And The Nominees Are...
The 2006 Popfusion Music Awards Nomination Special

Hey there, and welcome to “And The Nominees Are…”, the 2006 Popfusion Music Awards Nomination Special! I’m so glad you could join us this evening. By the end of the night, you will know all of the 84 nominees vying for a Golden “A” Award this year in almost 30 different categories. In addition, tonight will be the first official announcement of all six Viewer’s Choice Award nominees AND the first official announcement of the brand new award we’ll be giving away this year. Clearly there’s a lot to get to tonight!

First things first though – this is the first year the awards have taken place under the new name of the forum, Popfusion. This name is an accurate portrayal of what ATRL has become; a collection of all things in popular culture. However, the Absolute TRL name will always be connected with this forum. For that reason, the Golden “A” Award will not be changed. It will be a symbol that dates back to the first edition of these awards and last until they are no more.

With that out of the way, let’s get to the news that you want to hear. Every year, one of – if not the – biggest stories is who has the most nominations. Well, this year is going to be no exception. The reason? Not only does this artist have the most nominations, but not since 2003 has an artist had this many nominations in one night. OutKast did it then and took home a record five awards. This year, Gnarls Barkley is up for 8 nominations, including the biggest three awards of the night. This makes Gnarls Barkley the most nominated artist of the night, in addition to being one of the first confirmed nominees for the Viewer’s Choice Award. Not bad work at all for a band who’s also nominated for Best New Artist.

With 8 nominations, Gnarls Barkley is way ahead of the pack, but his nearest competition is running neck and neck. Three artists each have six nominations each, including Madonna, Nelly Furtado, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. And when I say that these three nominees are close, I mean it – all three will square off against each other in two of the biggest categories of the night. In addition to that, Nelly Furtado and Madonna will clash two additional times in the Pop Genre.

Closely following those three are another group of three artists who each have the same number of nominations. Rihanna, Sean Paul, and Shakira will all be trying to nab as many wins for their 5 nominations as possible on October 22nd. I won’t get into what awards the three of them are nominated for quite yet…except for one. Because that one award is one where all three of them will go against one another. That award has gained a lot of prestige since it’s inception in 2004, and that is the Billboard Award. Arguable three of the biggest artists on the charts this past year, each of them will be looking for validation on the big night.

Lastly I’ll shine the spotlight on two artists who were forecasted to be two of the biggest nominees of the night, but didn’t quite get up there. Still, their number of nominations is nothing to shake a stick at. Christina Aguilera and Panic! At The Disco will each be up for 4 awards at the 2006 Popfusion Music Awards. Christina Aguilera will be looking to add to her previous two wins in 2003, while Panic! will be looking to pick up their first ever Golden As. However, you’ll definitely want to stay tuned to find out what awards for which they’ve earned nominations.

To quickly run down some of the remaining multiple nominees…
3 Nominations: All-American Rejects, Beyonce, Black Eyed Peas, Dixie Chicks, Mary J. Blige, Pussycat Dolls
2 Nominations: AFI, Busta Rhymes, Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, James Blunt, Johnny Cash, Justin Timberlake, Kanye West, KoRn, Lupe Fiasco, Missy Elliot, Muse, Ne-Yo, OutKast, Pearl Jam, Pink, Prince, System of a Down, T.I., Tool, The Wreckers

ALRIGHT – enough of me talking! We’re going to take a little break but when we get back, I will reveal the nominees for the returning Country genre. And before you run away, you might still want to stick around. Right after that I will officially reveal the six nominees for the coveted Viewer’s Choice Award.

Alright, we’re back! This year marks the return of the Country Awards to the Popfusion Music Awards. Back by popular demand, it’s time for some of Country music’s biggest stars to take the stage. This year, Carrie Underwood and the Dixie Chicks – who have 3 nominations overall – are looking to reign at the top, though other artists such as Dolly Parton, Michelle Branch’s band The Wreckers, and the late great Johnny Cash may have something to say about that. Check out the nominees for the 2006 Country Awards.

