QUICK TAKES - Oct. 14, 2009

By Todd Martens

Oct. 14, 2009 12 AM PT

A fast-rising country superstar and a fallen pop icon dominated the nominees for the 2009 American Music Awards announced Tuesday.

Taylor Swift, who was the bestselling artist of 2008, leads all nominees for the fan-voted gala with six, including recognition in the artist of the year field. Yet in major categories she’ll be up against sentimental favorite Michael Jackson, who has dominated sales and headlines since his death June 25. He received five nominations, including artist of the year.

Unlike the industry-voted Grammy Awards, the American Music Awards base their nominations on sales and radio data from Nielsen. That allowed Jackson’s 2003 greatest hits package “Number Ones” to score a nod for favorite album, where it will compete against Lady Gaga’s “The Fame” and Swift’s “Fearless.”

The American Music Awards will air live for the East Coast from downtown’s Nokia Theatre on ABC at 8 p.m. Nov. 22. The awards are determined by online voting from fans.

-- Todd Martens

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Todd Martens

Todd Martens is a features columnist at the Los Angeles Times who writes about theme parks and West Coast Experiences, among other topics. Martens joined the Los Angeles Times in 2007 and has covered a mix of interactive entertainment as its game critic and pop music as a reporter and editor. Previously, he reported on the music business for Billboard Magazine. Martens has contributed to numerous books, including “The Big Lebowski: An Illustrated, Annotated History of the Greatest Cult Film of All Time.” He continues to torture himself by rooting for the Chicago Cubs and, while he likes dogs, he is more of a cat person.

QUICK TAKES - Oct. 14, 2009

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