LL Cool J's Hosting Grammy Awards for Fourth Straight Time

Grammy Award-winning singer, actor, entertainer and author LL Cool J has been named to host the 57th annual Grammy Awards next month, his fourth straight year as emcee for the music industry honors.

The Grammy Awards are being announced Feb. 8 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, with CBS broadcasting the festivities live from 8 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. EST.

"I'm thrilled to again be part of music's biggest night," the two-time Grammy winner and "NCIS: Los Angeles" co-star said in a statement released by CBS. "The performances and moments you see on the Grammy stage are nothing less than amazing throughout the years and this year's show is shaping up to be one you will never forget."

In mid-November, the 47-year-old Brooklyn, N.Y., native, whose given name is James Smith, hosted CBS' "A Very Grammy Christmas" that aired last month.

Also announced today by The Recording Academy as performers for the 2015 Grammys were Grammy winners Common and John Legend, who will sing "Glory" from the film "Selma"; eight-time Grammy winner Usher; country singer-songwriter Miranda Lambert; and two of this year's leading nominees, Sam Smith and Pharrell Williams.

Other performers previously announced include Madonna, AC/DC, Eric Church, Ariana Grande and Ed Sheeran.

Williams and Smith along with Beyonce Knowles lead the pack of nominees this year with six nods each. Engineer Tom Coyne have five nominations. Usher, Church, Lambert, Iggy Azalea, Beck, Drake, Gordon Goodwin, Jay Z, Sia and Jack White have four nominations each. Legend and Common have two nominations apiece.