Best Female Country Song
Carrie Underwood, “Don't Forget to Remember Me”
Miranda Lambert, “New Strings”
LeeAnn Womack, “Twenty Years and Two Husbands Ago”
Dolly Parton, “Travelin' Thru”
Faith Hill, “Mississippi Girl”

Best Male Country Song
Bob Dylan, “Someday Baby”
Johnny Cash, “God's Gonna Cut You Down”
Brad Paisley, “The World”
Tim McGraw, “When The Stars Go Blue”
Dirks Bentley, “Settle For A Slowdown”

Best Group Country Song
Brooks & Dunn, “Play Something Country”
Dixie Chicks, “Not Ready to Make Nice”
The Wreckers, “Leave The Pieces”
Sugarland, “Something More”
Little Big Town, “Bring It On Home”

Best Country Album
Carrie Underwood, Some Hearts
Dixie Chicks, Taking the Long Way
Rascal Flatts, Me & My Gang
The Wreckers, Stand Still, Look Pretty
Faith Hill, Butterflies
Johnny Cash, American V: A Hundred Highways

OutKast. Britney Spears. Kelly Clarkson. From 2003 to 2005, some of music’s biggest stars have taken home the Popfusion Music Award for Viewer’s Choice. It’s one of the most coveted awards of the event because it is the only award where the fans get to choose who the final nominees are. This year that was done through a 64-Song Tournament – an ATRL game mainstay – and these six nominees were left standing.

Viewer’s Choice
Mary J. Blige, “Be Without You”
Black Eyed Peas, “My Humps”
All-American Rejects, “Move Along”
Gnarls Barkley, “Crazy”
JoJo, “Too Little Too Late”
Justin Timberlake f/Timbaland, “SexyBack”

Next up – the Rap/Hip-Hop Awards take the main stage, and there are a couple of surprises. Don’t go anywhere.

ehhh.. I'm kind of upset about viewers choice.

Nevertheless,I hope Move Along gets it.

We’re back again. The Rap/Hip-Hop Awards have always been an interesting bunch come awards night. Some great upsets, including Ms. Dynamite winning in 2003 for the next award I’m about to reveal, have occurred in this genre. This year, two female MCs, including another British rapper and the self-proclaimed Queen of the South, are looking to upset two female heavyweights and a buzzworthy up-and-comer. Check out the nominees for Best Female Rap/Hip-Hop Song!

Best Female Rap/Hip-Hop Song
Lil’ Kim, “Whoa”
Khia, “Snatch The Cat Back”
Remy Ma, “Conceited”
Missy Elliot, “We Run This”
Lady Sovereign, “Love Me or Hate Me”

For the past three years, the Black Eyed Peas have completely owned the Golden A for Best Group Rap/Hip-Hop Song. Last year they faced their stiffest competition and still won. This year, the competition is even tougher, and they may or may not be so lucky. Here are the nominees.

Best Group Rap/Hip-Hop Song
Purple Ribbon All-Stars f/Big Boi, “I’m On It (Kryptonite)”
Field Mob f/Ciara, “So What”
Black Eyed Peas, “My Humps”
OutKast f/Sleepy Brown & Scar, “Morris Brown”
Three Six Mafia f/8Ball, MJG & Young Buck, “Stay Fly”

Best Male Rap/Hip-Hop Song represents a lot of things, and it’s almost a given that these five nominees have the more pride in skills than most MCs have in their pinky toe. And if you’re Lupe Fiasco, you have double the reason to be confident. You’ll see why when you check out the nominees for Best Male Rap/Hip-Hop Song.

Best Male Rap/Hip-Hop Song
Kanye West f/Lupe Fiasco, “Touch The Sky”
T.I., “What You Know”
Busta Rhymes, “Touch It”
Sean Paul, “Temperature”
Lupe Fiasco, “Kick Push”

Finally in this genre and in every genre, we have the Album Award. Most of the nominees have already been mentioned, but an underdog slipped in and here lies the first of eight nominations for 2006 PMA powerhouse Gnarls Barkley. These are the nominees for Best Rap/Hip-Hop Album.

Best Rap/Hip-Hop Album
T.I., KING
Busta Rhymes, The Big Bang
Sean Paul, The Trinity
Jurassic 5, Feedback
OutKast, Idlewild
Gnarls Barkley, St. Elsewhere

Before we go to break, I want to take some time to show you the nominees for Best Song from a Film. Reason being, five of the six nominees for the award this year have some connection to rap/hip-hop. So it seemed fitting to reveal to you now the nominees for Best Song from a Film.

