SA: LBM up for two Grammys

The list of Grammy nominees was released earlier today, with American act Jay-Z earning the most nods with eight nominations. He is followed closely by Kendrick Lamar and Bruno Mars, with seven and six nominations respectively, in what is a list of nominees dominated by black and other non-white artists. Newcomer Khalid whose song ‘Location’ found an audience both in the West and Africa received five nominations.

Unlike last year when a collaboration with Drake meant African act Wizkid got into the general categories, this year the most high profile of nominations for African acts is in the Best World Music Album category.

In that category, two former Grammy winners will slug it out with other nominees. Mali’s Tinariwen and LBM are both up for the award. Tinariwen’s Elwan earned the group the honour, and Shaka Zulu Revisited: 30th Anniversary Celebration gave LBM one of its two nominations.

The South African group is also nominated in the Best Children’s Album category for the album Songs of Peace & Love for Kids & Parents Around the World. Up against the band are Justin Roberts’ Lemonade, Lisa Loeb’s Feel What U Feel and others.

When contacted by South African publication Times Live, the group’s founder, Joseph Tshabalala, said: “We are so grateful for the love, that people love the music.”

LBM has won four Grammy Awards, the last of which came in 2013 for the album Live: Singing for Peace Around the World. The first was won in 1988 in the Best Traditional Folk Recording category, which is currently defunct. Incidentally, the group’s first win at the Grammys three decades ago was for the original Shaka Zulu album.

The winners of the 2018 Grammys will be announced on 28 January. For the full list of nominees, visit the Grammys website.