Backstage At The AMAs
(01.09) Source - Wall Of Sound: Teen pop got the short end of the stick Monday night � and one of the reasons was Creed, whose Human Clay took the Favorite Pop/Rock Album prize from *NSYNC and Britney Spears.
�����"We never thought we would ever, ever, ever be in a category with *NSYNC or Britney Spears," singer Scott Stapp told the press backstage. "And that's not anything negative towards those two artists � it's just, we're a rock band."
�����But he added that its pop success has an upside. "Our songs have opened so many doors for other up-and-coming rock bands. ...Years ago, our kind of music never got played on Adult Contemporary or Top 40 [radio], and now they are, and other bands are getting a shot. But we never thought...we're just a rock band from Florida."
�����The Backstreet Boys won the battle this time. While they and rivals *NSYNC took home an award, the Boys grabbed the more prestigious Favorite Band, Duo, or Group prize, while *NSYNC won Internet Artist of the Year. The gracious quintet chose not to rub it in backstage, however.
�����"It's not really a rivalry," said Nick Carter. "I went to a football game with [*NSYNC member] Chris [Kirkpatrick] � a Tampa Bay, St. Louis football game. ...There is no rivalry anymore."
�����"Like we've said many times," added Kevin Richardson. "It's just, in the beginning, the way it all started out, our management company, how it all came to be, who we used to be with, who they used to be with, that whole thing, that was hard to deal with."
No Sign From *NSYNC Star
(01.09) Source - Music3W: *NSYNC star Justin Timberlake upset fans in Los Angeles yesterday by refusing to sign autographs. Kevin Roberts waited outside the band's hotel for several hours in order to get an autograph for his younger sister. However, when Timberlake arrived he refused to sign any autographs and his bouncers reportedly even shouted at fans for harassing him.
�����"He was pretty rude, he just blew us off," said Roberts. "The other guys were all really nice to us. JC stopped to sign autographs, so did Chris, but Justin just wasn't interested."
�����As previously reported on music3w.com Timberlake is being sued by the mother of a 15-year-old fan from St Louis after he allegedly subjected her daughter to "verbal abuse and physical intimidation" in a hotel.
�����*NSYNC were in LA for the American Music Awards which were co-hosted by Justin's girlfriend, Britney Spears.
American Music Award Winners
(01.09) Source - Excite: Winners at the 28th Annual American Music Awards:
�����- Pop/Rock -
�����New Artist: 3 Doors Down
�����Male Artist: Kid Rock
�����Album: "Human Clay," Creed
�����Band, Duo or Group: Backstreet Boys
�����Female Artist: Faith Hill
�����- Soul/Rhythm & Blues -
�����Band, Duo or Group: Destiny's Child
�����Album: "Heat," Toni Braxton
�����New Artist: Donnell Jones
�����Female Artist: Toni Braxton
�����Male Artist: Brian McKnight
�����- Country -
�����Album: "Breathe," Faith Hill
�����Female Artist: Faith Hill
�����Band, Duo or Group: Dixie Chicks
�����New Artist: Billy Gilman
�����Male Artist: Tim McGraw
�����- Latin Music -
�����Artist: Enrique Iglesias
�����- Rap/Hip Hop -
�����Artist: Dr. Dre
�����- Alternative Music -
�����Artist: Creed
�����- Other -
�����Adult Contemporary Artist: Celine Dion
�����Soundtrack: "Mission Impossible 2."
�����Award of Merit: Janet Jackson
�����International Artist Award: Aerosmith
�����Internet Fans' Artist of the Year: *NSYNC
Joey Fatone Baby Rumors Swell
(01.09) Source - MTV Asia: *NSYNC's Joey Fatone kept fans guessing as to whether his girlfriend is pregnant with his baby at last night's People's Choice Awards in Los Angeles.
