Dec 6, 2007 5:31 am US/Pacific
Swift: Best Birthday Gift Would Be A Grammy Nom
LOS ANGELES (AP) ―
Things couldn't get much better for country star Taylor Swift.
Her self-titled debut album has gone double-platinum, the Recording
Academy invited her to help announce Thursday's 50th annual Grammy
nominations, she was considered a favorite in the best new artist
category, and her 18th birthday is less than one week away.
"I can't believe all this has happened in just one year," she told The Associated Press. "There's a lot to celebrate!"
Particularly if Swift was to find herself among the nominees — not that she was expecting it.
"I want to have a good day whether I get nominated or not," she said.
Although appearing at the announcement ceremony wasn't a guarantee of a nomination, it was pretty close.
"It's a real honor," Swift said, adding that she might hyperventilate if her own name is called.
Other artists slated for announcing duties Thursday included Akon and Fergie. Both were likely nominees.
Akon was fresh from his victory at last month's American Music
Awards, where he was named favorite male soul/rhythm & blues
artist. The 34-year-old hip-hop star pleaded not guilty Tuesday to
criminal charges filed after he tossed a 15-year-old boy off the stage
at a concert earlier this year.
"I know how hard his struggles have been and he's come a long way," said Grammy-nominated producer Sean Garrett.
Garrett had a hand in Fergie's debut album, "The Duchess," which generated several hits, including "Big Girls Don't Cry."
"She had an incredible album," said Garrett, who produced the hit
"London Bridge." "It's still getting played and still selling like
35,000 copies a week."
The two artists who were likely to lead the slate of nominees, Kanye West and Amy Winehouse, were each in need of good news.
West weathered the unexpected death of his mother last month, and
Winehouse has been battling health problems that forced her to cancel
scores of shows.
Grammy-winning producer John Shanks doesn't think the soul singer's troubles will hurt her Grammy chances.
"I think the sound of that album made an impact," he said.
While West has won several Grammys in his relatively short career,
they have all come in the rap categories, despite his two nominations
for album of the year. That would change if he was nominated for best
album, record or song of the year.
But he faced tough competition from some legendary veterans. Paul
McCartney and Bruce Springsteen each released acclaimed albums this
year: McCartney's "Memory Almost Full" was full of cheerful nostalgia
while Springsteen's "Magic" marked his return to full-fledged rock.
Other likely nominees included Beyonce and Rihanna, the women
behind two of the most ubiquitous songs of 2007: "Irreplaceable" and
"Umbrella."
"She works really hard and I think at some point you've really
got to give it up for her," Garrett said of Beyonce. "She's been doing
it a long time and she's still at the top of her game."
Meanwhile, Shanks was partial to "Umbrella."
"To me 'Umbrella' is the song of the year," he said. "It works
as an R&B song, you can play that song on an acoustic guitar and it
would still work ... It still works however way you dress that thing
up."
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