Cue drama and intrigue

This year's Grammy Awards ceremony promises plenty of intrigue and drama — much of it having little to do with the competition.

Adele is performing for the first time since having surgery on her vocal cords. A group of musicians upset that the Recording Academy has cut the number of awards have vowed to protest outside the venue. Chris Brown and Rihanna will perform on the same stage — although at different times — for the first time since Brown attacked her before the 2009 Grammys, forcing both to drop out the show.

And the remaining Beach Boys will reunite onstage for the first time in years.

But Recording Academy President and CEO Neil Portnow says that music will still be paramount once the show starts.

"This was a really terrific, exciting year for music, so it will give us a tremendous canvas to paint on," said Portnow.

Kanye West is the top nominee with seven, including a best song nomination for his All of the Lights.

Adele is nominated in all top categories. 21, the year's best-selling album, is up for album of the year, and her Rolling in the Deep is up for song and record of the year. Bruno Mars has six nominations, along with the Foo Fighters, whose Wasting Light is up for album of the year.

Other album of the year candidates are Lady Gaga's Born This Way and Rihanna's Loud for record of the year, Bon Iver's Holocene is in the mix with Mumford & Sons The Cave and Katy Perry's Firework. For song of the year, all the same nominees appear except All of the Lights replaces Firework.

This year, the total number of Grammys was cut from 109 to 78 after a major overhaul last year. Some specific categories were deleted and put in new, broader categories, to the outrage of some who have said the move disenfranchised them.