Today in Los Angeles, Adam Lambert, Paula Abdul, and Snoop Dogg (what a delightful trio!) unveiled the nominations list for the 37th annual American Music Awards, and announced a preliminary list of performers, including Alicia Keys, the Black Eyed Peas, Jennifer Lopez and, yes, Glambert himself, making his pre-album, post-Idol performance debut.
Taylor Swift leads the pack this year with six noms, followed by Michael Jackson with five, Eminem with four, and Beyonce, Black Eyed Peas, Lady Gaga, Kings of Leon and T.I. with three apiece.
The show, set to air Sunday, November 22, will have its winners determined by voting at ama.abc.com, amavote.com, and mycokerewards.com. See the full noms list after the jump.
FINAL NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2009 AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS
Pop or Rock Music
Favorite Male Artist
Eminem
Michael Jackson
T.I.
Favorite Female Artist
Beyonce
Lady Gaga
Taylor Swift
Favorite Band, Duo or Group
Black Eyed Peas
Kings of Leon
Nickelback
Favorite Album
Lady Gaga / Fame
Michael Jackson / Number Ones
Taylor Swift / FearlessCountry Music
Favorite Male Artist
Jason Aldean
Darius Rucker
Keith Urban
Favorite Female Artist
Reba McEntire
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood
Favorite Band, Duo or Group
Rascal Flatts
Sugarland
Zac Brown Band
Favorite Album
Rascal Flatts/ Unstoppable
Taylor Swift / Fearless
Zac Brown Band / FoundationRap/Hip-hop
Favorite Male Artist
Eminem
Jay-Z
T. I.
Favorite Album
Eminem / Relapse
Jay-Z / Blueprint 3
T.I. / Paper TrailSoul/R&B
Favorite Male Artist
Jamie Foxx
Michael Jackson
Maxwell
Favorite Female Artist
Beyonce
Keyshia Cole
Keri Hilson
Favorite Band, Duo or Group
Black Eyed Peas
Day26
Mary Mary
Favorite Album
Beyonce / I Am…Sasha Fierce
Black Eyed Peas / The E.N.D.
Michael Jackson / Number Ones
Soundtracks
Favorite Album
Hannah Montana: The Movie
Hannah Montana 3
Twilight SoundtrackAlternative Rock
Favorite Artist
Green Day
Kings of Leon
ShinedownAdult Contemporary
Favorite Artist
Daughtry
Jason Mraz
Taylor SwiftLatin Music
Favorite Artist
Aventura
Luis Fonsi
Wisin Y YandelContemporary Inspirational
Favorite Artist
Jeremy Camp
Brandon Heath
Mary Mary
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Alternative – KINGS OF LEON
Country – TAYLOR SWIFT
Pop/Rock – LADY GAGA
Rap/Hip-Hop – EMINEM
Soul/R&B – MICHAEL JACKSONT-Mobile Breakthrough Artist
Pop/Rock Breakthrough Artist – Kings of Leon, Lady Gaga
Country Breakthrough Artist – Gloriana, Zac Brown Band
Soul/R&B Breakthrough Artist – Keri Hilson, Jermiah
Rap/Hip-Hop Breakthrough Artist – Drake, Kid Cudi
More from EW’s Music Mix:
‘Gossip Girl’ star Leighton Meester on her new single, ‘Somebody to Love’: ‘I can’t get any!
Kris Allen’s self-titled album cover revealed!
‘New Moon’ soundtrack to be released a week early
Michael Jackson single controversy: ‘This Is It’ is ‘exactly the same’ as Paul Anka song
Lady Gaga gets serious for gay rights, covers Lennon’s “Imagine”
Comments (1-30) of 74 Add your comment
This is all tripe pop for pubescents. Where’s the music awards for people who actually listen to music enough to know what adult musicians themselves listen to?
I’m not really understanding why Michael Jackson is up for awards. How do they select the nominees? He didn’t have an album of new material or anything, so why is he nominated?
They’re hoping the headlines will grab ratings! I guess they were hoping that nothing would happen in the life of John and Kate and this would be the lead entertainment story for the day!I’m sure the public will eat this up and vote for him in droves.
Michael jackson was nominated because he has the best selling album of the year so far. Number Ones sold 1.9 million this year it is eligible.
‘The album ‘ONES’ is not a new album, it was released years ago. Isn’t the American Music Awards supposed to be for new albums released THIS year?
its because his best hits cd has gone double platinum since it was released a while back. as soon as he died people pushed its numbers up, that made it eligable for the award. but i dont want all of todays artists to get beat by someone who is dead
J-LO Is Going To Perform? She Better “SING” Not “LIPSYNC”!!!!!!!
The truth is that Michael Jackson would not have been nominated if he was still alive.
You know, no matter how many times people say that, it doesn’t become any more insightful. Duh. What’s so bad about memorial?
Topaz, MJ DESERVES a memorial….He does NOT deserve to be nominated in competitive awards. He would not even be eligible for a single award this year if he were still alive. Don’t let emotions get in the way of logic, reason, and fact.
