The Golden Melody Awards contest looks set this year for a clash between homegrown talent and singers from Southeast Asia, while some new-generation performers are poised to break in from outside the mainstream.
Jay Chou (周杰倫) and A-mei (張惠妹) head the nominees' list. But both face strong challengers in today's awards show to be staged in Kaohsiung.
A total of 88 soloists or groups are competing in 33 categories in this, the awards' 16th annual contest.
A-mei has competition from Southeast Asia, with Singaporean Stefanie Sun's (孫燕姿) album Stefanie earning her four nominations against A-mei's two.
A-mei, a longtime superstar from the Puyuma tribe, has spent most of this year out of the limelight and studying in the US.
"Her long absence from the entertainment scene could damage her chances," music critic Jason Tu said.
Malaysia's Fish Leong (
Chou, a longtime local favorite, has six nominations for his album Seven Mile Fragrance -- referring to the jasmine orange, a local fruit. It features his trademark blend of R&B ballads and up-tempo tunes.
Chou's Yeh Hui-mei -- named after his mother -- won best album last year. Two years earlier, he thrilled the Golden Melody audience by walking away with awards for best album, songwriter and producer.
The subdued 26-year-old is still a majority favorite, but he is up against other well-established singers.
One of them -- Wang Lee-hom (王力宏), last year's winner in the producer category for the album Unbelievable -- is hoping to finally win in the Best Male Vocalist category. He's on his seventh nomination.
Wang's album Sun and Moon in my Heart -- inspired by a trip to China's far west -- is also competing in three other categories.
Stanley Huang (黃立行) first gained fame in the hip-hop boy band L.A. Boyz before striking out on his own with metal-tinged rap songs. His latest album, Shades of my Mind, a collection of raucous party songs, is up for five awards.
In stark contrast to that impressive liveliness is the romantic pop sound of Terry Lin (
Most of the nominees are household names with pop fans, but this year's competition also features some dark horses -- including Taiwan's enigmatic Sheng Xiang/Water 3.
This band's music describes the travails of farmers and workers using traditional instruments and singing in the Hakka language.
Though its potential for commercial appeal might seem limited, Shen Xiang/Water 3 has topped even Chou in the number of nominations -- seven -- for its latest album, Getting Darker.
Another outsider working his way toward the top is Aboriginal singer Biung (
Writing in a Chinese-language newspaper, music critic Huang Hsiu-huei (
The new singers "sound a warning to mainstream performers," she wrote.
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