Best Song from a Film
Sean Paul f/Keyshia Cole, “Give It Up To Me” (Step Up)
Missy Elliot, “We Run This” (Stick It)
Cobra Starship, “Snakes on a Plane (Bring It)” (Snakes on a Plane)
Beyonce f/Slim Thug, “Check On It” (The Pink Panther)
Ciara f/Chamillionaire, “Get Up” (Step Up)
Kanye West f/Twista & Keyshia Cole, “Impossible” (MI: III)

We’re gonna take a little break but when we get back, Rock takes the stage. Also, I’ll reveal the newest award to the Popfusion Music Awards. You won’t want to miss this!

Khia, “Snatch The Cat Back”


DEAD!!!!!!!!!!!

Welcome back! The Rock Awards have been ever-changing when it comes to the Popfusion Music Awards. This year, however, there’s finally some stability and two of the original awards are back. We kick it off with one of them, Best Hard Rock Song.

Best Hard Rock Song
Coheed and Cambria, “Welcome Home”
Tool, “Vicarious”
Avenged Sevenfold, “Seize The Day”
KoRn, “Twisted Transistor”
AFI, “Miss Murder”

The nominations for Best Alternative Song were very interesting. It’s a shame that only five songs could be nominated because this was one of the tightest races of all the categories. This is the first appearance of Panic! At The Disco, but any one of these five nominees could walk away with the Golden A for Best Alternative Song.

Best Alternative Song
Panic! At The Disco, “But It’s Better If You Do”
Snow Patrol, “Chasing Cars”
The Fray, “Over My Head (Cable Car)”
Regina Spektor, “Fidelity”
All-American Rejects, “Move Along”

This next award has seen some big nominees and big winners in the past. This year will be no exception as three veterans and two relative newcomers step up to try and take home the Golden A for Best Rock Song.

Best Rock Song
System of a Down, “Lonely Day”
Pearl Jam, “Life Wasted”
Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Dani California”
Muse, “Knights of Cydonia”
Taking Back Sunday, “MakeDamnSure”

The award for Best Rock Album turned out quite the race. In the end, these six nominees managed to stand out. Keep an eye out for AFI – they may seem like an underdog, but as the VMAs proved the Despair Faction will be a force to be reckoned with. Here are your nominees.

Best Rock Album
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stadium Arcadium
Pearl Jam, Pearl Jam
System of a Down, Hypnotize
AFI, decemberunderground
Tool, 10,000 Days
Panic! At The Disco, A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out

Alright! I promised to reveal the newest award to the group and I’m going to do it right now. Artists create music as an audible experience. Often, however, artists take the time and effort to create a visual representation of that music. The result is the music video. In the past, it has been one of the most visually striking forms of artistic expression ever displayed. At the same time, it is often carefree and free-spirited. Despite your preference, it was time for these visions of expression to finally have an opportunity to shine. So this year, I bring to you the nominees for the first award for Best Music Video.

Best Music Video
OK Go, “Here It Goes Again”
Madonna, “Hung Up”
Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Dani California”
Gnarls Barkley, “Crazy”
KoRn, “Coming Undone”
All-American Rejects, “Move Along”

Now don’t go anywhere – the awards for R&B and the Billboard Award are all coming up next.

Glad to see you stayed with us! It’s time for the divas and soul stars of R&B to step up. First up, an award that one of the nominees – Destiny’s Child – has won in the past. Last year in fact. These are the nominees for Best Group R&B Song.

Best Group R&B Song
Destiny’s Child, “Stand Up For Love”
Danity Kane, “Show Stopper”
Pussycat Dolls, “Stickwitu”
Gnarls Barkley, “Crazy”
Cherish, “Do It To It”

Some would say that male R&B has declined over the years. Well these five nominees might have something to say about that. A veteran looks to take out 4 youngins in the competition for Best Male R&B Song.

Best Male R&B Song
Ne-Yo, “When You’re Mad”
Anthony Hamilton, “Can’t Let Go”
Chris Brown, “Yo (Excuse Me Miss)”
Prince, “Black Sweat”
Pharrell f/Kanye West, “Number One”

This next award is always one of the most fiercely competitive awards of the night. This year looks to be no exception. Three veterans and two newbies are going to clash with diva-claws out and in full force.

Best Female R&B Song
Keyshia Cole, “Love”
Rihanna, “Unfaithful”
Mary J. Blige, “Be Without You”
Mariah Carey f/Snoop Dogg, “Say Somethin’”
Beyonce, “Ring The Alarm”

The nominees for this next award were pretty crazy in the nomination round. In the end, only six nominees could remain standing and these are them: the nominees for Best R&B Album.

