Both Australian singles became breakout viral sensations this year. At Wednesday’s ARIA Awards,they’ll also face off for honours in the publicly voted Song of the Year and for Best Pop Release.
Minogue’sPadam Padam,the jittery lead single off her 16th albumTension,first gained traction via TikTok memes playing with its onomatopoeic title,before charting across the US,UK,Europe and Australia. Locally,it became Minogue’s first top 20 hit since 2010’sAll the Lovers.
Alongside his eye-opening role on the controversial TV showThe Idolthis year,Sivan’sRush – a hi-energy dance track inspired by nights spent at Melbourne’s gay clubs – thrust the singer into a massive new spotlight,to the point he was parodied by actor Timothee Chalamet onSaturday Night Live this week. He followed the song’s success with the UK 2-step inspiredGot Me Started,which sampled Sydney duo Bag Raiders’ 2009 favouriteShooting Stars.
In online tipping markets,Minogue edges Sivan slightly as favourite to claim the Grammy but both face strong competition from the prince of Euro-dance,David Guetta. The French producer,already a dual Grammy winner,has two nominations in the category:One In a Million,a rehash of his 2009 smashWhen Love Takes Over,featuring Bebe Rexha,andBaby Don’t Hurt Me,with Anne-Marie,Coi Leray and a heavy Haddaway sample. Rounding out the category is Calvin Harris and Ellie Goulding’s trance throwback,Miracle.
2024 marks the first time the Best Pop Dance Recording category has been presented,allowing Kylie or Troye to become a legitimate groundbreaker. It’s a new complement to the Best Dance/Electronic Recording category,which has been awarded since 1998,but faced ongoing criticism for its pop-over-dance leanings;it’s previously gone to such inspired choices as Madonna’sRay of Light,Cher’sBelieve,Britney’sToxic,Janet Jackson’sAll For You,and,um,Baha Men’sWho Let The Dogs Out?.
Coincidentally,Kylie’s sole Grammy win came in this category in 2004 forCome Into My World,while Sydney trio Rufus Du Sol also won the category in 2022 withAlive. It’s what we do,win awards for best dance-pop-electronic recordings.