Taylor Swift, Pink to Be Honored at 2023 iHeartRadio Awards

Taylor Swift arrives at the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP)
Taylor Swift arrives at the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP)
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Taylor Swift, Pink to Be Honored at 2023 iHeartRadio Awards

Taylor Swift arrives at the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP)
Taylor Swift arrives at the 65th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2023, in Los Angeles. (AP)

Taylor Swift will receive the 2023 iHeartRadio Innovator Award at the iHeartRadio Music Awards later this month, which will feature performances by Kelly Clarkson, Keith Urban, Pat Benatar, Muni Long, Cody Johnson, Coldplay and Pink, who is this year’s Icon Award recipient.

The Innovator Award is presented to an artist who has “impacted global pop culture throughout their career.” Past recipients include Pharrell Williams, Justin Timberlake, U2 and Alicia Keys.

Pink will receive the Icon Award honoring her “impact on pop culture, longevity and continued relevance as a touring and radio force with a loyal fan base worldwide.”

The iHeartRadio Music Awards will be aired March 27 on Fox from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles and aired on iHeartRadio stations and the app.

Lizzo, Swift and Harry Styles lead the awards nominations with seven nods each, and Jack Harlow and Drake are close behind with six each.

For top song of the year, Lizzo’s “About Damn Time” faces off against Swift’s “Anti-Hero,” Styles’ “As It Was,” Justin Bieber’s “Ghost,” Doja Cat’s “Woman,” Glass Animals’ “Heat Wave,” Latto’s “Big Energy,” Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow’s “Industry Baby,” Harlow’s “First Class,” and Imagine Dragons’ “Enemy.”

Fans can vote in several categories including best fan army, best lyrics, best cover song, best sample and best music video. Voting on Twitter begins Wednesday using the appropriate category and nominee hashtags and will close March 20.

With five nominations each are Doja Cat, Beyoncé, Dua Lipa, Tems, Bad Bunny and Red Hot Chili Peppers. Silk Sonic, Future, Latto, Imagine Dragons, The Weeknd, BLACKPINK, Karol G and Nicki Minaj have four each.

Artist of the year pits Beyoncé against Doja Cat, Drake, Dua Lipa, Styles, Harlow, Bieber, Lizzo, Swift and The Weeknd for the crown. Best duo or group nominees are AJR, Black Eyed Peas, BLACKPINK, Silk Sonic, Glass Animals, Imagine Dragons, Måneskin, OneRepublic, Parmalee and Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Country artist of the year nominees are Carrie Underwood, Jason Aldean, Kane Brown, Luke Combs and Morgan Wallen. Hip-hop artist of the year nominees are Drake, Future, Kodak Black, Lil Baby and Moneybagg Yo.

Nominees for alternative artist of the year are Imagine Dragons, Måneskin, Twenty One Pilots, Weezer and Red Hot Chili Peppers, the last of whom also are on the list of rock artists of the year, along with Ghost, Papa Roach, Shinedown and Three Days Grace.

The Latin pop/reggaeton artist of the year nominees are Bad Bunny, Daddy Yankee, Farruko, Karol G and Rauw Alejandro. And nominees for best R&B artist are Blxst, Bleu, Silk Sonic, Muni Long and SZA.



Brian Wilson's Top Five Beach Boys Songs

Musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys performs onstage at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards. KEVIN WINTER / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File
Musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys performs onstage at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards. KEVIN WINTER / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File
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Brian Wilson's Top Five Beach Boys Songs

Musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys performs onstage at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards. KEVIN WINTER / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File
Musician Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys performs onstage at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards. KEVIN WINTER / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File

From the carefree sound of California surf music to the sophistication of later darker works, here are five of the top hits penned by influential Beach Boys founder Brian Wilson.

'Surfin' USA' (1963)

"Surfin' USA" was the Beach Boys' first global hit, taken from their eponymous debut album. A youthful ode to sea, sun and girls, it became an anthem for the West Coast and beyond.

It demonstrated Brian Wilson's increasing songwriting prowess as well as the band's unique vocal sound achieved thanks to double tracking.

"We'll all be gone for the summer/ We're on safari to stay/ Tell the teacher we're surfin'/ Surfin' USA," it rang out.

Wilson intentionally set his lyrics to the music of "Sweet Little Sixteen," by Chuck Berry, leading Berry to take legal action.

'California Girls' (1965)

On the big hit of the summer of 1965, Wilson's cousin Mike Love burst into song to celebrate the sun-tanned women of California.

"I wish they all could be California girls," the band members sang in seemless harmony.

It was also the first song written by Wilson under the influence of LSD, "which could explain why the accompaniment seems to move in a slow, steady daze at odds with the song's bright, major-key melody," Rolling Stone magazine wrote.

'God Only Knows' (1966)

It took Wilson just 45 minutes to write "God Only Knows," the legendary eighth track on the album "Pet Sounds" which has gone down as one of the greatest love songs ever.

Sung by brother Carl Wilson, Brian's rival Paul McCartney declared it to be his favorite song of all time and said it reduced him to tears.

But the record company and other members of the group were wary at the new turn in style.

'Good Vibrations'(1966)

"Good Vibrations" was a massive commercial success, selling one million copies in the United States and topping charts there and in several other countries including the UK.

At the time the most expensive single ever made, the "pocket symphony" was recorded in four different studios, consumed over 90 hours of tape and included a complexity of keys, textures, moods and instrumentation.

The song was a far cry from the group's surf-and-sun origins and the enormity of the task brought Wilson to the brink. He was unable to go on and complete the album "Smile," of which the song was to have been the centerpiece.

- 'Til I die' (1971) -

On side B of the album "Surf's Up,'Til I die" was composed in 1969 by a depressed Wilson worn down by mental illness and addiction.

He wrote in his 1991 autobiography that it was perhaps the most personal song he had written for the Beach Boys.