Best R&B Album
Kelis, Kelis Was Here
Mary J. Blige, The Breakthrough
Jamie Foxx, Unpredictable
Corinne Bailey Rae, Corinne Bailey Rae
Rihanna, A Girl Like Me
Prince, 3121

Since it’s inception, the Billboard Award has honored some of the chart’s biggest stars of the previous year. This year will be no exception as all six nominees each had their song go #1 on the Hot 100 chart. No matter who wins, nobody loses. That’s one of the great things about this award. Here are the 2006 nominees for the Billboard Award.

Billboard Award
James Blunt, “You’re Beautiful”
Shakira f/Wyclef Jean, “Hips Don’t Lie”
Sean Paul, “Temperature”
Nelly Furtado f/Timbaland, “Promiscuous”
Rihanna, “S.O.S.”
Beyonce f/Slim Thug, “Check On It”

Pop. Dance. Next. Need I say more? You know you’re not going anywhere.

Ah, Pop. The catch-all of the music world. Really most of the artists nominated so far could be considered “pop” in some fashion. But we’ve singled out these people in particular. We’ll start with the guys; here are the nominees for Best Male Pop Song.

Best Male Pop Song
Daniel Powter, “Bad Day”
Nick Lachey, “What’s Left of Me”
Jack Johnson, “Upside Down”
Justin Timberlake f/Timbaland, “SexyBack”
James Blunt, “You’re Beautiful”

Not many pop groups shined this past year. The ones who did, however, you can find right here. These are the nominees for Best Group Pop Song.

Best Group Pop Song
t.A.t.U., “All About Us”
Fort Minor f/Holly Brook, “Where’d You Go”
Dixie Chicks, “Not Ready To Make Nice”
Pussycat Dolls, “Buttons’
Aly & A.J., “Chemicals React”

Words can’t begin to express how big this next award is. This award has been looked at in the past as one of the hardest to choose a winner. Past results would suggest just that, as this award has resulted in the past in one of the top 5 closest races ever. And these five ladies definitely have what it takes to make this a close race. These are the nominees for Best Female Pop Song.

Best Female Pop Song
Madonna, “Hung Up”
Pink, “Who Knew”
Shakira f/Wyclef Jean, “Hips Don’t Lie”
Christina Aguilera, “Ain’t No Other Man”
Nelly Furtado f/Timbaland, “Promiscuous”

Another category that is often too close to call is Best Pop Album. Christina Aguilera returns to reclaim the award after winning it in 2003 for Stripped. Can she return to glory by going Back To Basics? Possibly, but five other females might have an issue with that. Here are the estrogen-powered nominees for Best Pop Album.

Best Pop Album
Pink, I’m Not Dead
Christina Aguilera, Back To Basics
Fiona Apple, Extraordinary Machine
Nelly Furtado, Loose
Madonna, Confessions on a Dancefloor
Shakira, Oral Fixation, vol. 2

And what better transition into dance than pop, huh? Well…maybe there is a better one, because the nominees range from pop to hip-hop to R&B. Regardless, Best Dance Song is always a fun category to take a look at. So why don’t you glance at the nominees, huh? Go on, it’s okay. They won’t bite.

Best Dance Song
Rihanna, “S.O.S.”
Sean Paul, “Temperature”
Pussycat Dolls, “Buttons”
Madonna, “Hung Up”
Utada Hikaru, “Passion”
Black Eyed Peas, “My Humps”

Only a few awards remain, and they’re some of the biggest of the night. Song, Artist and Album of the Year are all coming up – right after this.

********

T.I. didn't get a nod for Best Song From A Film? wtf

Alright, we’re into the final stretch! Thank you so much for staying around tonight and being among the first to check out the nominees. It’s always nice to have some company around. One thing I’m very excited about is all the new members that Popfusion has gained and this being their first PMA show. To honor you, I’m dedicating the announcement of this next award to you…or something. These are the very impressive nominees for Best New Artist, just for you.

Best New Artist
Lupe Fiasco
Gnarls Barkley
Carrie Underwood
James Blunt
Panic! At The Disco
Ne-Yo

And now we’re down to the final three awards. “The Big Three”, as they’ve become known. Last year the same six nominees went up against each other in all three awards and three separate artists walked out with wins. There are some similarities this year but that won’t happen this time around. We start off with the stiff competition for the prestigious Song of the Year.

