Notes:
Performers on the Grammy Awards telecast included Frank Ocean ("Forrest Gump"). Dr. John and Preservation Hall Jazz Band performed with The Black Keys ("Lonely Boy"). Shreveport native Mikky Ekko (nee John Stephen Sudduth) appeared with Rihanna, performing "Stay" (which he wrote). Presenters included Tim McGraw, Hunter Hayes, and Ellen DeGeneres.
Dan Auerbach (of The Black Keys) won the Grammy for the 'Producer of The Year, Non-Classical' category. His production credits included El Camino (The Black Keys); Locked Down (Dr. John); Savage (Hacienda); and Shakedown (Hacienda).
Tom Waits is nominated in the Best Alternative Music Album category for Bad As Me. Waits' backing band on the album included Preservation Hall Jazz Band members Clint Maedgen and Ben Jaffe.
Robert Glasper Experiment is nominated in the Best R&B Album category for Black Radio [Grammy winner]. New Orleans native Ledisi is a featured vocalist on one of the album tracks. (see Best R&B Performance above)
Drake is nominated in the Best Rap Album category for Take Care [Grammy winner]. Executive producers for the Cash Money Records release include Cortez Bryant, Lil Wayne, Bryan Williams (aka Baby, aka Birdman), and Ronald "Slim" Williams. Lil Wayne also performs on the album.
Zac Brown Band is nominated in the Best Country Album category for Uncaged [Grammy winner]. The album features a guest appearance by Trombone Shorty, along with Orleans Avenue band members Dan Oestreicher and Tim McFatter. Portions of the album were engineered by Jack Miele at Fudge Recording Studio in New Orleans.
Arturo Sandoval is nominated in the Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album category for Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You) [Grammy winner]. The album features a guest appearance by sax legend Plas Johnson, who is featured on the track "Birks Works".
Shemekia Copeland is nominated in the Best Blues Album category for 33 1/3. The album features a guest appearance by Buddy Guy, who is featured on the track "Ain't Gonna Be Your Tattoo".
Ruthie Foster is nominated in the Best Blues Album category for Let It Burn. The album was recorded at Piety Street Studios in New Orleans, with Ike Stubblefield, George Porter Jr., Russell Batiste, Dave Easley, James Rivers, Blind Boys of Alabama, and William Bell.
Joan Osborne is nominated in the Best Blues Album category for Bring It On Home. The album features Allen Toussaint on piano, and Joan covers Toussaint's song "Shoorah! Shoorah!" on the album.
Midnight in Paris (Music from the Motion Picture) is nominated in the Best Compilation Soundtrack For Visual Media category. The album includes a track by Sidney Bechet ("Si Tu Vois Ma Mère").
The musical documentary Big Easy Express is nominated in the Best Long Form Music Video category. The film features Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Old Crow Medicine Show, and Mumford & Sons on a tour from California, setting out for New Orleans. Old Crow Medicine Show's members include singer, songwriter, guitarist and Lake Charles, LA native Gill Landry.
Nominees for the 55th annual Grammy Awards were announced on December 5, 2012 on the CBS special "The Grammy Nominations Concert Live! - Countdown To Music's Biggest Night." Performers at the event included Luke Bryan, The Who, Hunter Hayes
, Maroon 5, Ne-Yo, Fun., The Band Perry and Dierks Bentley.
See the complete list of nominees at Grammy.com
