‘‘GRAMMY’-CAPPING
THE POP NOMS
- Rich Appel
Yesterday marked the deadline for members of the Recording Academy to vote for the 2013 Grammy Award
nominees, which will be revealed live on CBS-TV’s
Grammy special on Dec. 5.
Top 40’s record with Recording Academy voters is
mixed. Not every hit song or artist has what it takes to be
nominated, and many nominees in recent years didn’t
receive nods due to sales or radio airplay.
There’s reason to believe this year may be different.
Top 40 proved it could get ratings without relying entirely
on dance pop and broke new artists, many of whom happen to be Grammyfriendly. Given that increased wiggle room, here’s what the nominees in key
pop or pop-driven categories may look like come December.
Record of the Year: Since 2010, it’s gone to a recording top 40 didn’t first
champion but eventually supported (Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,” Lady Antebellum’s “Need You Now,” Kings of Leon’s “Use Somebody”). You’d have to
go back to 2006 for the last
time all five nominees were
mainstream hits and back
to 2000 for when top 40
was the main address for
all five. This year there’s no
shortage of deserving nominees top 40 brought home:
fun.’s “We Are Young,”
Gotye featuring Kimbra’s
“Somebody That I Used to Know,” Katy Perry’s “Wide Awake,” Train’s “Drive
By” and my dark horse pick, Neon Trees’ “Everybody Talks.”
The inclusion of a social-event song like the Black Eyed Peas’ “I Gotta Feeling” among 2010’s noms suggests there may be a slot for Carly Rae Jepsen’s
“Call Me Maybe.” The need for “quality balance” could put Ed Sheeran’s “The
A Team” in the mix, if it gets more support than an off-top 40 selection from
Frank Ocean or Florence and the Machine.*
Best New Artist: Not since 2005, when Maroon 5 took the prize, has
the winner even scored a top 40 hit; not since 1995 have all five nominees
played on the format. This year fun., Ellie Goulding, Karmin, Sheeran
and possibly Gotye, Jepsen or One Direction could make up an impressive quintet of nominees if they can hold off the likes of Ocean, Alabama
Shakes or the Lumineers.*
Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance: Last year top 40 dominated the solo category, with nominees Bruno
Mars, Lady Gaga, Perry, P!nk and eventual winner Adele. This year there are
again strong entries from Perry (“Wide Awake”), P!nk (“Blow Me [One Last
Kiss]”) and Adele (a live version of “Set
Fire to the Rain”) along with Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”
and either Sheeran’s “The A Team” or
Jason Mraz’ “I Won’t Give Up.”*
This could also be the first year since
2005 that the duo/group category boasts
five top 40 noms, with “We Are Young,”
“Somebody That I Used to Know,” “Drive
By,” Karmin’s “Brokenhearted” and
Coldplay and Rihanna’s “Princess of
China.” LMFAO’s “Sexy and I Know It” could even make the cut, if RedFoo
can out-wiggle Florence or sentimental favorites the Beach Boys.
http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/photo...TFNmw_1101.pdf
