Jay-Z and Kanye are joint nominated for Watch the Throne

Kanye West was the clear winner, with seven in this years round of nominations for the 2012 Grammys hosted by Hip Hop geriatric LL Cool J. Kanye is actually in the running twice for best rap album with his solo work My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy going up against his collaborative effort with Jay Z, Watch the Throne. Still fans of West will be disappointed by the omission of the former record from the Best Album nominations, where many will feel it belongs ahead of tame efforts from the likes of Lady Gaga and Rhianna. Rap debutantes J. Cole and Nicki Minaj were both nominated in the Best New Artist category.

On November 8 the HipHop community mourned the passing of Heavy D one of raps earlier pioneers. Heavy D and the Boyz debuted with the album Living Large in 1987, marking the beginning of the Uptown Records label. In 1989 they hit big with the aptly titled Big Tyme, Heavy D earning plaudits for his abilities, a nimble lyricyst with a 300lb swagger. He went on to become the first rapper to head a major label when he became president of Uptown in the early 90's (at one point hiring in a certain Sean Combs as a temp), and from there his rap career went on the back burner while he focused on acting and managing other artists. He was a entertainer to the end though, giving his first live rap performance for 15 years at the BET HipHop awards in October, a final curtain call for the heavy weight raconteur.