Rick Astley Lands MTV Award Nod (20 Years Later)

U2, Madonna and Christina Aguilera normally wouldn’t have to nervously look over their shoulders for Rick Astley at the MTV Europe Music Awards, taking place in Liverpool and scheduled to air this November. But that was before Rickrolling, the Internet trickery that surprisingly vaulted Astley to the top of the pop culture heap.

Now the phenomenon has come full circle: According to the BBC, Astley is the front-runner for the show’s Best Act Ever award, the winner of which will be chosen online by fans and other culture vultures.

“It’s very, very odd, isn’t it?” Astley said in an audio file posted on the BBC Friday. “Pop music is bizarre.”

Read the rest of this post