Kanye West's Fantasy Turns Into Reality, Leads Grammy Award Contenders

Chicago rap star Kanye West will play leader heading into the 54th Grammy Awards ceremony next year after landing the most nominations at last night's Grammy Nominations live concert.

Following close behind Yeezy are British singer Adele and R&B crooner Bruno Mars.

Adele is up for six Grammys including song and record of the year, for Rolling in the Deep, and best album, for 21. Rapper Kanye West leads the field with seven, while Bruno Mars and the Foo Fighters also have six each. Mars, also up for best song, record and album, said; "It feels incredible." British band Radiohead are up for five awards including best rock performance and song for Lotus Flower. Winners will be announced on February 12th. (BBC UK)

Grammy-winning rapper Lil Wayne also landed a handful of nods.

Other leading contenders for the major music industry awards show include the Foo Fighters, also with six nominations, while Lil Wayne and newcomer Skrillex have five nominations apiece. The nominations for the top awards were announced during a televised concert in Los Angeles featuring performances by Lady Gaga, Usher and up-and-coming country singers The Band Perry. (The Guardian)

After his Grammy nods were revealed, Mars shared his reaction to being a top contender.

"It feels incredible. Me and these guys, we locked ourselves in the studio not too far from here and worked on this album, especially 'Grenade.' That's the song we worked the hardest on. That's like our trophy right there. Of all the songs we've been fortunate enough to be a part of this year, we were most proud of that one," Mars said after the nominations, some of which were announced in Los Angeles at the Nokia Theatre as part of the Recording Academy's hour-long concert nominations special. (CBS News)

This year's ceremony will also be slimmed down from its typical amount of categories.

This was the first nominations announcement since the Recording Academy announced changes in the nominations process, reducing the number of categories from 109 down to 78. That produced some strange bedfellows. Polka king Jimmy Sturr is competing for Best Regional Roots Music Album against the Rebirth Brass Band. (National Public Radio)

The 54th Grammy Awards will be televised Sunday, February 12th from Los Angeles.