Beyoncé, Adele To Face Off At 2017 Grammys

Choose a side.

Your queens Adele and Beyoncé will go head to head at the 2017 Grammy Awards, facing off in Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

The nominees were announced last night, with Bey leading the pack, courtesy of nine nods for her visual album Lemonade. So overwhelming was her domination, she was even recognised in the category of Best Rock Performance, for “Don’t Hurt Yourself”.

Her biggest competition in the top three categories will be Adele, whose 2015 album 25 was only eligible for nomination this year. (Don’t try and understand the Grammys' byzantine eligibility laws).

Bey already has 20 Grammys to her name, making her the second-most awarded female by the Academy. If she wins at least eight of her nine nods, she will surpass Alison Krauss for first place (and become second overall, after conductor Georg Solti, who holds 31).

However, Yoncé has never claimed Album of the Year, being bested in the top category twice before (by Beck and Taylor Swift). Adele took Album of the Year in 2012 for 21.

Three gents will attempt—and fail—to triumph over the ladies in the Album of the Year category, including Drake, with Views, Justin Bieber, with Purpose, and surprise nominee Sturgill Simpson, for A Sailor’s Guide to Earth.

No one was more shocked by Simpson’s nomination than Simpson himself. He told the New York Times he would have rather seen Frank Ocean in his spot, but alas, Ocean protested against the Grammys by declining to submit his albums Blond and Endless for consideration.

The absence of his critically-adored, smash-hit Blond in the top categories wasn’t the only glaring omission.

David Bowie’s Blackstar, Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo, Rihanna’s Anti, Solange’s A Seat at the Table, Chance the Rapper’s Coloring Book and Radiohead’s A Moon Shaped Pool were all snubbed in the Album of the Year stakes, though each artist was recognised elsewhere, among the Grammys seemingly-infinite number of sub-categories.

Chance the Rapper, in particular, had an incredible showing, scoring his first ever nominations—seven in total—including several for his streaming-exclusive album (a Grammys first).

A few Aussies got a guernsey too. Sia scored three nominations, for her album This Is Acting, hit single “Cheap Thrills”, and for co-writing Zootopia’s “Try Everything”. Keith Urban got three nods as well, for Best Country Album, Best Country Song and Best Country Solo Performance.

Recent ARIA champ Flume is also hot contender for Best Dance Recording and Best Dance/Electronic Album.

Find the big four categories below.

Album Of The Year:

25, Adele

Lemonade, Beyoncé

Purpose, Justin Bieber

Views, Drake

A Sailor's Guide To Earth, Sturgill Simpson

Record Of The Year:

"Hello", Adele

"Formation", Beyoncé

"7 Years", Lukas Graham

"Work", Rihanna feat. Drake

"Stressed Out", Twenty One Pilots

Song Of The Year:

"Formation", Khalif Brown, Asheton Hogan, Beyoncé Knowles & Michael L. Williams II, songwriters (Beyoncé)

"Hello", Adele Adkins & Greg Kurstin, songwriters (Adele)

"I Took A Pill In Ibiza", Mike Posner, songwriter (Mike Posner)

"Love Yourself", Justin Bieber, Benjamin Levin & Ed Sheeran, songwriters (Justin Bieber)

"7 Years", Lukas Forchhammer, Stefan Forrest, Morten Pilegaard & Morten Ristorp, songwriters (Lukas Graham)

Best New Artist:

Kelsea Ballerini

The Chainsmokers

Chance The Rapper

Maren Morris

Anderson .Paak

For the full list of nominations, head here.

The 59th Annual Grammy Awards will take place February 12, 2017.

Photo: HBO