ATLANTA -- Women rule the 1999 Grammy Award nominations. Or, to put it in less politically correct terms: Grammy's gone girl crazy!
And, surprise, the one it's craziest about isn't ubiquitous "Titanic" warbler Celine Dion.It's Lauryn Hill, the vocalist from hip-hop trio Fugees, whose debut solo album, "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill," boosted the 23-year-old New Yorker to 10 nominations -- including best new artist, producer of the year and a big one for album of the year.
"I think it's a strong statement, in these days, that I can make an album completely from my soul and without compromise and be acknowledged for it," Hill said in a faxed statement. Her breakthrough disc, which combines retro-soul and reggae grooves with a strident moral consciousness, is a critical and commercial favorite.
"Lauryn is a perfect representative for a lot of different audiences, mainly because she's not coming from one particular background or experience," said Minya Oh, music lifestlyes editor at Vibe magazine. "She's really well-versed in R&B and rap and soul. She's been brought up on everything. And most importantly she molds it in a really sincere way, so it doesn't come off as a contrived hybrid."
Her album-of-the-year competition? All female, and, aside from Sheryl Crow, a recent Grammy favorite who seems to have replaced Bonnie Raitt as the award's requisite rock chick, not entirely predictable.
Besides Crow, whose "Globe Sessions" album helped to snag her six nominations, album contenders include Madonna ("Ray of Light"), the Shirley Mansion-fronted alternative rock band Garbage ("Version 2.0"), and country-pop crossover star Shania Twain ("Come On Over"), who tied with Crow at six nominations. Madonna followed with five, a figure matched by producer Robert "Mutt" Lange -- Twain's husband and songwriting partner -- and engineer Jeff Balding.
Not that Dion need weep. The French-Canadian vocalist, whose album sales are nearly as stratospheric as her soprano, nabbed four nominations, topped by a record of the year nod for "My Heart Will Go On" from the "Titanic" soundtrack. Yet, it's fascinating that this most archetypal Grammy nominee was outpaced by a rapper (Hill), a guitar-slinger who abides no Svengali (Crow), and a phenom whose exposed navel raised a ruckus in Nashville (Twain).
Other notable nominees included country newcomers the Dixie Chicks and former Australian soap opera actress Natalie Imbruglia -- who'll contend with Hill, hot crossover tenor Andrea Bocelli and hotter teen stars Backstreet Boys -- for best new artist.
Sharing the local spotlight was teen heartthrob Usher ("My Way"), a nominee for best male R&B vocal. Outkast and producer-rapper Jermaine Dupri will both vie in the group or duo rap category. Dupri's "Life in 1472 -- The Original Soundtrack" is also up for rap album.
Dupri, 26, knew it wasn't any other Tuesday when he started getting pages telling him "Congratulations" -- early in the morning. "People who have my pager number know paging me in the morning is useless," he said. "I'm in the studio until the morning." And that's where Dupri was Tuesday afternoon after learning he was nominated. "I've produced artists who have been nominated for Grammys, Kris Kross and Usher. But my name has never been in the light. I'm proud. Grammys just mean more work coming in!"
Robert Shaw, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra's oft-lionized conductor laureate, was nominated for best classical album and best choral performance for the ASO recording of Barber's "Prayers of Kierkegaard" and other works. If Shaw wins, his trophies won't be lonely: The 82-year-old maestro, who spent Tuesday in Piedmont Hospital (Atlanta, Ga.) with an undisclosed ailment, has won 15 Grammys.
Departing ASO music director Yoel Levi also was nominated in the best orchestral performance for the ASO's recording of "Holst: The Planets." Soprano Jennifer Larmore, an Atlanta native, was nominated for classical vocal performance for "Amor Per Rossini."
After rehearsing Tuesday for this weekend's ASO concerts, Levi said he was taking a siesta when he got word of his first nomination. "I was exhausted," he said. "The Brahms took all the juice out of me so I felt drained." But he was delighted to hear the news. "I think it's wonderful that the Atlanta Symphony got so many nominations. In today's world, when there are a thousand recordings on the market, and any recording is recognized for the quality of the performance as well as the orchestra, I think that's an achievement by itself."
GRAMMY FACTS
41ST Grammy Awards
When: 8-11 p.m., Feb. 24, CBS; Webcast http://www.grammy.com.
Where: Live from The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
Host: Unannounced.
Eligible: Recordings and music videos released between Oct. 1, 1997, and Sept. 30, 1998.
Who votes: Some 13,000 members of the National Academy of Recordings Arts & Sciences. NARAS members include vocalists, musicians, producers, composers, engineers and others who have contributed creatively or technically to recordings.