Why Bruno Mars, Alicia Keys and Frank Ocean Weren't Actually Snubbed by GRAMMY Nominations

A brief refresher on the awards' eligibility requirements.

Hold fire!

As debates over this year's GRAMMY snubs rage on, ET would like to take a moment to clarify which albums were actually eligible, and which we might see more of on the next awards season cycle.


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In order to be considered for the 2017 GRAMMY Awards, the new music -- including singles and albums -- must have been released between Oct. 1, 2015 and Sept. 30, 2016. Among the albums released outside the window: The Weeknd's Starboy, Bruno Mars' 24K Magic, Lady Gaga's Joanne, Miranda Lambert's The Weight of These Wings, Alicia Keys' Here, Michael Buble's Nobody But Me, Kenny Chesney's Cosmic Hallelujah, and Bon Jovi's This House Is Not for Sale.

However, a handful of those artists did debut their album's lead singles ahead of the eligibility cutoff, including The Weeknd's "Starboy" (released just eight days before) and "False Alarm," as well as Lady Gaga's "Perfect Illusion." None of those tracks garnered a nomination on Tuesday.


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In the country world, Lambert and Chesney both scored nominations for their singles, "Vice" and "Setting the World on Fire," respectively. Lambert's "Vice" is up for Best country solo performance and Best country song, while Chesney's collaboration with Pink is up for Best country duo/group performance. Both albums will be in contention for the 2018 ceremony.

Meanwhile, neither of Frank Ocean's 2016 releases -- Blonde and Endless -- were submitted for consideration, despite being released within the eligibility timeframe. The 29-year-old has already won two GRAMMYs -- Best Urban Contemporary Album for Channel Orange and Best Rap-Sung Collaboration for "No Church in the Wild" with Kanye West and Jay-Z -- and been nominated a total of eight times between 2013 and 2015.

The 2017 GRAMMY Awards will be hosted by The Late Late Show's James Corden and will air live on CBS on Feb. 12.

From Taylor Swift winning her second Album of the Year to Lady Gaga's tribute to the late David Bowie, here's a look at some of the stand-out moments from last year's GRAMMYs.