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\n\tThe big news story over the weekend was the announcement of the 2026 Grammy Award nominations<\/a> (Nov. 7).<\/p>\n \n\tKendrick Lamar<\/a> leads the field with nine nominations for his dominant GNX<\/em> album, including album of the year and record and song of the year for \u201cLuther\u201d (with SZA). Alongside Lamar, Clipse<\/a> (Let God Sort Em Out<\/em>) and Tyler, the Creator<\/a> (Chromakopia<\/em>) are both nominated for album of the year, marking the first time in Grammy history that three hip-hop albums are competing for the top prize in the same year. Notably, Doechii<\/a> also represents hip-hop in the general field, earning song and record of the year nods for \u201cAnxiety,\u201d her first Hot 100<\/a> top 10 hit (No. 9).<\/p>\n \n\tR&B also had a formidable showing during Friday\u2019s nominations announcement. Leon Thomas<\/a> pulled off a whopping six nominations for Mutt<\/a><\/em>, including album of the year and best new artist, and Kehlani<\/a> earned a pair of nods (best R&B song and performance) for \u201cFolded,\u201d<\/a> which recently became her first Hot 100 top 10 hit. Sounwave<\/a>, who produced the bulk of GNX<\/em>, and Dijon, who crafted a significant chunk of Justin Bieber\u2019s R&B-informed SWAG<\/em> album, both earned nominations for producer of the year, non-classical. Finally, Sinners<\/em>, Ryan Coogler\u2019s box office-conquering, blues-honoring<\/a> vampire epic, became one of the most-nominated films in Grammy history with five nominations for its soundtrack and score.<\/p>\n \n\tWith Fresh Picks,\u00a0Billboard<\/em>\u00a0aims to highlight some of the best and most interesting new sounds across R&B and hip-hop \u2014 from a new 3QUENCY single to Armand Hammer and The Alchemist\u2019s latest link-up. Be sure to check out this week\u2019s Fresh Picks in our Spotify playlist below.<\/p>\n