Mars tops Drake, The Weeknd for AMA nods
Bruno Mars is the top nominee with eight nods at the American Music Awards, while The Chainsmokers, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran and The Weeknd all earned five nominations apiece. The nominations were announced Thursday for the fan-voted American Music Awards, with an all-male lineup for the top prize of artist of the year. Mars will compete against The Chainsmokers, Drake, Lamar and Sheeran. Justin Bieber, Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi received four nominations each, including favourite pop/rock song for their hit collaboration, Despacito. Keith Urban leads country artists with three nominations. The show will broadcast live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Nov. 19 on ABC.
MUSIC CMT forgoing formal awards format this year
CMT is forgoing formal award presentations during this year’s artists of the year show and devoting the entire live show to “a night of hope and healing through the power of music.” The change comes after a mass shooting at a country music festival in Las Vegas. The cable network said Thursday the format for the Oct. 18 show will focus on the fans, as well as those affected by recent hurricanes and wildfires. The show will air live from Nashville’s Schermerhorn Symphony Center at 8 p.m. Eastern.
EVENT Riverdale pop-up diners hit major Canadian cities
Pop-up diners set up like Pop’s Chock’lit Shoppe in the teen drama Riverdale have landed in Canada. Fans of the series, based on the Archie comic books, will get to choose from two milkshakes: the Betty (an old-fashioned vanilla) or the Veronica (a double chocolate), which are served in Pop’s cups. The event kicked off Thursday and continues Friday, with free milkshakes for the first 200 guests. The pop-up diners hit eight different locations in six major cities, including Vancouver, Edmonton and Toronto. A full list of venues is at popsdiner.ca. Season 2 of Riverdale streams on Netflix and airs on The CW.
ART Missing Rodin sculpture found in New Jersey
A bust of Napoleon by French sculptor Auguste Rodin thought to be lost has been found in a New Jersey borough hall where it sat for 85 years. The bust’s origin was confirmed in 2015, but officials waited to reveal the multimillion dollar artwork was a long-lost piece by Rodin on Wednesday. The Record reports the owners of the bust announced it will be leaving the Madison borough hall on loan to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The authentication was made in person by Jerome Le Blay, an international expert in modern sculpture.