Grammys 2011: Is this the year the Grammys surprise us?

The annual pastime that is predicting the Grammy Awards lost a little of its excitement after the 2010 ceremony. Don't worry, Taylor Swift supporters, this isn't a criticism of the country-pop artist winning the album of the year prize. With her latest effort, "Speak Now," Swift has affirmed her status as a likable artist with widespread commercial appeal. The voters who gifted Swift with top honors this year can breathe easy. Their anointed artist is not a teen pop fad.

Yet despite 109 categories, Grammy voters took a narrow focus for the 2010 awards. The top nominations were spread among very few artists, with Swift, Beyonce, Lady Gaga and the Black Eyed Peas all earning repeat mentions.  In fact, Beyonce, Lady Gaga and Swift had a combined 23 nods.  Voters can point to the bevy of genre categories as an example of the awards'   inclusiveness, but when it comes to anything that actually happens on network television, one didn't have to look beyond the top of the charts to make an accurate prediction. 

The Grammys, of course, have always put popularity first. This is no shock, but compare the Grammys to the Academy Awards. Oscar earlier this year went with "The Hurt Locker," choosing an independent, low-budget war film over the 3-D blockbuster and technologically  crowd-pleasing  achievement that was "Avatar." You want adventure on the Grammys? How about jazz icon Herbie Hancock winning album of the year for reinterpreting Joni Mitchell songs? 

Alas, when it comes to legitimate award shows, the Grammys are all music fans have. And the ol' Recording Academy voting bloc has occasionally served up something unexpected, such as M.I.A.'s receiving a record of the year nod for "Paper Planes," or Gnarls Barkley's snaring an album of the year nod for "St. Elsewhere." The glimmers of hope may be small, but they are reasons for optimism.

And thus, here are some of those reasons to tune into Wednesday's Grammy nominations, which will be unveiled live (tape delayed for us West Coasters) on CBS at 10 p.m. Pop & Hiss will have live coverage of the nomination concert beginning at 7 p.m. PST, and will provide instant analysis. The nomination concert, held in downtown Los Angeles at Club Nokia, is due to feature performances from Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and Miranda Lambert, among others. 

Awards tracking: CMAs score lowest TV ratings | Denzel wants his Oscars to chat | Tina Fey wins Mark Twain Prize

? The Country Music Assn. Awards drew 16.5 million viewers and a 4.7 preliminary rating among adults 18-49. "That was easily enough to give ABC a ratings victory, but also represents the annual telecast's weakest delivery (guess Gwyneth Paltrow making her country singing debut wasn't quite the draw)," reports James Hibberd. HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

? "Brad Paisley doing country versions of Lady Gaga songs in the opening monologue" of the Country Music Assn. Awards scored an "A" from L.A. Times' Pop & Hiss scribe Todd Martens. However, Paisley got slapped with a "D" for his rendition of "Back to December" later in the show. Martens grades all of the kudofest's big numbers, including Taylor Swift ("B+) and Kenny Chesney (F). POP & HISS

? What were they wearing as the country stars arrived on the CMA red carpet? Check out The Envelope's photo gallery.

? "I sell them! No, the Oscars I keep next to each other, so they can chat!" says two-time Academy Award champ Denzel Washington ("Training Day," "Glory"). HOLLYWOOD.COM

? Us Weekly film critic Thelma Adams sends us this updated Oscar assessment: "Now that I've seen 'Rabbit Hole,' sorry, Nicole Kidman. You will not be nominated for that downward-spiral bummer. This one's disappearing down the proverbial rabbit hole. So, who in her place? My guess is Lesley Manville ('Another Year') on the rise. There will be more movement on the best supporting actress race, but best actress is solidifying. On the open question Annette Bening or Natalie Portman, it’s still too close to call. The real jockeying from here on out will be in the competitive best supporting actress race." THELMADAMS.COM

? When Tim Appelo worked as an editor at Amazon, he observed what a huge impact an e-mail blast from the company had when it did promos for books and DVDs. Now that Amazon.com is hyping its list of editors' picks for best films and TV shows of 2010, he wonders "could those innumerably huge e-mails and page views affect the Oscar race?" HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

? Even though director Jean-Luc Godard won't attend the bash for recipients of honorary Oscars on Saturday night, "We are going to honor Monsieur Godard in the same manner that we will honor the others, with grace and style," producer Sid Ganis tells Steve Pond at The Wrap. The others to be feted in person: director/producer Francis Ford Coppola, historian/preservationist Kevin Brownlow and actor Eli Wallach. THE ODDS, THE WRAP

? "Mainstream commercial studio releases such as 'Love & Other Drugs,' 'Secretariat' and 'Morning Glory' are in some ways at a disadvantage without fest support, but that doesn’t mean they are out of the running" for the Oscars, says Anne Thompson. INDIE WIRE

? Tina Fey was in the nation's capital Wednesday to receive the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor from the Kennedy Center. At age 40, she is by far the youngest recipient of this prestigious prize and just the third woman on the honor roll following Whoopi Goldberg (2001) and Lily Tomlin (2003). GOLD DERBY

-- Tom O'Neil

Photo of Taylor Swift: Larry Busacca / Getty Images

Photo of Oscar: Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences

 

Grammy nominations to return in prime time with Miranda Lambert, Justin Bieber and Katy Perry

Nominations for February's Grammy Awards will again be unveiled during a prime-time special on CBS, with LL Cool J returning to host and performances promised from teen sensation Justin Bieber and rising country star Miranda Lambert. The cumbersomely titled "The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!! -- Countdown to Music's Biggest Night" will air live from downtown L.A.'s Club Nokia on Dec. 1 at 10 p.m. EST. The special will be tape-delayed for West Coast viewers. 

Expect performers on the program to walk away with a few Grammy nominations. Bieber is in line for a best new artist nod, and Lambert became the country frontrunner after she snared nine Country Music Assn. Award nominations. That show will air Wednesday night on ABC, and sister blog Pop & Hiss will offer instant reviews of the performances. 

In addition to Katy Perry, the performance lineup is rounded out by slick pop rapper B.o.B. with R&B singer and pop hitmaker Bruno Mars, no doubt performing their hit "Nothin' On You." Perry's "Teenage Dream" was submitted for song of the year consideration, B.o.B. is another best new artist candidate and Mars had a hand in many a hit 2010 song, either as a performer or songwriter. Notably in Travie McCoy's "Billionaire" and Cee-Lo Green's "Forget You," among many others.

Grammys 2011: Eminem, Arcade Fire, Jay-Z in line for major nominations?

Grammy time is nigh. The ballots for the 2011 awards are due Wednesday, and while Awards Tracker isn't a voting member of the Record Academy, we rub shoulders with those who are, and the ballots have made their way to our desks.

Our sister blog Pop & Hiss has already begun putting them to use, posting some early Grammy procrastinating. Album of the year is the category currently under examination at Pop & Hiss, and in the first part of a two-part blog series, Pop & Hiss details five potential album of the year nominees. 

Eminem's "Recovery" is considered a favorite, as it is seen as a more serious turn than his 2009 album "Relapse," and Arcade Fire had a hot-selling release in "The Suburbs." But could the 2011 awards, set for Valentine's Day Eve on Feb. 13, net Jay-Z his first-ever album of the year nod? And could this be a breakout awards for rising country star Miranda Lambert? 

Head to Pop & Hiss for the analysis.

-- Todd Martens

Left photo: Eminem. Credit: Robert Gauthier /Los Angeles Times

Middle photo: Miranda Lambert. Credit: Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times

Right photo: Arcade Fire's Win Butler. Credit: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times