Well, then here’s more of an explanation. This is different than Johnny Cash releasing a critically acclaimed album, dying, and winning awards for great current work. Or Heath Ledger giving a critically acclaimed performance, dying, and winning awards for current work. Honor Michael Jackson. There’s nothing wrong with a memorial. Do a tribute the way every other award show has done. But don’t nominate him with other contemporary artists when he wasn’t one. He did not have any new work. Radio stopped playing his music. Album sales were tepid until he died. Nominating him for a greatest hits collection that came out 6 years ago is not a tribute, it’s kind of pathetic. The Beatles Revolver is at the top of most critics best album of all time lists. I guess that should just keep being nominated for best album every year, or at least every year a Beatle dies.
I don’t know too much about Johnny Cash and what happened after he died, but when Heath died, people ran to see The Dark Knight, and that no doubt boosted movie sales. Heath won awards after his death and rightfully so. When Michael Jackson died, people ran out to buy his albums. And what do you know — he ended up outselling all the current artists — greatest hits album and all. Sentiment aside, that speaks volumes and you can’t ignore that fact. Yes, it’s a different scenario than anything we’ve seen in music before, but MJ was a different scenario than anything we’ve seen in music before him. And based on sales alone, I think it would be blasphemous for the AMAs to ignore his numbers and exclude him because his music isn’t “current.” No, his music isn’t current –it’s timeless, and the AMAs are recognizing that. Anyway, posthumous awards are nothing new, people. This was his year; give credit where credit is due.
@ AcaseofGeo
AMA looks at popularity. MJ has the best selling album, so he is eligible. That’s their rule. it is not like the grammy where you need new material. His death affected his sales so that pushed him to the top. Look at the soundtrack nominees. It’s not on based on artistry but sales.
Were the Beatles nominated for an AMA the year their 1 album came out? I mean, it was the best selling album of that year. No, because there wasn’t any new material on it. Therefore, the fact that MJ is nominated for an album that came out 6 years ago is a bit of a joke.
I think that Michael Jackson’s huge sales following his death shocked everyone, even the American Music Awards people. For 3 to 4 straight weeks, his CDs and DVD videos were selling off the rack. It’s just like the Thriller days of 1983 when his album was selling 1 million copies a week in most cases. This is that same ripple effect. So they had no other choice but to nominate him. But unusual that a 2003 released album is competing against 2 2009 albums in one award and 2 2008 albums in another award. This is similar to Heath Ledger, when they awarded him posthumously for his role in The Dark Knight at the Oscars.
wow is this some kind of joke??? besides the obvious kissing the dead guys posterior, whats with Hannah Montana’s double nomination in the Soundtrack category- against the mother of all prepubescent dreck that is Twilight… seriously, do they want adults watching this????
What the frak is adult contemporary and contemporary inspirational?
Do some research. Duh. AC is a very popular format that dates back to the 1960’s; its mostly middle-of-the-road easy listening stuff that branches into rock and r & b based on the song. I would assume Contemp inspirational is a formal geared to a current style of religious music, wouldn’t you?
I think it’s great that MJ is nominated even if it wasn’t for new material. I think he clearly proved that something like that can go straight to the top as it did on the billboard charts for weeks but billboard was too stupid to even break their dumb rules of “older” albums not being able be on the top 100. I think those rules should change for sure, an album shouldn’t have to be new to get the recognition it deserves like awards and a spot on the music charts. Good music is what people want to hear ,period. And by the way, Eminem being nominated is a joke right ? Well if it isn’t it’s not funny it’s just really really gross . Yuck !
And once again the AMA’s prove that they are pretty much… neigh, completely out of touch with good music. There’s some good artists in here don’t get me wrong, but dead people versus living people isn’t fair (just ask last year’s Best Supporting Actor contendors)
WTF about P!NK?!?!? Why is she continuously overlooked in every effin awards show??? She hasprety much cornered the rock/pop thing for females and they still want to nominate tha silly Taylor Swift chick and Hannah Montana bulls**t…
I am getting really annoyed that Kings of Leon gets put into categories like “breakthrough artist”. If you were a true fan you would know that they have been making great music since 2003. Thanks to top 40 radio though, everyone is joining the bandwagon. thanks for that.
Maybe we’ve gone back in time and it really is 2003 considering that’s when Michael Jackson put out his “Number Ones” cd.
Scott You’re absolutely right. This is absolutely ridiculous that MJ is even nominated. First, Greatest Hits albums should NOT be eligible, Freakin SIX year old albums should NOT be eligible, and as MJ had absolutely NO new music released, he shouldn’t be nominated.
You must work for Billboard. MJ has the best selling album of the year. That is why he was nominated.
Michael Jackason was nominated because an artist /legend need not be alive to be the best. Michael’s music will always be unsurpassed. A true legend ! Michael’s music will live on through the ages. Michael you are and will always be missed.
Ok Ginger, lets Nominate Elvis, Kate Smith, Marilyn Monroe, and Selena too. Oh and John Lennon, he’s dead too.
Sure. Just go out and buy their albums and make them the best selling artists of the year, and yeah, I’ll demand their nominations.
agreed. Long live the king!
Going by that criteria, the Beatles should win an award every year.
