Soul Train Awards 2012 Moves to Vegas, Transforms Into 3 Day Event

Details about the upcoming Soul Train Awards 2012 have been released and we have the inside scoop. This year’s show has made some MAJOR changes from the previous years. Hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, peep details:

• The show has moved from Atlanta, to Sin City, (Las Vegas) at Planet Hollywood.
• The Soul Train Awards is transforming into a 3 day festival. The award show takes place on November 8th, comedy show on November 9th and concert on November 10th, airing on November 25th on BET and Centric.
• Usher leads the rest in nominations, although R. Kelly will receive the most nominations in the history of Soul Train Awards. New comers Elle Varner, J. Cole and Luke James will duke it out for Best New Artist.
• New Edition will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award AND will perform (they attended the press conference and promised to play fan favorites/classics).

The full list of nominees are below:

Best New Artist

• Elle Varner
• Emeli Sande
• J. Cole
• Luke James
• Robert Glasper

Centric Award

• Daley
• Esperanza Spalding
• Gary Clark Jr.
• Leah Labelle
• Santigold

Best Gospel/Inspirational Performance

• BeBe Winans- “America America”
• Fred Hammond- “I Feel Good”
• Marvin Sapp- “My Testimony”
• Mary Mary- “Go Get It”
• Whitney Houston and Jordin Sparks- “Celebrate”

Best Hip-Hop Song of the Year

• 2 Chainz ft. Drake- “No Lie”
• Wale ft. Miguel- “Lotus Flower Bomb”
• Nas- “Daughters”
• Kanye West ft. Big Sean, Pusha T and 2 Chainz – “Mercy”
• Young Jeezy ft. Ne-Yo- “Leave You Alone”

Best R&B/Soul Female Artist

• Beyoncé
• Estelle
• Keyshia Cole
• Mary J. Blige
• Melanie Fiona

Best R&B/Soul Male Artist

• Miguel
• Robin Thicke
• Trey Songz
• Tyrese
• Usher

Album of the Year

• The One – Eric Benet
• Channel Orange -Frank Ocean
• Life Is Good -Nas
• Write Me Back -R. Kelly
• Looking For Myself -Usher

Song of the Year

• Estelle- “Thank You”
• John Legend ft. Ludacris- “Tonight (Best You Ever Had)”
• Trey Songz- “Heart Attack”
• Tyrese- “Stay”
• Usher- “Climax”
• Wale ft. Miguel- “Lotus Flower Bomb”

The Ashford & Simpson Songwriter’s Award

• “Thank You”-Estelle
• (Writers: Arden Altino, Akene “The Champ” Dunkley, Jerry Duplessis, Doug F. Edwards, Thomas D. Richardson, Aliaune Thiam)
• “Tonight (Best You Ever Had)” -John Legend ft. Ludacris
• (Writers: Allen Arthur, Christopher “Ludacris” Bridges, Keith Justice, Miguel Pimentel “Miguel”, Clayton Reilly, John Stephens)
• “Daughters”-Nas
• (Writers: Nasir Jones, Ernest D. Wilson, Patrick Adams, Gary DeCarlo, Dale Frashuer, Paul Leka)
• “Share My Love”-R. Kelly
• (Writer: Robert Kelly)
• “Climax” -Usher
• (Writers: Usher Raymond IV, Sean “Redd Stylez” Fenton, Thomas “Diplo” Pentz, Ariel Rechtshaid)

Best Dance Performance

• Beyoncé- “Love On Top”
• Chris Brown- “Turn Up The Music”
• Nicki Minaj- “Starships”
• Rihanna- “Where Have You Been”
• Usher- “Scream”

Best Caribbean Performance*

• Cover Drive – “Bajan Style”
• Damien “Junior Gong” Marley- “SuperHeavy”
• Jimmy Cliff- “Rebirth”
• Matisyahu – “Spark Seeker”
• Sean Paul – “Tomahawk Technique”

Best International Performance*

• Amy Winehouse- “Our Day Will Come”
• Daley ft. Marsha Ambrosius- “Alone Together”
• Emeli Sande- “Next To Me”
• Estelle- “Thank You”
• Gotye ft. Kimbra- “Somebody (That I Used To Know)”
• Rebecca Ferguson- “Nothing’s Real But Love”

Best Traditional Jazz Artist/Group*

• Chris Botti- Impressions
• Kenny Garrett- Seeds From The Underground
• Melody Gardot- The Absence
• The Robert Glasper Experiment – Black Radio
• Tony Bennett- Isn’t It Romantic

Best Contemporary Jazz Artist/Group*

• Ben Tankard- Full Tank
• Brian Culbertson- DREAMS
• Cassandra Wilson- Another Country
• Esperanza Spalding- Radio Music Society
• Peter White- Here We Go

*Winner to be determined via online voting. Click here for details and more information about the Soul Train Awards 2012.

P.S. What do you think about the move from Atlanta to Vegas? And what are your thoughts of extending Soul Train to three days?

@LoveShake_