They rule the pop charts with their acerbic lyrics, and their outrageous antics are well-documented in the tabloid gossip pages.
Now Britain's two most notorious pop princesses will go head to head at the upcoming MTV Video Music Awards after Lily Allen and Amy Winehouse were both nominated for the best new artist award.
Winehouse is also up for best female artist and best video of the year for her hit single "Rehab".
The nominations will be a welcome boost for the two British artists, who have both been trying to crack the American market. The awards will take place on 9 September at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.
Other artists nominated included Justin Timberlake and Beyoncé Knowles, who dominated the evening collecting seven nominations each, including for best male and best female artist. The rap star Kanye West and Barbados-born RnB singer Rihanna, whose latest track "Umbrella" has been one of the summer's most successful hits on both sides of the Atlantic, picked up five nominations each.
The prospect of an Amy vs Lily showdown will provide welcome fodder to gossip columnists, who regularly bill the singers' rivalry as a gloves-off cat-fight.
Rumours of a feud were ignited after Allen posted a blog in March on her Myspace page complaining about how overweight she felt while touring the States and titled it "fat, ugly and shitter than Winehouse". Both artists have since dismissed speculation that they dislike one another.
The two singers are the only UK acts scheduled to perform on the night of the awards. But doubts were thrown on whether Allen would be able to appear after US immigration authorities cancelled her work visa. Her record label, EMI, yesterday confirmed she had been stopped at LAX airport on Sunday evening and that the immigration authorities decided to revoke her work visa.
"I am trying everything I can to sort this situation out," the singer said afterwards. "It is my intention to play my American dates in September. This depends on the authorities granting me a new work visa."
Winehouse's attempt to crack the US, meanwhile, appears to be going from strength to strength. Her soul style and searing lyrics have gone down well and recent reports even suggest she will be gracing the front cover of the US fashion bible Vogue next month.
The MTV Video Music Awards is a homage to all things bling and boasts its own Playboy club and the only hotel room in the world with a basketball court.
The ceremony will feature a number of new categories, including "most earthshattering collaboration" and what the organisers call a "quadruple threat" award to honour "boundary-busting artists".
MTV hopes the new format will reverse a slump in viewing figures. Ratings for the 2006 show were down 28 per cent from the eight million viewers in 2005.
The nominations
Best Group:
Fall Out Boy
Gym Class Heroes
Linkin Park
Maroon 5
The White Stripes
Female Artist Of The Year:
Beyoncé
Fergie
Nelly Furtado
Rihanna
Amy Winehouse
Male Artist Of The Year:
Akon
Robin Thicke
T.I
Justin Timberlake
Kayne West
Best New Artist:
Lily Allen
Amy Winehouse
Gym Class Heroes
Carrie Underwood
Peter Bjorn and John
Monster Single Of The Year:
Daughtry "Home"
Fall Out Boy "Thnks Fr Th Mmrs"
Avril Lavigne "Girlfriend"
Lil Mama "Lip Gloss"
Mims "This Is Why I'm Hot"
Plain White T's "Hey There Delilah"
Rihanna f/Jay-Z "Umbrella"
Shop Boyz "Party Like A Rock Star"
T-Pain f/Yung Joc "Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin')"
Timbaland f/Keri Hilson, D.O.E. & Sebastian "The Way I Are"
Video Of The Year:
Beyonce "Irreplacable"
Justin Timberlake "D.A.N.C.E"
Rihanna f/Jay Z "Umbrella"
Justin Timberlake "What Goes Around... Comes Around"
Kayne West "Stronger"
Amy Winehouse "Rehab"
Most Earth-shattering Collaboration:
Akon f/Eminem "Smack That"
Gwen Stefani f/Akon "The Sweet Escape"
Justin Timberlake f/Timbaland "SexyBack"
U2 f/Green Day "The Saints Are Coming"
Quadruple Threat Of The Year:
Beyonce
Bono
Jay Z
Justin Timberlake
Kayne West
Best Choreographer:
Beyoncé f/Shakira "Beautiful Liar "
Chris Brown "Wall To Wall"
Ciara "Like A Boy"
Eve "Tambourine"
Justin Timberlake "My Love"
Best Director:
Christina Aguilera "Candyman" (Matthew Rolston)
Beyoncé f/Shakira "Beautiful Liar" (Jake Nava)
Kanye West "Stronger" (Hype Williams)
Linkin Park "What I've Done" (Joe Hahn)
Rihanna f/Jay-Z "Umbrella" (Chris Applebaurn)
Justin Timberlake "What Goes Around... Comes Around" (Samuel Bayer)
Best Editing:
Beyoncé f/Shakira "Beautiful Liar"
Gnarls Barkley "Smiley Faces"
Linkin Park "What I've Done"
Justin Timberlake "What Goes Around... Comes Around"
Kanye West "Stronger"