No, they shouldn’t. There collection has also died quickly in sales.
How bad is it when the first thing I do is go down the nominee list and see if Kanye West’s name is on it?
Note to producers – do not invite him to present, introduce or, well, show up in any way, shape or form.
I’m pretty sure it’s based on album sales but then again the beatles would be nominated too. Why can’t J-Lo just fall off the earth already
Oh, and yes, I’m tired of Taylor Swift/Miley Cyrus as well. Talented girls, but could the radios PUh-LEEZE play something else?
Are the AMA nominations driven by public opinion polls? That was always my assumption, which explains the consistently crappy nominee choices. It’s like when Pizza Hut wins “Best Pizza” in city polls, because the public is generally full of idiots.
Where the hell is Britney’s name!?!
I think the AMAs are actually voted on by the public. IIRC, people are polled by phone at random and can name any artist they want in each category. They used to use the top 3 artists/songs/albums in each year-end Cashbox Magazine as the only voting options, but stopped that some time ago. So, it was still public opinion, but based on who had the best year on the various charts.
Um, Pink?! Kelly Clarkson?! “All I Ever Wanted” may be one of the best albums out this year. Come on, people. I love Taylor Swift, but really? All the time? Share the love. I think I’m going out and buying another copy of Kelly’s album just to show my support.
I second that!
Ditto!! Kelly is probably the best female singer of right now & no nomination? Are you kidding me? Yes Beyonce is good, but her recent album can’t compare to Kelly’s & Miley Cyrus? Girl can hardly carry a tune & has no vocal range.
mj is they only one talented ammong
all the nominees i hope he wins he was awesome
HOW IS BRITNEY NOT NOMINATED!! If anyone had an amazing year it was her.. This is ridiculous, SHE DESERVES FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST, FAVORITE POP ALBUM AND ARTIST OF THE YEAR
taylor swift? adult contemporary? HAHAHA! and hannah monatana and twilight for best soundtrack?! come on there are way better movie soundtracks…
i thought the 500 days of summer soundtrack was amazing. would have loved to see it get a nom
Really Micheal Jackson gets nominated? What the hell did he do this year besides die? I could see giving him a lifetime achievement award or something of the sorts, but nominating him for releasing another greatest hits album is ridiculous!
It wasn’t even released this year. That’s why it’s such a joke.
It is the best selling album of the year.
Why is Adam Lambert performing on this award show? What has he done?
to show ‘em what’s the difference between REAL VOCAL TALENT and AUTO-TUNED.
i’m pretty sure britney and beyonce should have been nominated for way more than what they are. they each had amazing years. and what’s with the kings of leon getting some many nominations when they only had like one hit song, and they have been out since like 2003 or something.
ugh… PLEASE don’t tell me twilight is gonna win Best soundtrack. I mean.. WTF?!??!?! And the other options are HANNAH MONTANA.
Shoot me, seriously.
Nobody watches the AMAs snymore, so who cares!
Thats good that pop Icon Michael Jackson is Nominated.But Thats sad.That he isnt Alive to Accept his Award.If he was Alive Right Now.He Can Accept his Award.But He isnt Alive Anymore Thank to Dr Murray.It wouldve been great to see Michael Jackson.Pop Icon to be at the Award show in 2010.His fans miss him.His mom Katherine misses him/his sisters Janet/LaToya miss him/his Kids Paris/her Two Brothers.Michael Jackson.Pop Icon is a great Dancer.
If he were alive he never would’ve been nominated in the first place.
On June 25th 2009.That was shocking.When his Heart stopped Pumping.There Couldve been more Doctors/Nurses to save him.He would be Alive Right Now.I liked watching his videos Bad Back in 1987.Dirty Diana Back in 1988.The way you make me feel Back in 1988.
Was Letoya and Joe Jackson responsible for this? Seems like a something they would dream up, so they could accept the awards and only further make themselves the disgusting attention media whores, we ALL already know they are !!!
I give Michael props for being a musical genius BUT there were other performers more suited to be complied into the list of nominees…
And it’s not like it’s a HUGE secret… The person who SOLD the most ALWAYS wins @ the AMA’s !!!
That’s why the ratings are in the pooper, because you only need to see one top seller list to know who they are going to pander too!!!
Predictable boring and now shameless !!!
The Beatles should have been nominated for their releases. They are old albums just like Pedophile Jackson’s are.
but did the beatles sell 1 million albums in the last few months like MJ? didn’t think so.
these awards shows nominate artists based on record sales, tours, and general “hype”, etc… any idiot would realize that after reading the nominees list…
As a matter of fact, the Beatles sold over a million copies of their remastered albums the first week they were released. So yes, I do think so.
go to hell.
To Brett, no the Beatles did not. It was about 600,00 total. MJ’s Number Ones is the best selling album of 2009 with 1.9 million sold. He has sold over 5 million in the US and about 15 million worldwide in 2009. He is the top selling artist of the year and should get world music awards also.
They haven’t sold well individually. Sales are fading fast also. MJ is #1 for 2009. He is also not a pedophile. A person who was a pedophile and came across as many children as MJ would have alot more than two accusers.