-adele-mars-foos-get-6.html>The Chicago-Sun Times reports the 54th will feature only 78 awards categories a cut from 109, Best Zydeco or Cajun music album was eliminated from the ceremony. The award show will be held on Feb. 12 in Los Angeles.