Gorillaz, the cartoon indie-beat band formed by Damon Albarn of the rock band Blur, picked up six nominations, including best group, in the eighth annual MTV Europe Music Awards noms, announced here Tuesday.
Gorillaz will compete with Destiny’s Child, Limp Bizkit, R.E.M. and U2 for the best group prize in a ceremony to be aired live Nov. 8 on MTV’s worldwide channels from Frankfurt, Germany. Additionally, Gorillaz’ international hit single “Clint Eastwood” is up for best song.
Nominees in the female act category include Dido, Janet Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna and Mariah Carey, while Robbie Williams, Eminem, Ricky Martin, Shaggy and Craig David will compete for the male act award.
Britney Spears faces off against ‘N Sync, Atomic Kitten, Anastacia and Shaggy in the pop category.
In the video category, Fatboy Slim’s “Weapon of Choice,” which grabbed six trophies this month at the MTV Video Music Awards in New York, goes against the Avalanches’ “Since I Left You,” Gorillaz’ “Clint Eastwood,” OutKast’s “Ms. Jackson” and Robbie Williams’ “Supreme.”
Performers on the show will include Destiny’s Child, Dido, Jackson, David, Depeche Mode and German rockers Rammstein. British comic Sacha Baron Cohen (aka Ali G) will host the show.
Brent Hansen, president and chief executive of MTV Networks Europe, said the United Kingdom’s Channel 4 will partner with MTV to provide terrestrial coverage of the ceremony along with Germany’s RTL2, which also covered last year’s awards show.
Hansen said MTVi Europe, its interactive division, will also provide coverage and introduce a first-time prize for an artist-related Web site.
A complete list of nominees follows.
GROUP
Destiny’s Child, Gorillaz, Limp Bizkit, R.E.M., U2
FEMALE ACT
Dido, Janet Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Mariah Carey
MALE ACT
Robbie Williams, Eminem, Ricky Martin, Shaggy, Craig David
SONG
Eminem, “Stan”; Destiny’s Child, “Survivor”; Crazy Town, “Butterfly”; Gorillaz, “Clint Eastwood”; Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya, Pink, “Lady Marmalade”
ALBUM
Limp Bizkit, “Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water”; Madonna, “Music”; U2, “All That You Can’t Leave Behind”; Travis, “The Invisible Band”; Dido, “No Angel”
POP
Atomic Kitten, Britney Spears, Anastacia, ‘N Sync, Shaggy
NEW ACT
Craig David, Dido, Gorillaz, Nelly Furtado, Wheatus
ROCK
Blink-182, Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Crazy Town, U2
DANCE
Basement Jaxx, Daft Punk, Gorillaz, Faithless, Roger Sanchez
R&B
Craig David, Destiny’s Child, Janet Jackson, OutKast, Wyclef Jean
HIP-HOP
D-12, Eminem, Missy Elliott, P. Diddy, OutKast
VIDEO
The Avalanches, “Since I Left You”; Fatboy Slim, “Weapon of Choice”; Gorillaz, “Clint Eastwood”; OutKast, “Ms. Jackson”; Robbie Williams, “Supreme”
THE WEB AWARD
Daft Punk, www.daftclub.com; Depeche Mode, www.depechemode.com; Gorillaz, www.gorillaz.com; Limp Bizkit, www.limpbizkit.com; U2, www.u2.com
NORDIC ACT
Briskeby, Emmi, Eskobar, Safri Duo, Titiyo
U.K. & IRELAND ACT
Artful Dodger, Craig David, Feeder, S Club 7, Sugababes
FRENCH ACT
Manu Chao, Daft Punk, Demon, St. Germain, Supermen Lovers
DUTCH ACT
Anouk, Bastian, Brainpower, Johan, Kane
ITALIAN ACT
Elisa, Marlene Kuntz, Neffa, Valeria Rossi, Tiromancino
SPANISH ACT
Jarabe de Palo, Najwa, La Oreja de Van Gogh, Los Piratas, Alejandro Sanz
POLISH ACT
Fiolka, Reni Jusis, Kasia Kowalska, Myslovitz, Smolik
GERMAN ACT
Die Arzte, Echt, No Angels, Rammstein, Samy Deluxe
RUSSIAN ACT
Zemphira, B-2, Mumiy Troll, Tatu, Alsou