Green Day heading MTV shortlist

Punk-pop band Green Day scored the most nominations for the US MTV Video Music Awards, picking up eight, followed by Missy Elliot and Gwen Stefani. Green Day got six nominations for Boulevard of Broken Dreams and two for the hit single American Idiot. Missy Elliot received six nominations, while Stefani, formerly with No Doubt, and U2 collected five each. The awards will be handed out in Miami on 28 August at a ceremony hosted by rapper and entrepreneur P Diddy. The show will have a water theme, with P Diddy - real name Sean Combs - promising it will be one of the "hottest" ever. Irish group U2 received five nominations for the single Vertigo, taken from the album How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb. Among other nominees are Colombian Shakira, Jennifer Lopez and Puerto Rican Daddy Yankee. Coldplay's Speed of Sound, Snoop Dogg's Drop it Like It's Hot and Kanye West's Jesus Walks are among those competing in the video of the year category. [photo: Darren Barlow - greenday.com]