�����Reports fuelled by American gossip columnists are claiming he'll be the first "Bye Bye Bye" singer to become a dad. And he arrived at last night's ceremony holding his girlfriend's hand. An eyewitness says, "She was wearing a smock, and many people commented that she looked like she was in the early stages of pregnancy. All the fans were calling out to him, but he just held her hand tightly as he walked swiftly into the venue."
�����*NSYNC walked away with Favourite Musical Group at the online voting awards, but didn't attend the press room to answer questions from the waiting journalists.
*NSYNC, Garth Brooks, Faith Hill Are People's Choice
(01.08) Source - MTV: The people have spoken, and they say that *NSYNC, Garth Brooks and Faith Hill are their favorites � at least if you listen to the People's Choice Awards, handed out Sunday in Pasadena, California.
�����Less than a week after picking up two Grammy nominations, *NSYNC won the People's Choice Award for Best Musical Group or Band. Their No Strings Attached was the biggest-selling album of 2000, and has shipped more than 10 million copies worldwide, according to the RIAA.
�����The People's Choice honor seemed to make *NSYNC feel bighearted � specifically toward the woman who held the trophies until they were presented to the winners. "We went outside and raised $500 for the tip � your trophy girl," group member Justin Timberlake said. "We thought we'd be pioneers and start something new."
�����Representatives for *NSYNC could not be reached at press time to clarify whether Timberlake was in fact serious about the donation.
�����*NSYNC invited a few members of their camp, including manager Johnny Wright and their security guards, to accept the award along with them. "We didn't want to be upstaged by the 'Friends' cast," Chris Kirkpatrick said, referring to the sitcom that won Favorite Television Comedy Series.
�����Lance Bass thanked the other nominees in the best group category, Alabama and the Dixie Chicks, saying they were among his favorite groups.
�����*NSYNC have a long way to go before they catch up with Garth Brooks, won his 11th award as Favorite Male Musical Performer on Sunday night. The singer announced his retirement from country music in October after passing the 100 million mark in total album sales, but his fans can expect one more studio album before he hangs up his 10-gallon hat. At the awards show, Brooks performed "When You Come Back to Me Again," from the movie "Frequency."
�����"We didn't do anything this year to deserve this, but it's nice that the people gave it to us," Brooks said backstage.
�����Faith Hill, who won the award for Favorite Female Musical Performer, has become the heir to Shania Twain's country-pop crossover throne, selling more than 5 million copies of her 1999 album, Breathe.
�����After thanking her husband, Tim McGraw, and two daughters for "showing me what love really is," Hill dedicated the award to her fans. "To you guys, I'm telling you something: I love doing this," the singer, who sported a new short hairstyle, said.
�����The People's Choice honors are awarded based on the results of a nationwide Gallup Poll of a sample of 1,200 random voters. Fans are free to pick whomever they wish � no nominees are chosen beforehand.
Misc. *NSYNC News
(01.07) Source - Various: Here's some minor news tidbits for those of you who don't know:
�����~MSN.com is holding an online chat with heartthrob Justin Timberlake of *NSYNC on Monday, January 22, 2001 at 9 PM ET. Catch the chat here.
�����~To help celebrate the festive season, mtvasia.com has created a poll where you, the fans, can vote on the good, bad, and ugly people and quotes that shaped 2000. Justin Timberlake is up for "The Self-Proclaimed Sex Machine Award" for saying "Every relationship I've been in, I've overwhelmed the girl because they just can't handle all the love." Justin is currently blowing away all competition with 1254 (56.1%) votes. Cast your vote now!
�����~Top music video sales for the past week have *NSYNC's "Live At Madison Square Garden" at #3, & "Britney In Hawaii: Live & More" at #4.
�����~This year's Rolling Stone Music Awards have Britney Spears winning as Best Female Performer, *NSYNC with the Best Tour and the Backstreet Boys' 'Black and Blue' as the Best Album. Backstreet Boys also have the best internet site.
