Newcomer of the Year

The nominees here have shown that they are starting strong and will continue to be strong for the rest of their careers. Or live in shame. This is a gamble, because it’s hard to say who are the truly talented and who are just going to be flashes in the pan. Thank God, Milli Vanilli isn’t a newcomer anymore.

• Derrick Rose
Ok, I’ve got to give you all a warning here. I’m a Bulls fan so this one is a little bittersweet. After winning the Rookie of the Year award and taking the Bulls to that nail-biting series with the Celtics, he’s been a little underwhelming this season because of a nagging ankle injury, but you can’t deny that he is going to help change the direction of the winds in the Windy City.

• Lady GaGa
Oh, how I love controversy. She can’t be nominated for the Best New Artist Grammy this year because she was nominated for a throwaway award last year. Luckily, I have not such qualms. I banged my head to Poker Face. I swayed to Paparazzi. I danced like a maniac to Bad Romance. And I did it all this year.

• Modern Family
Specifically, the children, since everyone knows that Ed O’Neil is a TV god who has survived the annals of type-casting. Those children are hilarious and even though they have had bit parts in other shows before, they are finally able to shine in this well-scripted show about family.

• Taylor Schilling
One of the few bright things I can say about NBC is that they did right by casting newcomer Taylor Schilling to the lead role of Mercy. I can believe she’s a broken war veteran nurse and it doesn’t hurt that she’s easy on the eyes as well. Although I’ve only seen a couple episodes of the show, I have seen her go through the whole spectrum of drama emotions. She’s got a good future if NBC doesn’t pull her down with it.

• Daniela Ruah
As the new star in a cast of familiar faces (LL Cool J and Chris O’Donnell), she’s been able to hold her own with the guys. The show, itself, isn’t much to speak of and her screen time is limited because of her third-to-fourth tier billing on the marquee, but you can feel that she may become something special or at least a seasoned veteran

And the Winner is...

Lady GaGa!

The Grammys can eat it! She was able to dominate the music scene from the beginning of the year to the end and for that, she deserves to be called the Best Newcomer of the Year… even if there may have to be an asterisk on it.