Grammys' Top Categories 2012 - Album of the Year.

As for the Grammy categories, all eyes are especially popular album of the year, record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist. Here, Billboard takes a deeper look at this year's field. And the nominees are .... artists that were so undeniable, head-turning music. Read more.
Album of the Year


21
Adele

Producers: Jim Abbiss, Adele Adkins, Paul Epworth, Rick Rubin, Fraser T. Smith, Ryan Tedder, Dan Wilson
Engineers / mixers: Jim Abbiss, Philip Allen, Beatriz Artola, Ian Dowling, Tom Elmhirst, Greg Fidelman, Dan Parry, Steve Price, Mark Rankin, Andrew Scheps, Fraser T. Smith, Ryan Tedder
Mastering Engineer: Tom Coyne
Label: XL Recordings / Columbia Records

Already the biggest selling album of the 21st century by the artist in the UK, 21 is also the biggest seller of 2011 in the United States more than 5 million copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan. During a press that spent 13 weeks in pole position on the Billboard 200 and had yet to leave the top 10 since its debut in February. Although Adele herself has been mostly out of the scene is sidelined with a vocal injury in October, its visibility has suffered from such hits as "Rolling In the Deep," "Someone Like You" and "set fire to the rain.
Wasting LIGHT
Foo Fighters

Producer: Butch Vig
Engineers / mixers: James Brown, Alan Moulder
Mastering engineers: Joe Laporta, Emily Lazar
Label: RCA Records / Roswell Records

Wasting Light was the first band No. 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 235 000 copies in its first week, and earned Dave Grohl and company of some of their best ratings in years. Headline-grabbing performances to the south by Southwest, Lollapalooza and Coachella, and a successful tour of the fall, further enhanced by the foos Status of leading rock act. It is the band's second album nod of the year. From the 2007 album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace was nominated for the 50th awards.

Born This Way
Lady Gaga

Producers: Paul Blair, DJ Snake, Fernando Garibay, Lady Gaga, Robert John "Mutt" Lange, Jeppe Laursen, rewritten, Clinton Sparks
Engineers / mixers Fernando Garibay, Bill Malina, Trevor Muzzy, rewritten, Dave Russell, Justin Shirley Smith, Horace Ward, Tom Ware
Mastering Engineer: Gene Grimaldi
Label: Streamline / Interscope / Kon Live

Lady Gaga last year's ceremony opened with Born This Way is the title track, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Her track record of awards is quite impressive, winning five of the 12 trophies it was nominated for the 2009. Powered by 99 Cent price Amazon MP3 store, Born This Way debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 1.1 million copies sold, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the best in the first week of sales in the year. This is the third album Gaga nomination year. Her debut, Fame, was nominated at the 52nd Grammy Awards, and the EP The Fame Monster rose to last year's awards ceremony. She has yet to win in this category.

DOO-WOPS & Hooligans
Bruno Mars

Featured artists: Bob, Cee Lo Green, Damian Marley
Producers: Dwayne 'Supa Dups' Chin-Quee, Needlz, the Smeezingtons
Engineers / mixers: Ari Levine, Manny Marroquin
Mastering Engineer: Stephen Marcussen
Label: Elektra

After topping the Billboard Hot 100 with "Just the Way You Are", a single line of Doo-Wops & Hooligans, in October, Bruno Mars returned to the peak position in January 2011 the second single from the project "Grenade". The third single, "Lazy Song" reached No. 4, while loud "Glee" album cover cut "Marry You" sent the song No. 85 on the Hot 100 list Doo-Wops & Hooligans debuted at third the list of Billboard 200.






LOUD
Rihanna

Featured artists: Drake, Eminem, Nicki Minaj
Producers: Esther Dean, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Alex Da Kid, Skylar Grey, Kuk Harrell, Tor Erik Hermansen, Mel and Mus, Awesome Jones, Makeba Riddick, runners, Sham, Soundz, Chris "Tricky" Stewart, Sandy Vee, Willy Will
Engineers / mixers: Ariel Chobaz, Cary Clark, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Alex Da Kid, Josh Gudwin, Kuk Harrell, Jaycen Joshua, Manny Marroquin, Dan Nielsen, Chad "C-Note" Roper, Noah "40" Shebib, Corey Shoemaker Jay Stevenson, Mike Strange, Phil Tan, Brian "B Luv" Thomas, Marcos Tovar, Sandy Vee, Jeff "Supa Jeff" Villanueva, Miles Walker, Andrew Wuepper
Mastering engineer Chris Gehringer
Label: Def Jam

Rihanna's first album years also includes the appointment of a song that has already tasted victory. The first single out loud at "Only Girl (In the World)," took home a Grammy last year for Best Dance Recording, and it was just a song from the album released in time to be considered for appointment. Loud is also one of its most successful projects, spawning three number one singles ("Only Girl", "What's My Name?", "S & M") and three other chart hits ("Cheers [Drink to this]", " Man Down "and" California King Bed ").