�����~Debbie Gibson announced in an interview on KBIG 104.3FM that she met up with Lance Bass & Tiffany for dinner Friday night [Jan. 5th]. All are currently in Los Angeles, CA for the American Music Awards, set to air Monday night [Jan. 8th] at 8PM on ABC.
�����~Friday afternoon on Jenny Jones the show had a Christina Aguilera impersonator [who looked surprisingly like the real thing] who posed an attitude with everyone. A Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears impersonator were also in attendance. The trio performed a humorous skit where 'Christina' was trying to steal 'Justin' from 'Britney.' She was stalking him and finally Britney just kicked her ass.
�����~Music winners at the People's Choice Awards Sunday night included Garth Brooks for male performer, Faith Hill for female performer, and *NSYNC in the group or band category.
*NSYNC's New Album Due In May
(01.06) Source - Launch: *NSYNC is in the studio this month recording the follow-up to its diamond-certified 2000 album No Strings Attached. The new set is scheduled for release in May. *NSYNC singer JC Chasez told Launch that the group will begin a tour in support of the album shortly after its release.
�����Chasez explained: "We're starting to work on the next record now. [In] January [or] February we're beginning it. It's a whole new year and it's a whole new millennium, so we're going to start from the beginning and we're going to just do it all over again. We're going to start with the record - the music comes first. We're not going to do anything else until we get it right, and then once the record's done, we'll hit the road again ."
�����Chasez noted that several tracks *NSYNC is considering for the album are already completed. "I've already heard some of the stuff, so I know it's good," he said. "This new record is going to be pretty hot. The last record was full of energy, and I think some of the energy is going to carry over into this next record. There's going to be a lot of energy in it, but I think it's going to be stylized now. We're experimenting a bit with some different sounds now."
�����Chasez added that it's likely that groupmates Justin Timberlake, Joey Fatone, Chris Kirkpatrick, and Lance Bass will all have production and/or songwriting credits on the new album. "Everybody is going to get more involved. We've had the experience of the last album, and then we're going to take that and put it into the next record, and hopefully, like I said, do it again."
�����The quintet doesn't feel any pressure to match the single-week sales record of 2.4 million they set with No Strings Attached, according to Chasez. "You can't do that every time. Nobody can," he noted. "We're glad that we had a great year this year, and the next important thing for us is another great record itself. Musically, we have to be satisfied with the record now."
�����Last week, *NSYNC received three Grammy nominations for the record-breaking No Strings Attached: best pop vocal album as well as record of the year and best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal for the hit single "Bye Bye Bye."
*NSYNC's Chasez On Xmas Gifts, Football Playoffs
(01.05) Source - Launch: *NSYNC singer was just one of the many musical superstars were on hand at the press conference announcing the nominees for the 43rd annual Grammy Awards. At the nominations, held Wednesday (January 3) at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, *NSYNC learned they're in the running for three Grammy Awards, including the record of the year award for the single "Bye, Bye, Bye" from No Strings Attached.
�����Launch asked Chasez how many *NSYNC marionettes in his likeness he gave away as Christmas gifts to his family. "Oh, I didn't give any of those things, man," he replied. "My family's seen enough of my face, believe me."
�����*NSYNC and Aerosmith will perform at the halftime show for Super Bowl XXXV, while Sting and Styx will join Bon Jovi in the pre-game performances on January 28 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
�����Chasez tells Launch that since his favorite football team, the Washington Redskins, didn't make it to the playoffs, he's hoping the Miami Dolphins will make it into to the Super Bowl. "I'm crushed because the Redskins didn't even make the playoffs this year, but I'm going to root for Miami this year because, you know, I'm a Florida boy."
�����Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer Ray Charles will sing "America The Beautiful" at the Super Bowl, while *NSYNC labelmates the Backstreet Boys will perform the national anthem. Meanwhile, Chasez's pick, the Miami Dolphins, will face off against their long-time AFC adversaries the Oakland Raiders in the playoffs tomorrow (January 6), starting at 4 PM ET and airing on CBS.
