Swift leads award nominations

Taylor Swift chalks up six American Music Award nominations, including Artist of the Year and Single of the Year.

LOS ANGELES • Taylor Swift led the field on Tuesday with six nominations for the 2015 American Music Awards, followed closely by British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran and Canadian R&B singer The Weeknd.

Swift, Sheeran and The Weeknd, who have all dominated the music charts this year, will compete for the biggest prize - Artist of the Year - in the fan-voted awards show taking place in Los Angeles on Nov 22.

Swift, 25, won nominations in virtually every category for which she is eligible, including Pop/Rock Album for her best-selling release 1989, which cemented her switch from country music to dance-pop. She also will compete with Ariana Grande and Meghan Trainor for Pop/Rock Female and her song Blank Space is among the nominees for Single of the Year.

Sheeran and The Weeknd each had five nominations.

Trainor, country newcomer Sam Hunt, British singer Sam Smith, rapper Nicki Minaj and indie rock band Walk The Moon each had three nominations. Hunt and Walk The Moon also picked up nods for New Artist, along with The Weeknd, rapper Fetty Wap and Swedish indie pop singer Tove Lo.

Music superstars Beyonce and Justin Bieber racked up just one nomination apiece after a quiet year.

The American Music Award nominations are based on fan interaction as reflected on Billboard magazine and its website, including album and digital sales, radio airplay, social media and touring.

Fan voting opened online on Tuesday and the 10 Artist of the Year nominees will be narrowed to five based on votes received by Nov 11.

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 15, 2015, with the headline Swift leads award nominations. Subscribe