AMA Awards Preview

L O S   A N G E L E S, Jan. 8 -- Back in 1974, Dick Clark decided the American public needed another awards show, specifically one that let the people choose their favorite musicians and records.

After all, the prestigious Grammy Awards were chosen by a panel of industry types. (You know, folks who get records for free.) So, ever the opportunist, Clark called his little show The American Music Awards, and he put them on ABC a few weeks before the Grammys.

Don’t be fooled by the name. The artists nominated are not necessarily American, but they are chosen by residents of the red, white and blue. How patriotic!

Tonight, the 28th annual American Music Awards will be handed out live at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, and broadcast live at 8 p.m. ET on the Dick Clark network, ABC.

Hosting this year’s AMAs is everybody’s favorite pop tart, Britney Spears. At just 19 years old, Spears will be the youngest hostess of the show since Debbie Gibson did the honors back in 1989. Debbie Gibson? Sorry, she’s Deborah now and a serious actress. (In other words, no career.) Britney may meet the same fate 10 years from now, but hey, Behind The Music is ready and waiting.

Will the Cowboy Crowd Embrace Crossover Faith? Three types of music are in the spotlight at the AMAs — Pop/Rock, Soul/R&B and Country. Each of those categories has five award groups — Favorite Male Artist; Favorite Female Artist; Favorite Band, Duo, or Group; Favorite Album and Favorite New Artist.

Four other music types: Rap/Hip-Hop; Alternative; Adult Contemporary and Latin only get a Favorite Artist award. Rounding things out are Favorite Soundtrack and an Internet vote for Internet Artist Of The Year.

Go to abc.com to click your vote for that one. As you can see, there are a lot fewer categories at the AMAs than at the Grammys.

The big nominee this year is Faith Hill. She’s up for four American Music Awards, including Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist. Though she’s become wildly popular on a nationwide scale as a mainstream artist, Faith has alienated a lot of her core fans, the ones that embraced her as a country artist.