This year’s AMAs are set to recognize a group of music’s most powerful men. However, they seem to have missed out on some of the biggest women. The nominations were released today (October 12) ahead of the ceremony, which is set to take place November 19 in Los Angeles’ Microsoft Theater. Bruno Mars leads the field with 8 nominations including coveted nods for Artist of the Year and Video of the Year.
The Chainsmokers, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran and The Weekndtrail him with 5 nominations a piece, while Justin Bieber, Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi each nabbed 4 recognitions. Julia Michaels is going against the boys in the New Artist of the Year category. The “Issues” singer is facing stiff competition from the likes of James Arthur, Niall Horan, Post Malone and Rae Sremmurd, but she may be able to sneak a win considering her banner year.
Halsey appears alongside The Chainsmokers with two nominations for “Closer” while Shakira is up for Favorite Latin Artist, but otherwise women have only been nominated in female-specific categories. Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Alessia Cara and Kehlani are recognized, but several of pop’s leading ladies are notable in their absence.
Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, Lorde, Kesha, Demi Lovato and Ariana Grande fronted some powerful releases this year but did not make the cut for the awards show. It is surprising but reflects back on a severe underrepresentation of women on Billboard’s charts this year. Taylor Swift was the first woman to top the Hot 100 chart on a female-only track with “Look What You Made Me Do,” leaving the chart to be dominated by the men for almost a full year.
The AMAs seemed prepared to respond to a potential backlash for the male-centric nominations. “American Music Awards nominees are based on key fan interactions as reflected in Billboard Magazine and on Billboard.com, including album and digital song sales, radio airplay, streaming, social activity and touring,” they said in a press release. Now that they have selected their nominees it is up to fans to propel their favs to the top of the competition by voting in each category.
The result is disappointing but hardly surprising. After doing away with their gendered categories this year, the MTV VMAs also nominated a lot of male acts for awards. Check out the full list of nominations below!
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
The Chainsmokers
Drake
Kendrick Lamar
Bruno Mars
Ed Sheeran
NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
James Arthur
Niall Horan
Julia Michaels
Post Malone
Rae Sremmurd
COLLABORATION OF THE YEAR
The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey, “Closer”
Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber, “Despacito”
DJ Khaled feat. Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper & Lil Wayne, “I’m The One”
Maroon 5 feat. Kendrick Lamar, “Don’t Wanna Know”
The Weeknd feat. Daft Punk, “Starboy”
TOUR OF THE YEAR
Garth Brooks
Coldplay
U2
VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee, “Despacito”
Bruno Mars, “That’s What I Like”
Ed Sheeran, “Shape of You”
FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – POP/ROCK
Drake
Bruno Mars
Ed Sheeran
FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – POP/ROCK
Alessia Cara
Lady Gaga
Rihanna
FAVORITE DUO OR GROUP – POP/ROCK
The Chainsmokers
Coldplay
Imagine Dragons
FAVORITE ALBUM – POP/ROCK
Drake, More Life
Bruno Mars, 24K Magic
The Weeknd, Starboy
FAVORITE SONG – POP/ROCK
The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey, “Closer”
Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber, “Despacito”
Ed Sheeran, “Shape of You”
FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – COUNTRY
Sam Hunt
Thomas Rhett
Keith Urban
FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – COUNTRY
Miranda Lambert
Maren Morris
Carrie Underwood
FAVORITE DUO OR GROUP – COUNTRY
Florida Georgia Line
Little Big Town
Old Dominion
FAVORITE ALBUM – COUNTRY
Jason Aldean, They Don’t Know
Chris Stapleton, From a Room:, Vol. 1
Keith Urban, Ripcord
FAVORITE SONG – COUNTRY
Sam Hunt, “Body Like a Back Road”
Jon Pardi, “Dirt on My Boots”
Keith Urban, “Blue Ain’t Your Color”
FAVORITE ARTIST – RAP/HIP-HOP
Drake
Kendrick Lamar
Migos
FAVORITE ALBUM – RAP/HIP-HOP
Drake, More Life
Kendrick Lamar, Damn.
Migos, Culture
FAVORITE SONG – RAP/HIP-HOP
DJ Khaled feat. Justin Bieber, Quavo, Chance the Rapper & Lil Wayne, “I’m The One”
Kendrick Lamar, “Humble.”
Rae Sremmurd feat. Gucci Mane, “Black Beatles”
FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – SOUL/R&B
Childish Gambino
Bruno Mars
The Weeknd
FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – SOUL/R&B
Beyonce
Kehlani
Rihanna
FAVORITE ALBUM – SOUL/R&B
Childish Gambino, Awaken My Love!
Bruno Mars, 24K Magic
The Weeknd, Starboy
FAVORITE SONG – SOUL/R&B
Khalid, “Location”
Bruno Mars, “That’s What I Like”
The Weeknd, “Starboy”
FAVORITE ARTIST – ALTERNATIVE ROCK
Imagine Dragons
Linkin Park
Twenty One Pilots
FAVORITE ARTIST – ADULT CONTEMPORARY
Bruno Mars
Shawn Mendes
Ed Sheeran
FAVORITE ARTIST – LATIN
Luis Fonsi
Daddy Yankee
Shakira
FAVORITE ARTIST – CONTEMPORARY INSPIRATIONAL
Lauren Daigle
MercyMe
Chris Tomlin
FAVORITE ARTIST – ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC (EDM)
The Chainsmokers
Calvin Harris
DJ Snake
TOP SOUNDTRACK
Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: Awesome Mix Vol. 2
Moana
Trolls
This article was originally published by: Idolator
