Let the MAMAs registration begin

It’s that time of the year again, Madison residents: This Friday, Oct. 15, marks the beginning of the lengthy Madison Area Music Awards nomination process. The 8th annual MAMAs don’t actually have a ceremony until June 4, 2011—at the Capitol Theater at the Overture Center—and there are multiple rounds of elimination still to come. But starting on Friday, bands can start entering themselves in the awards show that will undoubtedly honor Natty Nation in some way.

There are some changes at the MAMAs this year, the biggest being that bands no longer have to pay $10 to enter anymore; instead, membership in the Madison Area Music Association is the only entry fee. And that’s only $5.

There are some categorical changes as well: The “Urban/R&B” category has been changed to a “Hip-Hop” category, since no one has categorized hip-hop as “Urban” since radio programmers in 1997. R&B has thusly been folded into the “Pop” category. There will also be a new category honoring cover song of the year (“Interpretive Song of the Year”), leaving the “Song of the Year” category to original compositions only. You can also do write-ins for “Music Fan of the Year,” “DJ Performer of the Year,” “Cover Band of the Year” and “Local Music Publication/Blog of the Year.” But these changes won’t matter a whole lot until voting begins early next year.

Additionally, there’s going to be a shindig at the Overture Center on Friday to celebrate the registration launch. It starts at 5 p.m. and features performances from Jessi Lynn, John Masino, Joe Bainbridge, and Bonnie Greene’s Music Makers. Bands can actually drop off their music in person at the Overture Center on Friday, bringing them one step closer to a possible MAMA nomination. Otherwise, registration is done through the MAMA website, which hasn’t been entirely updated for this year’s awards yet.