Eminem, Lady A Lead Grammy Nominations

Eminem and the country trio Lady Antebellum lead the nominees for the 53rd annual Grammy Awards. Both artists are nominated for all three of the top prizes, Record, Song and Album of the Year. Eminem is a contender for his album Recovery and his smash collaboration with Rihanna, "Love The Way You Lie." Lady Antebellum is nominated for its album Need You Now and the title track, a heartfelt pop/country ballad.

For the first time in Grammy history, three of the five finalists for Record of the Year are collaborations. The smash by Eminem featuring Rihanna is joined by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys' "Empire State Of Mind" and B.o.B featuring Bruno Mars' "Nothin' On You." All three of these recordings pair a rap artist with a pop or soul singer, which is the surest pathway to success in contemporary music.

The other Record of the Year finalists are Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now" and Cee Lo Green's "F*** You (Forget You)." The inclusion of the latter hit was a surprise. The old-school soul smash is irresistible, but the title pushes the envelope, especially for a tradition-bound organization like the Recording Academy.

This is the third Record of the Year nomination for both Eminem and Jay-Z. It's the second for Rihanna, Keys and Green (who made the finals four years ago as a member of Gnarls Barkley). It's the first for Lady Antebellum, B.o.B and Bruno Mars.

Key hits that were passed over for Record of the Year include "California Gurls" by Katy Perry featuring Snoop Dogg, "Airplanes II" by B.o.B featuring Eminem and Hayley Williams, Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance," Bruno Mars' "Just The Way You Are" and Taylor Swift's "Mine."

Two red-hot female pop stars are in the running for Album of the Year. Lady Gaga was cited for The Fame Monster. Katy Perry got the nod for Teenage Dream. Alternative rock group Arcade Fire rounds out the category with The Suburbs.

The Fame Monster is the first EP to be nominated for Album of the Year. Gaga, who was nominated in the category last year for her debut album The Fame, is the first artist to receive back-to-back Album of the Year nominations since Kanye West did it in 2004 and 2005.

This is Eminem's third Album of the Year nomination. He previously made the finals with The Marshall Mathers LP and The Eminem Show.

Among the high-profile albums that were passed over for Album of the Year: Carole King & James Taylor's Live At The Troubadour, Susan Boyle's I Dreamed A Dream, Jay-Z's The Blueprint 3, Sade's Soldier Of Love,  Miranda Lambert's Revolution, John Mayer's Battle Studies, Usher's Raymond V Raymond and Michael Buble's Crazy Love.

The nominations in key categories were announced in a prime-time TV special for the third straight year. B.o.B, Bruno Mars, Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, Miranda Lambert and Train performed on the show.

Teen idol Justin Bieber and hip-hop star Drake made the Best New Artist finals, as expected. The roster of nominees also included two slight surprises, alternative star Florence + the Machine and folk revivalists Mumford & Sons, and one jaw-dropper, jazz vocalist Esperanza Spalding.

Florence + the Machine is the name used by Florence Welch, an English singer/songwriter whose album Lungs was released in late 2009. Mumford & Sons are nominated in the Best Contemporary Folk Album category for their album Sigh No More. Spalding is vying for Best Jazz Vocal Album for her album Chamber Music Society.

The list of acts that were passed over for Best New Artist includes such household names as Susan Boyle and Adam Lambert, whose reality TV backgrounds may have hurt their chances. Also left out: Ke$ha, The Script, Kid Cudi, Jason Derulo, Taio Cruz, Vampire Weekend and Charice.

Bieber, 16, is the youngest solo artist to be nominated for Best New Artist since LeAnn Rimes, who was 14 when she was nominated (and won) 14 years ago.

Even though Mars is a nominee for both Record and Song of the Year, he wasn't eligible for Best New Artist. Grammy rules (which are overdue for an update) specify that artists aren't eligible in the New Artist category until they have released their first album. That rule also kept another of 2010's hottest new talents, Nicki Minaj, off this year's Best New Artist list. (Both artists released their debuts after the end of the eligibility year.) Both artists will be nominated next year (unless they win in some category this year, which would make them ineligible to ever win Best New Artist).

Three of the Record of the Year nominees were also recognized in the Song of the Year category (where the nomination goes to the songwriter). Those three are "Need You Now" (which the members of Lady Antebellum co-wrote with Josh Kear),  "Love The Way You Lie" (which Eminem co-wrote with Alexander Grant and Holly Hafermann) and "F*** You (Forget You)," which Cee Lo Green co-wrote with Philip Lawrence and Bruno Mars). They are joined by "Beg, Steal Or Borrow" (Ray LaMontagne) and the Miranda Lambert hit "The House That Built Me" (Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin).

Kanye West's critically acclaimed My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was released after the end of the eligibility year, which extends from Sept. 1, 2009 through Sept. 30, 2010. This will give him an extra year for the backlash which followed his ungentlemanly behavior at the 2009 VMAs telecast to recede.

Eminem leads the total Grammy nomination with 10, followed by Bruno Mars with seven. Jay-Z, Lady Gaga, and Lady Antebellum each have six. Tune in February 13, 2011 to see who takes home the most trophies.