*NSYNC Getting Funky On New Album, JC Chasez Says
(01.05) Source - Sonicnet: As they begin work on their fourth album, *NSYNC are searching for ways to funk up their sound without overpacking the punch, JC Chasez said Wednesday.
�����"Everyone's kind of on the aggressive kick now," Chasez said after helping announce the nominees for the 43rd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. "We'll keep the energy in the music, but now I think it's time to find something a little funky. We're going to experiment with sounds and try to create something new."
�����This week the Orlando, Florida, quintet began work on the follow-up to No Strings Attached, the best-selling album of 2000. For now, the group members are working alone, but they'll likely bring in outside producers later on, Chasez said.
�����As usual, they'll record more material than will end up on the LP, Chasez said � a move that helps them put together a cohesive album with the strongest songs. "We always over-record before we cut an album. We'll record double the amount of songs that go on the album, and then we'll pick what stays and what goes."
�����*NSYNC nabbed three Grammy nominations, including Record of the Year, pitting their "Bye Bye Bye" against Destiny's Child's "Say My Name," Macy Gray's "I Try," Madonna's "Music" and U2's "Beautiful Day."
�����"It's kind of bizarre being in the same category as Madonna and U2," said Chasez, who was the only member of *NSYNC at the announcement ceremony. "It's exciting and an honor for sure."
�����But winning wouldn't be earth-shattering, he said. "The Grammys are a wonderful award, but it's not going to change our day-to-day routine. We're going to keep doing exactly what we've been doing."
�����Chasez and the other members of *NSYNC are in Los Angeles for two award shows just around the corner, the People's Choice Awards on Sunday night and the American Music Awards on Monday. They are nominees at both ceremonies. The group will turn up on CNN's "Larry King Live" on Tuesday.
*NSYNC Drove BSB To Make New Sound?
(01.05) Source - MTV Asia: The Backstreet Boys owe a lot to *NSYNC - the younger lads forced them to recreate their latest sound.
The Backstreet Boys revamped their typical boy band sound for new album "Black & Blue" - because their original style had been stolen by *NYSNC.
�����Band member Kevin Richardson explains, "We feel the sound we had created with Max and Dennis at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm has been kind of diluted - what with Britney and *NSYNC - and now it's no longer our sound.
�����"It's a lot of other people's sound and that's frustrating for us. And that is why we are experimenting more with our own production and working with people like Baby Face and Rodney Jenkins."
�����But the singer insists there is no feud between the rival bands - it's just question of management.
�����He adds, "We don't have any problem with the guys personally. They're nice, talented guys. The whole conflict was after we became successful. Our old management company created them in our image and that was a problem for us - that kind of hurt our feelings and drove a wedge between us and our own management."
Napster Voted Year's Biggest Music Story
(01.05) Source - Billboard: The copyright issues surrounding the emergence of online music-file swapping sites such as Napster and MP3.com were the biggest music-related stories of the year, according to 50.9% of 3,079 respondents in a recent Billboard.com poll. This topic dwarfed all others in votes, with the Beatles' return to the top of the worldwide charts placing second with 15.2% of the tally.
�����In third place was the sales dominance of boy bands such as *NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys, with 13.4%. Eminem's eight-week reign atop The Billboard 200 and his ongoing legal troubles came in fourth, with 9.9%.
Misc. *NSYNC News
(01.04) Source - Various: Here's some minor news tidbits for those of you who don't know:
�����~Seems *NSYNC hottie Justin Timberlake took pop princess & girlfriend Britney Spears to a ski resort in Beaver Creek, Colorado over the group's break in touring. It's been mentioned the trip was part of the 19-year-old's Christmas gift to his girl, and as of Tuesday [January 2nd], the two were still roaming the snow-topped Colorado peaks.
