R. Kelly and the Soul Train Awards go together like Don Cornelius and polyester suits. It was announced yesterday that Kelly has received two nominations this year for Soul Awards, bringing his career total to 21—a record for the Soul Train Awards.
As for the Soul Train Awards 2012, Usher was at the top of the heap with five nominations, for categories that include Song of the Year (“Climax”), Album of the Year (“Looking for Myself”) and Best R&B/Soul Male Artist.
Two singers who died in the past year were nominated for awards—Whitney Houston for Best Gospel Inspirational Performance and Amy Winehouse for Best International Performance.
Other interesting nominations include Tony Bennett for Best Traditional Jazz Artist/Group (“Isn’t It Romantic”).
The award show is scheduled for Nov. 8 at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, hosted by Cedric the Entertainer. The taped show will air on BET on Nov. 25.
Here is the full list of nominees:
Best New Artist
Elle Varner
Emeli Sande
J. Cole
Luke James
Robert Glasper
Centric Award
Daley
Esperanza Spalding
Gary Clark Jr.
Leah Labelle
Santigold
Best Gospel/Inspirational Performance
BeBe Winans- “America America”
Fred Hammond- “I Feel Good”
Marvin Sapp- “My Testimony”
Mary Mary- “Go Get It”
Whitney Houston and Jordin Sparks- “Celebrate”
Best Hip-Hop Song of the Year
2 Chainz ft. Drake- “No Lie”
Wale ft. Miguel- “Lotus Flower Bomb”
Nas- “Daughters”
Kanye West ft. Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz – “Mercy”
Young Jeezy ft. Ne-Yo- “Leave You Alone”
Best R&B/Soul Female Artist
Beyoncé
Estelle
Keyshia Cole
Mary J. Blige
Melanie Fiona
Best R&B/Soul Male Artist
Miguel
Robin Thicke
Trey Songz
Tyrese
Usher
Album of the Year
The One – Eric Benet
Channel Orange -Frank Ocean
Life Is Good -Nas
Write Me Back -R. Kelly
Looking For Myself -Usher
Song of the Year
Estelle- “Thank You”
John Legend ft. Ludacris- “Tonight (Best You Ever Had)”
Trey Songz- “Heart Attack”
Tyrese- “Stay”
Usher- “Climax”
Wale ft. Miguel- “Lotus Flower Bomb”
The Ashford & Simpson Songwriter’s Award
“Thank You”-Estelle
(Writers: Arden Altino, Akene “The Champ” Dunkley, Jerry Duplessis, Doug F. Edwards, Thomas D. Richardson, Aliaune Thiam)
“Tonight (Best You Ever Had)” -John Legend ft. Ludacris
(Writers: Allen Arthur, Christopher “Ludacris” Bridges, Keith Justice, Miguel Pimentel “Miguel”, Clayton Reilly, John Stephens)
“Daughters”-Nas
(Writers: Nasir Jones, Ernest D. Wilson, Patrick Adams, Gary DeCarlo, Dale Frashuer, Paul Leka)
“Share My Love”-R. Kelly
(Writer: Robert Kelly)
“Climax” -Usher
(Writers: Usher Raymond IV, Sean “Redd Stylez” Fenton, Thomas “Diplo” Pentz, Ariel Rechtshaid)
Best Dance Performance
Beyoncé- “Love On Top”
Chris Brown- “Turn Up The Music”
Nicki Minaj- “Starships”
Rihanna- “Where Have You Been”
Usher- “Scream”
Best Caribbean Performance
Cover Drive – “Bajan Style”
Damien “Junior Gong” Marley- “SuperHeavy”
Jimmy Cliff- “Rebirth”
Matisyahu – “Spark Seeker”
Sean Paul – “Tomahawk Technique”
Best International Performance
Amy Winehouse- “Our Day Will Come”
Daley ft. Marsha Ambrosius- “Alone Together”
Emeli Sande- “Next To Me”
Estelle- “Thank You”
Gotye ft. Kimbra- “Somebody (That I Used To Know)”
Rebecca Ferguson- “Nothing’s Real But Love”
Best Traditional Jazz Artist/Group
Chris Botti- Impressions
Kenny Garrett- Seeds From The Underground
Melody Gardot- The Absence
The Robert Glasper Experiment – Black Radio
Tony Bennett- Isn’t It Romantic
Best Contemporary Jazz Artist/Group
Ben Tankard- Full Tank
Brian Culbertson- DREAMS
Cassandra Wilson- Another Country
Esperanza Spalding– Radio Music Society
Peter White- Here We Go