Song of the Year
Panic! At The Disco, “I Write Sins Not Tragedies”
Gnarls Barkley, “Crazy”
Nelly Furtado f/Timbaland, “Promiscuous”
Shakira f/Wyclef Jean, “Hips Don’t Lie”
Rihanna, “S.O.S.”
Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Dani California”

Over the past year, many artists have had some big years. Lots of impressive feats have been accomplished but these six stood out. One returns to the dancefloor, one shook her hips to the top, one band reaffirmed their future legendary status, one diva went back to basics, one eclectic star finally had her star shine, and a newcomer is looking to spoil all their fun. These are the nominees for Artist of the Year.

Artist of the Year
Nelly Furtado
Madonna
Shakira
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Gnarls Barkley
Christina Aguilera

Finally, I am happy to finally announce the nominees for Album of the Year. There are so many stories that could be said about each of these nominees. Christina Aguilera looks to win the award again after taking it in 2003. Gnarls Barkley looks to do what Kanye West couldn’t in 2004 by taking both Best New Artist and Album of the Year (Kanye lost the latter). And Muse just wants everyone to know that they belong in this group no matter what you think. Madonna is looking for validation that she gave her fans exactly what they wanted. And finally, Nelly Furtado is hoping that hooking up with Timbaland gave her exactly what this award is for. These are the nominees for Album of the Year.

Album of the Year
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stadium Arcadium
Nelly Furtado, Loose
Muse, Black Holes & Revelations
Christina Aguilera, Back To Basics
Gnarls Barkley, St. Elsewhere
Madonna, Confessions on a Dancefloor

Thank you for staying with us tonight! Now that the cat is out of the bag as far as the nominees go, you have to make sure your vote is heard! Make sure you vote for your favorites and then be here LIVE, Sunday, October 22nd at 7:30 PM to find out who will be going home with a Golden A!

lmao @ best album of the year noms, they are exactly the same as the ema's ones (plus gnarls)

wow, i gave 5 of 6 nominees for best video

good categories and nominees
viewer's choice category is perfect

Good nominees!

And...GO SHAKIRA!

wtf!! Hilary doesn't have any nominations... go, sHakira!!!

1. Beyonce has 3 noms but there is no mention of that in the spot where you highlighted the people with 3 noms, I'ma need 4 u to fix that. Christina was left out as well

2. I could careless about country but why wasn't Like We Never Loved at All (Faith & Tim) not chosen and where is Jesus Take The Wheel (Carrie)

3. When did Gnarls become Hip-Hop, last time I heard Crazy, he was SINGING to a rock beat?? Y in da hell is Khia even nominated??

4. When did Rihanna become R&B That album is pop. Pussycat Dolls is POP Pharrell can't sing but that neither here nor there, just wanted to point it out. but I do congratulate yall for nominating my favorite ladies, Destiny's Child, and for my tied all time favorite, Stand Up For Love

5. WTH is Utada That is proof of why we need an International category When Dixie chick is nominated for a clearly COUNTRY song, thats when you know that Pop has gone downhill. (Which is why PCD should have been here )

6. Everything else is fine

Holy crap, Muse got nominated for Album?!

Album Of The Year is REALLY good this year, maybe the best it has ever been.

Muse recognition in AOTY is great.

Yay for The Wreckers

Cant wait to see what goes down!

Christina was not left out - she has four nominations and is highlighted with Panic! At The Disco in the same paragraph. The Beyonce error has been fixed.

I'll also take this moment to make this note, yet again and for the fourth year in a row. Nobody is ever satisfied at 100% of the nominees, and that's absolutely fine. However, that won't ever change. The reason being is because collectively this list of nominees is meant to represent the opinions of all (or at least the vast majority) of ATRL users. This is not to say that every nominee in every category will be satisfactory to all users. It means that in every category (that you have some interest in) will likely have at least one, often two, usually more nominees that you agree with. It seems I make this point every year, but I figure I'll just do it here once for 2006 and hopefully let it die.

I do want to say, however, that I do listen to all of the criticism and acknowledge it. That's part of how I try to make the awards better every year. Remember though, there's a big difference between just complaining and criticism; the latter of which I will be much more receptive.

Actually, for the awards that matter the most to me, I think they are better than they have ever been. For the most part, everyone got it right.