�����~JC Chasez, a member of the pop group *NSYNC, attended a news conference on Wednesday [January 3rd] which announced the nominations for the 43rd Annual Grammy Awards Show. The conference was held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. - within the district of Los Angeles, where the Awards Show itself will take place. Chasez participated in the announcing of some of the nominations and was plesently surprized when he & fellow *NSYNC group members Justin Timberlake, Lance Bass, Chirs Kirkpatrick, & Joey Fatone were nominated for three of the prestigious awards, including Best Pop Performance by A Duo or Group with Vocal for "Bye Bye Bye." Fellow musical artists Sisqo, Toni Braxton, and Nelly were there to help present the nominations as well as congratulate Chasez on *NSYNC's categories.
�����~Fresh off their Grammy nominations, the members of *NSYNC will appear - not on MTV or a network that caters to the teen demographic - but on CNN. The group will sit down live with Lary King on his program "Larry King Live" Jan. 9 from 9-10 PM (ET) to discuss the previous year and their "No Strings Attached" album, which holds the record for the fastest-selling album in a single week.
�����~According to the Portuguese newspaper '24 Horas,' Britney Spears was with her boyfriend at a famous Jamaican beach to celebrate the year end. The paper says: "For just 35 thousand dollars a day, Britney Spears and her boyfriend Justin Timberlake preferred Jamaica to spend the New Year's night. Negril Beach, one of the most beautiful aquatic sceneries in the world, was chosen to motivate one of the most hot couples of the last months."
Singing The New
(01.04) Source - E! Online: **Personal Note: I didn't put this up to start anything [rumors & such]...I just thought you all would like to know what's going on - even those silly rumors people love flinging around. I know this rumor as of yet is unconfirmed, but if it IS true [I'm not making any assumptions here!], then I fully support Joey & hope that everyone else will as well. :) Ok...on with the *gag* rumor...**
�����Happier chitter-chatter on the way: Joey Fatone of *NSYNC notoriety is going to be a father, so his musical pals are telling me.
�����I'm told the deliverer of his child (and hers) will be none other than his longtime girlfriend - but as J.F.'s reps haven't returned my calls, I can't nitty-gritty it.
�����Don't know if marriage is in the works as well, but why do I suddenly see this boy band plummeting on the charts as they continue on the road to domesticity?
�����After all, aren't Justin 'n' Brit headed down Beave-Cleave Lane themselves?
�����Then again, Madonna's never made better music in her life, and look at the white-picket moat ac-shun she's been pullin'.
Napster, Shmapster: *NSYNC Rules Record Y2K
(01.04) Source - Excite: So much for the Napster effect.
�����Despite industry types grousing over the proliferation of the song-swapping software, Napster didn't exactly dent CD sales - Y2K was the biggest sales year ever for the music biz.
�����According to SoundScan, the New York-based company that's been keeping tabs on music sales figures since 1991, overall sales were up 4 percent over 1999's previous record (785.1 million units sold from 754.8 million).
�����Last year's hottest album turned out to be *NSYNC's No Strings Attached, which sold 9.9 million copies.
�����No Strings also set a record for first-week sales, moving a whopping 2.4 million copies its debut week on sale. In fact, paced by *NSYNC's disc, there were six albums that broke the 1 million sales figure in their opening week. To put that in perspective, before this year there were only two in SoundScan's 10-year history: Garth Brooks' Double Live and the Backstreet Boys' Millennium, the top-selling disc of 1999 and previous first-week record holder.
*NSYNC Lawsuit Paperwork Finds Its Way Online
(01.03) Source - Launch: The lawsuit filed against *NSYNC singer Justin Timberlake by 15-year-old Danielle McGuire in a St. Louis, Missouri, circuit court has been posted on the website thesmokinggun.com. The site is known for posting celebrity-related official documents that often don't find their way online by any other means. Besides Timberlake, the four other members of *NSYNC are named as defendants as a partnership, the group's management company - Wright Entertainment Group, Inc., Chase Park Plaza Limited Partnership, and the group's production company, Zeeks, Inc.
