The 2015 Billboard Music Awards finalists have been announced, and unsurprisingly, Taylor Swift has dominated the list with 14 nominations, followed by British soul singer Sam Smith and Australian rapper Iggy Azalea who got 13 and 12 nominations, respectively.
It's no wonder Swift and Smith bagged the most number of nominations for the awards show, considering the two were among the best-selling musical acts in the US last year, according to Reuters. The two, who are both singers and songwriters, will compete for some of the show's biggest music awards, including Top Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist, Top Hot 100 Artist and Top Digital Songs Artist.
Aside from Swift and Smith, other finalists contending for the Top Artist award include pop star Katy Perry, Ariana Grande and British boyband One Direction. Smith will compete with Ed Sheeran, Drake, Pharrell Williams and Justin Timberlake for Top Male Artist, while Swift is up against Grande, Perry, Azalea and newcomer Meghan Trainor for Top Female Artist.
According to Billboard magazine, Swift's Billboard chart toppers "Shake It Off" and "Blank Space" have made her a two-time finalist for Top Streaming Song (Video). On the other hand, Smith's debut studio album In The Lonely Hour ranked No. 2 on the Billboard 200, with its three singles "Stay With Me," "I'm Not the Only One" and "Lay Me Down" managing to reach Billboard Hot 100 top 10 hits.
Aussie rapper Azalea is not far behind Swift and Smith, earning 12 nominations including Top New Artist, in which she's pitted against Smith, Trainor, Irish singer Hozier and Australian boyband 5 Seconds of Summer. Azalea also won a nomination for Top Rap Artist, for which she will compete with Drake, J. Cole, Nicki Minaj and Rae Sremmurd.
The Billboard Music Awards magazine said that the finalists were chosen based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital singles sales, radio airplay, touring, streaming and interactions on social media networks like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube as well as on other popular online sites for music.
The 2015 Billboard Music Awards, which honors the year's most successful music artists in 41 categories, will broadcast live on May 17 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on ABC network.
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