The music industry had a huge celebration on Dec. 6 when the nominations for the 56th annual GRAMMY Awards were announced. The nominations were announced via a broadcasted concert in Los Angeles’ Nokia Theatre with electric performances from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Katy Perry, and Lorde. The one-hour GRAMMY Nominations Concert Live! was hosted by rapper LL Cool J who is also the host for this year’s actual award ceremony, scheduled to be aired on Jan. 26, 2014.

This year’s nominees represent a wide variety of music and talent. The biggest award, Album of the Year, contains nominees from four different genres of music.  Legendary rapper Jay Z topped the night with the most nominations, garnering nine nods from his most recent studio album “Magna Carta Holy Grail.” Below are the nominees for the 56th GRAMMY Awards in the General Field category along with projected winners and potential upsets in each category.

1. Best New Artist

James Blake

Kendrick Lamar

Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Kacey Musgraves

Ed Sheeran

Projected Winner- After the incredible year they have had, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis have practically been crowned the winners of this category. All the nominees in this category are incredibly talented, but it will be difficult to dethrone these current kings.

Potential Upset- Ed Sheeran could possibly sweep in and steal this title. Although he did not win the “Song of the Year” category last year, his debut album “+” contains some GRAMMY material.

2. Record of the Year (for the overall contributors on the song)

Get Lucky, Daft Punk and Pharrell Williams

Radioactive, Imagine Dragons

Royals, Lorde

Locked out of Heaven, Bruno Mars

Blurred Lines, Robin Thicke featuring T.I. and Pharrell Williams

Projected Winner- Though the song is packed full of offensive, degrading and misogynist verses, overall, “Blurred Lines” could win this award.  The producer Pharrell Williams mastered this complex track into one smooth song and the Academy cannot dismiss the fact that this song dominated the Hot 100 chart all summer long.

Possible Upsets- Further proof of Williams’ genius, “Get Lucky” is also a frontrunner for this award.  This song also received some quality airplay over the summer.

3. Song of the Year (for the songwriters and artist(s))

Just Give Me A Reason, P!nk featuring Nate Ruess

Locked Out Of Heaven, Bruno Mars

Roar, Katy Perry

Royals, Lorde

Same Love, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis featuring Mary Lambert

Projected Winner- Though this award appears to be a toss up, “Same Love” will most likely grab this title in January. On top of overall performance, the song is written incredibly well. It touches on a current controversy without using stereotypes or clichés.

Possible Upsets- As displayed in her performance at the nominations concert, Lorde is a fan favorite artists that is also adored by the Academy. “Royals” is not as well written as “Same Love,” but the track is definitely GRAMMY worthy.

4. Album of the Year

The Blessed Unrest, Sara Bareilles

Random Access Memories, Daft Punk

Good Kid, M.A.A.D City,  Kendrick Lamar

The Heist, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

Red, Taylor Swift

Projected Winner- Once again, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis are in a great position to win this award. “The Heist” erupted out of nowhere after its release, sending the duo from the Seattle music scene to headlining shows at the Staples Center. The magnitude of this album is immense and hardly any of the other nominated albums have a chance at stealing the title from Macklemore & Ryan Lewis.

Possible Upset- Though not as popular as Taylor Swift’s “Red,” the album dropped this year by pop songstress Sara Bareilles could be handed this title from the Academy. “The Blessed Unrest” has been critically acclaimed since its release and the leading single “Brave” is an anthem that cannot be dismissed.

All the winners of the 56th annual GRAMMY Awards will be announced on Jan. 26.