�����The suit stems from an alleged incident following an *NSYNC concert on November 19 in St. Louis. The plaintiff, McGuire, claims assault, false imprisonment, and battery. McGuire says that when Timberlake quickly rushed past fans waiting in the Chase Park Plaza hotel lobby, she yelled, "I like JC better anyway. He's cuter." McGuire alleges that she was then promptly taken to a remote location of the hotel by security guards and "was verbally abused, and both verbally and physically intimidated by Justin Timberlake."
�����The suit claims that McGuire "suffered from fright, shock, intimidation, severe emotional distress, bodily harm, embarrassment, humiliation, and distress" as a result of the actions of the defendants. Unfortunately for *NSYNC, the public document, which is now posted on the website, also lists the home addresses of the five individual group members.
Justin & Britney On The Town
(01.03) Source - Popcentric: Not only have teen warblers Britney Spears and *NSYNC's Justin Timberlake been cooking up a hot romance; they were seen cooking their own steaks at the Minturn Country Club on New Year's Eve. The sizzling singers slapped their slabs o' beef on the community grill and tended the tenderloins till they were done.
�����"It was pretty hilarious. The fact that they were cooking their own dinner was cracking us up," said Starz Encore marketing maven Laura Dagnon, who had no idea of the identity of the celebrity chefs until the waiter clued her in. "Minturn is such a small town. As the news started spreading, younger kids started coming in and checking it out."
�����Laura's hubby, Mike, tried to warn Timberlake that his steak was getting too much sizzle. "Mike said, 'Hey, buddy, you're overcooking that steak,"' Laura said. "He gave Mike the weirdest look."
�����The cute couple disappointed the growing crowd inside the restaurant by making a great escape through the kitchen.
*NSYNC Top Seller of 2000
(01.03) Source - SoundScan: The album's called No Strings Attached, but judging from how it flew out of stores in 2000, there were plenty of consumers who had no intention of severing ties with *NSYNC. The pop quintet's second album sold 9,936,104 copies in 2000 since its March release, according to sales tracker SoundScan, making it the year's best-selling record by a margin of 2 million copies. That enormous figure was also enough to make it the ninth-best-selling album since 1991, when SoundScan adopted its current method of tabulating sales.
The boy band wasn't the only act to avoid the sophomore slump in grand style: Controversial rapper Eminem and Britney Spears earned the second and third spots on the best seller list � both with their second album.
�����Eminem sold 7,921,107 copies of The Marshall Mathers LP, which was released May 23, while Spears' Oops! � I Did It Again, released a week earlier, sold 7,893,544 units.
Music Specials Named For TV Guide Awards
(01.03) Source - Infobeat: Splashy network television specials by Christina Aguilera, Marc Anthony, Britney Spears, Gloria Estefan and Elton John, are among those nominated for music special of the year in the upcoming TV Guide Awards. *NSYNC nabbed two of the 12 nominations, for "Live From Madison Square Garden" and "'Ntimate Holiday Special," in the category - one of nine new awards to be presented this year. Another new category of note is music series of the year in which Viacom's MTV and VH1 dominate with five out of eight nominated titles, including "Total Request Live" and "Behind The Music." Also nominated is PBS's "Sessions at West 54th" and ABC's "Making The Band." A panel of 115 television executives and producers chose the nominees. Winners will be determined by a public vote via ballots published in the Saturday and Jan. 13 issues of TV Guide, and on the magazine's Web site. The TV Guide Awards will be presented Feb. 24 and broadcast March 7 on Fox television.
Britney's Bust Up With Manager
(01.03) Source - MTV Asia: Pop princess Britney Spears was left crying after a backstage bust-up with her manager, according to the New York press. The "Stronger" hit maker and her manager Johnny Wright both deny they had a blazing row at a recent concert in Madison Square Gardens, New York - but eyewitnesses testify to a shouting match which left the teenage star in floods tears.
