Anne Murray fears extra nominee could nab Juno
Anne Murray is concerned that the extra Juno Awards nominee for best album could win the prize without really having qualified.
The Canadian songbird's latest album Duets: Friends and Legends was originally excluded from the list of best album nominees when awards officials incorrectly calculated sales figures last month. Its nomination formulas are based in part on albums sold.
After correcting the error, the best album category, which is usually limited to five nominees, was expanded to six to include Murray's album. The Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which runs the Junos, opted not to retract one of the other nominations.
| Best album nominees | |
|---|---|
| Anne Murray | Duets: Friends and Legends |
| Avril Lavigne | The Best Damn Thing |
| Céline Dion | Taking Chances |
| Céline Dion | D'elles |
| Feist | The Reminder |
| Michael Bublé | Call Me Irresponsibe |
"The person who is not supposed to be in there could conceivably win," Murray told the Canadian Press.
"It was strange because I knew what my (sales) numbers were and I saw some of the other numbers and I thought, 'Well, how did they figure that?'"
Murray's all-female duets record boasts a rich roster of Canadian legends: k.d. lang, Shania Twain, Jann Arden, Celine Dion, Nelly Furtado and Isabelle Boulay all sang with her.
Others featured on the CD include Olivia Newton-John, Carole King, Martina McBride, Celtic Woman and Sarah Brightman.
A Junos spokesman says they have created a new auditing committee to make sure the error doesn't happen again.
The Juno Awards will be handed out April 6 in Calgary.