Sigh. I remember when I used to care about the American Music Awards.
My lack of interest in this year’s nominees is probably indicative of greater issues-my growing ennui with music awards shows in general, and the fact that I don’t care as much about top 40 music now as I did 10 or 20 years ago.
Australian rapper Iggy Azalea (the Queen of Uncomfortable Cultural Appropriation) leads this year’s list of nominees, with six. There are a slew of multi-nominated artists, including Eminem, Beyonce, John Legend and Pharrell.
Unlike the Grammys, the AMAs are voted on by music fans, and nominees are chosen based on chart success. Billboard Magazine is a major player in the nomination process, which might be a new wrinkle. I know previous AMA ceremonies have used data from Radio & Records, a Billboard competitor. Also…isn’t there already a Billboard Music Awards? Why base another ceremony off of virtually the same data?
At any rate, the nominees are below. The AMAs will be broadcast on ABC November 23rd.
Artist Of The Year
Iggy Azalea
Beyoncé
Luke Bryan
Eminem
Imagine Dragons
John Legend
Lorde
One Direction
Katy Perry
Pharrell Williams
New Artist Of The Year Presented By Kohl’s
5 Seconds of Summer
Iggy Azalea
Bastille
Sam Smith
Meghan Trainor
Single Of The Year
Iggy Azalea Featuring Charli XCX, “Fancy”
John Legend, “All of Me”
MAGIC!, “Rude”
Katy Perry Featuring Juicy J, “Dark Horse”
Pharrell Williams, “Happy”
Favorite Male Artist – Pop/Rock
John Legend
Sam Smith
Pharrell Williams
Favorite Female Artist – Pop/Rock
Iggy Azalea
Lorde
Katy Perry
Favorite Band, Duo Or Group – Pop/Rock
Imagine Dragons
One Direction
OneRepublic
Favorite Album – Pop/Rock
Lorde, “Pure Heroine”
One Direction, “Midnight Memories”
Katy Perry, “Prism”
Favorite Male Artist – Country
Jason Aldean
Luke Bryan
Blake Shelton
Favorite Female Artist – Country
Miranda Lambert
Kacey Musgraves
Carrie Underwood
Favorite Band, Duo Or Group – Country
Eli Young Band
Florida Georgia Line
Lady Antebellum
Favorite Album – Country
Garth Brooks “Blame It On My Roots: Five Decades of Influences”
Eric Church “The Outsiders”
Brantley Gilbert “Just As I Am”
Favorite Artist – Rap/Hip-Hop
Iggy Azalea
Drake
Eminem
Favorite Album – Rap/Hip-Hop
Iggy Azalea, “The New Classic”
Drake, “Nothing Was The Same”
Eminem, “The Marshall Mathers LP 2”
Favorite Male Artist – Soul/R&B
Chris Brown
John Legend
Pharrell Williams
Favorite Female Artist – Soul/R&B
Jhene Aiko
Beyoncé
Mary J. Blige
Favorite Album – Soul/R&B
Beyoncé, “Beyoncé”
John Legend, “Love in the Future”
Pharrell Williams, “G I R L”
Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock
Bastille
Imagine Dragons
Lorde
Favorite Artist – Adult Contemporary
Sara Bareilles
OneRepublic
Katy Perry
Favorite Artist – Latin
Marc Anthony
Enrique Iglesias
Romeo Santos
Favorite Artist – Contemporary Inspirational
Casting Crowns
Hillsong United
Newsboys
Favorite Artist – Electronic Dance Music (Edm)
Avicii
Calvin Harris
Zedd
Top Soundtrack
Frozen
The Fault In Our Stars
Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix, Vol. 1