BWU AWARDS 2009: Gaga's Eight Sweep, Maxwell Surprise

The winners of the BWU Awards 2009 are in, and as expected, Gaga was the true dominator of 2009.

The "Poker Face" singer won eight awards out of her eleven nominations, including the "Big Four": Artist, Single, Video, and Album of the Year. In the Artist of the Year category, Lady Gaga gained 65% of the vote, but it wasn't her highest winning margin. In the Best Pop Artist category, she scored a staggering 81% of the vote, making her tied for the highest vote margin of the year. The other winner to score 81% of the vote was Taylor Swift in the Best Country Single category; she also won Best Country Artist.

"Empire State of Mind" helped Jay-Z and Alicia Keys bring home two awards, for Best Collaboration and Best Hip-Hop Single. Jay-Z won "Best Hip-Hop Artist", upsetting seven-time nominee Drake. He won Best New Artist. Alicia Keys easily took "Best R&B Artist".

The biggest surprise came from R&B's biggest comeback Maxwell. After a seven-year absence, the singer won Best Male Artist and Best Male Single, an award he shares with Kid Cudi's Day 'N' Nite. The Best Male Artist category was another that seemed to be Drake's pocket in the beginning of voting.

Dominating in the rock field was Kings of Leon, who took home Best Rock Single and Artist, as well as upsetting 8-time nominee Black Eyed Peas for Best Group Single.

The Gaga sweep shut out many nominees from award glory. 8-time nominee and comeback queen Whitney Houston was left empty-handed. Beyonce only won Best Female Single, despite getting 9 nominations. Also felled by Gaga's domination were Rihanna and Leona Lewis.

The full winners' list will be posted later tonight, and the new BWU Website will have full coverage of the 2009 Awards, including pictures, percentages, and more at bwu.brandonsbestworst.com.

The BWU Awards 2009 Ballot

BWU AWARDS 2009 UPDATE #1: Gaga, Drake Dominate

The first week of the 2009 BWU Awards has passed, and so far, there are some very clear leads.

Lady Gaga, who has eleven nominations this year, has a lock in five categories, including two of the big ones (can you guess?). Meanwhile, Canadian rapper Drake has virtually no contest in two categories (I'll spoil one for you guys, Best New Artist).

One more little leak: one of the BIG categories is a deadlock between three of the biggest artists of the year. Right now, it's anyone's game.

If you haven't voted yet, there is still plenty of time (voting ends on December 30th). Simply follow the link (or at the top of the blog) and cast your ballot in support of your favorites.

I'll have another update for you next Sunday.

Looking Back...at 2009: The Top 5 Comebacks

 
Well, 2009 is winding down (the 2009 BWU Awards are heating up, though) and it seems like the right time to look back at all the craziness that has happened these past 12 months.

First up, the five best comebacks in pop culture, in 2009!

5. Sandra Bullock - America's rom-com sweetheart wrote herself back onto the A-list this year, thanks two huge films: The Proposal and The Blind Side. The comedy, co-starring Ryan Reynolds and Betty White, was one of the summer's biggest movies and reminded fans of a side we haven't seen from Bullock since Miss Congeniality. Then, this past month, Bullock proved to be a formidable opponent to the behemoth called New Moon with The Blind Side, bringing in a respectable $34 million opening weekend. The football flick also brought Bullock heaps of praise and Oscar buzz. One final note: both films rank in the top 2 of her highest grosses ever!

4. Pop music - Blame on Gaga and the Black Eyed Peas, but pure pop music came back in FULL force this year, after years of R&B domination. Radio was flooded with electro-styled and rock-infused hits from everyone ranging from Beyonce all the way to Owl City. And let's not forget the two biggest pop stars of the year: Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga. The pop supergroup logged a staggering 26 weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100, while Gaga became the first artist ever to have four straight #1 hits on the U.S. charts. Oh, and Madonna realized why she became the Queen of Pop, dumping the hip-hop for the highly danceable "Celebration". Order has been restored.

3. Eminem - Sure, he got overshadowed by Susan Boyle this past week, but Eminem's achievements this year are nothing to sneeze at. The rapper, after four-year absence, returned to the game with Relapse, which sold over 600,000 copies its first week. He also scored his first #1 single in seven years, successfully humiliated Mariah Carey after the "Obsessed" debacle, and stole Drake's spotlight on "Forever". And he's not done yet, dropping the re-release of his album later this month. Not too shabby, Shady.

2. Whitney Houston - It may not be as crystal-clear as it used to be, but "The Voice" still had the pipes to show the little girls how its done. Whitney, after a tumultuous seven years that left her drugged, divorced, and embarrassed beyond belief, dusted herself off and reclaimed her title as diva with her album I Look To You, which sold 300,000 copies its first week. She helped Oprah get her best ratings in years with a shocking tell-all interview, and she received the International Artist at this year's American Music Awards. Crack may be wack, but Whitney sure as hell isn't.

1. Michael Jackson - The King of Pop's world-shaking death opened his timeless music to a whole new wave of fans. The Gloved One sold over four million albums since his June passing, making him the best-selling artist of the year, again. After years of his craft being overshadowed by crazy, Michael Jackson is back to being known as the best pop music artist in history

BWU AWARDS 2009 Nominations Announced!

It's that time of year again! The 2009 BWU Awards are officially underway as the nominees are announced!

Leading the pack in nominations is Lady Gaga with eleven nominations, including Best Single, Best Artist, and Best Album. Following close behind her is Beyonce, clocking in with 9 nominations for her songs "Sweet Dreams" and "Halo", the former nominated for Best Single.

The most nominated male artist is Canadian rapper Drake, who has spots in 9 categories, including a double nomination in Best Hip-Hop Single ("Best I Ever Had" and "Forever"). He'll be duking it out with Gaga and Beyonce in the two big categories, Best Single and Best Artist.

Spending 26 weeks on the top of the US charts guaranteed nominations for the Black Eyed Peas, who have eight.

It seems like winter has been the stage for Rihanna and Chris Brown's pop battle, and it's reflected in the awards as they duke it out in the Best Ballad category. Rihanna out-nods Chris 8-5, including Video of the Year.

Comeback queen Whitney Houston cements her return to pop with 8 nominations, including Best Single and Artist.

You can see the full nomination list here or you can begin voting by clicking the three links below (the links go to different sections of the ballot!):

PART 1
PART 2
PART 3