Grammy Nomination Picks 2012

This coming Grammy nominations will be announced November 30th, so for fun, I put together my own tentative picks for the coming Grammy nominations. Many categories have been restructured this year through combination or cutting. Distinction between sexes in performances have been combined to solo performances, and designation between duo/group performances and collaboration performances have been combined into one category per genre. This will cut the 109 categories to 78 categories.

NOTE: I am not a member of the Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences and this list is in no way OFFICIAL or reflective of their attitudes. Typically, there are five nominations spots in each category, but I've left some blank.  Nomination eligibility period was September 1, 2010 to September 30, 2011.

NOVEMBER 30TH UPDATE: My picks and the actually nominees are about as accurate as my last year's picks: some accurate; some right artist, wrong song; some right album, wrong category; etc.

Album of the Year:

21, Adele

Born This Way, Lady Gaga

Duets II, Tony Bennett and various

Record of the Year:

"E.T.," Katy Perry ft. Kanye West

"Judas," Lady Gaga

"Party Rock Anthem," LMFAO

"Rolling in the Deep," Adele

Song of the Year:

"Firework," Katy Perry; Written by Katy Perry, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilhelm, and Ester Dean

"Born This Way," Lady Gaga; Written by Stefani Germanotta Jeppe Laursen, Paul Blair, and Fernando Garibay

"Rolling in the Deep," Adele; Written by Adele and Paul Epworth

"Moves Like Jagger," Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera; Written by Adam Levine, Benny Blanco, Ammar Malik, and Shellback

Best New Artist:

Nicki Minaj

Jackie Evancho

The Band Perry

Best Pop Solo Performance:

"Firework," Katy Perry

"Edge of Glory," Lady Gaga

"Rolling in the Deep," Adele

"Grenade," Bruno Mars

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:

"Moves Like Jagger," Maroon 5 ft. Christina Aguilera

"The Lady is a Tramp," Tony Bennett ft. Lady Gaga

"Body and Soul," Tony Bennett ft. Amy Winehouse

"E.T." Katy Perry ft. Kanye West

Best Pop Vocal Album:

Born This Way, Lady Gaga

Loud, Rihanna

The Beginning, The Black Eyed Peas

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album:

Duets II, Tony Bennett and various

21, Adele

The Gift, Susan Boyle

Best Contemporary R&B Album:

Pink Friday, Nick Minaj

4, Beyoncé

Best R&B Performance:

"California King Bed," Rihanna

"What's My Name," Rihanna ft. Drake

Best Rap Performance:

"Super Bass," Nicki Minaj

"How to Love," Lil Wayne

Best Rap/Sung Collaboration:

"Mirror," Lil Wayne ft. Bruno Mars

"Niggas in Paris," Jay-Z and Kanye West

Best Rap Album:

Tha Carter IV, Lil Wayne

F.A.M.E., Chris Brown

Watch the Throne, Jay-Z and Kanye West

Best Dance Recording:

"Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love)," Kylie Minogue

"(Tonight) I'm Loving You," Enrique Iglesias ft. Ludacris and DJ Frank E

"Call Your Girlfriend," Robyn

"Til the World Ends," Britney Spears

"Judas," Lady Gaga

"The Time (Dirty Bit)", The Black Eyed Peas

Best Dance/Electronica Album:

Femme Fatale, Britney Spears

Body Talk, Robyn

Nothing But the Beat, David Guetta

Sorry for Party Rocking, LMFAO

Best Country Solo Performance:

"Mean," Taylor Swift

"Dirt Road Anthem," Jason Aldean

Best Country Duo/Group with Performance:

"If I Die Young," The Band Perry

"Don't You Wanna Stay," Jason Aldean ft. Kelly Clarkson

Best Country Song:

"Today is Your Day," Shania Twain; Written by Shania Twain

Best Country Album:

Speak Now, Taylor Swift

Chief, Eric Church

The Band Perry, The Band Perry

My Kinda Party, Jason Aldean

Best Music Video, Short Form:

"E.T." Katy Perry ft. Kanye West

"Born This Way," Lady Gaga

"Rolling in the Deep," Adele

"The Time (Dirty Bit)," The Black Eyed Peas

Best Musical Theater Album:

The Book of Mormon

Sister Act