�����Sources claim Britney refused to go back on stage at the end, instead told people "to leave her alone."
�����Wright says, "In the two years I've been involved with Britney, we have never once had an argument."
�����However, the singer claims she was never supposed to go back on stage. She and *NSYNC boyfriend Justin Timberlake had to rush off to do some shopping in New York stores that had stayed open especially for them.
*NSYNC Reacts To Its Three Grammy Nominations
(01.03) Source - Launch: *NSYNC is nominated for three Grammy Awards, including the coveted record of the year award for the single "Bye, Bye, Bye," the National Academy Of Recording Arts And Sciences announced today (January 3). The hit song also landed the quintet a nod for best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal. *NSYNC also received a nomination in the best pop vocal album category for No Strings Attached, which sold slightly less than 10 million copies in the year 2000, making it the top-selling album of last year, according to SoundScan's year-end music industry report.
�����Launch asked *NSYNC singer JC Chasez how selling 10 million albums compares to being nominated for three Grammy Awards. "It's just two different ball games, you know?" he replied. "When you sell a record, you're glad to be employed. When you're here, you're glad to be a part of music itself. You know, this is more an artsy-type deal - these are music appreciators and things like that, people that you look up to because of the music that they listen to and things like that. So it's a pretty cool show to be a part of."
�����Album sales and Grammy nods may be "two different ball games," but Chasez says *NSYNC is definitely excited to be a player in the Grammy game this year. "Well, it's pretty cool. I mean, you grow up watching the Grammys. You see all your heroes on there, and now we're finally on here, hanging out with all the people we used to look up to, so it's pretty wild."
�����The 43rd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony will air live on CBS from the Staples Center in Los Angeles on February 21, 2001.
Top-Selling Artists Lead 43rd Annual Grammy Nominations
(01.03) Source - Allstar: The biggest-selling album of the year, *NSYNC's No Strings Attached, was somewhat snubbed by comparison [to Dr. Dre, Destiny's Child, Vince Gill nominations], only managing to impress the Recording Academy in three categories: Record of the Year ("Bye Bye Bye"), Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal ("Bye Bye Bye"), and Best Pop Vocal Album (No Strings Attached).
Grammy Nominations To Be Announced
(01.02) Source - Infobeat: Veteran musicians could face stiff competition from youthful artists such as *NSYNC at the Grammy Award nominations Wednesday. Works by Paul Simon, Eric Clapton, B.B. King and U2 garnered critical acclaim, but the likes of *NSYNC and Britney Spears dominated the charts throughout the year. Grammy voters may dismiss *NSYNC's hit song "Bye Bye Bye" as bubblegum music, but they won't be able to deny the band's immense popularity.
�����Trash-talking rapper Eminem could be the Grammy wildcard for his multi-platinum release, "The Marshall Mathers LP." Despite winning two Grammys last year, Eminem's growing infamy - not to mention assault charges in Michigan - could make him unattractive to the mainstream-minded National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Front-runners for the top nods remained elusive. Singles from veteran rockers Sting and U2 are eligible but their albums came out too early or too late to qualify for some awards. Madonna's album "Music" is a likely contender, but as with Paul Simon's "You're the One," it could be hurt by similarities to the artists' past hits.
Billboard Bits: Grammys
(01.02) Source - MTV Asia: Nominees for the 43rd annual Grammy Awards will be announced tomorrow (Jan. 3) at 8:15 AM PT at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. Along with Recording Academy president/CEO Michael Greene, artists Destiny's Child, Shelby Lynne, Nelly, *NSYNC member JC Chasez, Sisqo, and Toni Braxton, as well as producer David Foster, are expected to be on hand to reveal the nominees.
�����The Grammy Awards will be presented Feb. 21 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, and broadcast on CBS.
