Beyonce and Lady Gaga head the MTV awards nods

Pop divas Beyonce and Lady Gaga head the pack in the race for this year's MTV Video Music Awards with nine nominations each, it was announced last night.
 
The pair will go head-to-head in several categories, including Video of the Year, Best Female and Best Pop videos. All Beyonce's nominations are for the much-imitated black-and-white clip which accompanied the song Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It). Newcomer Lady Gaga has had two of her videos (Poker Face and Paparazzi) shortlisted.
 
The awards will be handed out on September 13 at Radio City Music Hall in New York and the evening will once again be hosted by British comic Russell Brand.

In the race for the Video of the Year the two artists are up against Britney Spears - for  Womanizer and Circus - and rappers Eminem and Kanye West. They each earned four nominations.
 
This year there will also be a retrospective award for videos that were overlooked at previous ceremonies - among the contenders are classics Sabotage by the Beastie Boys, Human Behaviour by Bjork and Nuthin' But a G Thang by Dr Dre and Snoop Doggy Dogg.
 
There will be as much interest in Russell Brand's performance as those of the pop stars at the ceremony. Last year the comedian shocked the audience in Hollywood by calling George W Bush a "retarded cowboy", urging Americans to vote for Barack Obama, and mocking the chastity vows taken by boy band the Jonas Brothers.
 
Although his performance was widely acclaimed and helped boost his profile in the States, Brand has promised to be on his best behaviour this time round. "This year will be a controversy-free festival of love," he said. ·