Justin: Love And No Sex, Yet
(01.02) Source - MTV Asia: Britney Spears' pop pin-up boyfriend Justin Timberlake appreciates the crazy singer's need to put love before sex - because he's a virgin too. The *NSYNC star admits it's often tough to resist the temptations of groupies, but he's determined to stay pure until his wedding night.
�����He says, "I'm probably the only guy my age that I know who's a virgin and that's ok by me. ...I have the opportunity that most guys would kill for and I just throw it all away - but it's all about love for me. ...I don't follow the crowd and I really don't feel that I need to prove my manhood by jumping in the sack with every girl that comes along."
�����And Timberlake admits one of the reasons why he and Britney are so happy is because they believe in the same values. He adds, "I want to marry a girl who shares the same values I do. I have a lot of friends who messed up their lives because they couldn't keep it zipped."
Tune Biz Humming Retail Blues
(01.01) Source - Excite: Releases from the Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC and Britney Spears all enjoyed a healthy bump in sales over the holiday run, as parents hustled to satisfy the demands of their teen-act-crazy offspring.
�����The dominance of those groups on the record racks made it a very merry Christmas indeed for at least one label - Zomba Recording division Jive Records. Jive, the BMG-distributed indie label that is home to all three of the multiplatinum acts above, has been represented four times in many of the top 20s of the last several months.
�����Part of that presence, said Jive's senior VP of national sales Bob Anderson, should be credited to the fact that the label's artists expand the size of the music market as a whole by drawing new buyers into the market.
�����"We have had the good fortune to make records that have appealed to younger purchasers," Anderson said. "These kids are getting involved in music for the first time in their lives, and at earlier and earlier ages."
�����But music retailers and members of the industry aren't quite as enthusiastic about having just three or four megahits to market to holiday shoppers. Hilary Rosen, president and CEO of the RIAA, told Daily Variety there's a definite concern "that the big numbers in album sales are connected to too few acts."
Large & In Charge: The Top Lists Of 2000
(01.01) Source - Me & Various: 2000 was a highly successful year for the music industry. From the harmonious melodies of pop quintet *NSYNC to the sultry growls of pop princess Britney Spears to the controversal lyrics of rapper Eminem, musicians truly dominated the year. Record companies brought in billions of dollars, selling over 4 billion records to the American public along the way. Yet there had to be loosers to go along with those winners. Find out who dominated the charts - and the market - as the top musical artists of the year.
�������Top 10 Albums Of 2000:
�����01. *NSYNC - "No Strings Attached" [March '00 | 9,936,104]
�����02. Eminem - "The Marshall Mathers LP" [May '00 | 7,921,107]
�����03. Britney Spears - "Oops...I Did It Again" [May '00 | 7,893,544]
�����04. Creed - "Human Clay" [Sept. '99 | 6,587,834]
�����05. Santana - "Supernatural" [June '99 | 5,857,824]
�����06. The Beatles - "1" [Nov. '00 | 5,068,300]
�����07. Nelly - "Country Grammar" [June '00 | 5,067,529]
�����08. Backstreet Boys - "Black & Blue" [Nov. '00 | 4,289,865]
�����09. Dr. Dre - "2001" [Nov. '99 | 3,992,311]
�����10. Destiny's Child - "Writing's on the Wall" [July '99 | 3,802,165]
�������Top 5 Record Labels Of 2000:
�����01. Universal Music Group [25% of sales]
�����02. Warner-Elektra-Atlantic [15%-17% of sales]
�����03. BMG [15%-17% of sales]
�����04. Sony [15%-17% of sales]
�����05. EMD [9.6% of sales]
�����06. ALL Other Labels [16.6% of sales]
�������Top 5 Yahoo! Searches Of 2000:
�����01. Britney Spears
�����02. Pokemon
�����03. World Wrestling Federation
�����04. Eminem
�����05. *NSYNC