The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show produced by

Dick Clark Productions Dick Clark Productions, LLC (DCP, stylized in lowercase as dick clark productions or dcp) is an American multinational television production company founded by radio and TV host Dick Clark. The studio primarily produces Awards ceremony, award sh ...

since 1974. Nominees are selected on commercial performance such as sales and airplay. Winners are determined by a poll of the public and fans who vote through the AMAs website. The event originally aired on ABC after the network's contract to air the

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

expired. After the 2022 ceremony, when ABC's rights to broadcast the ceremony expired, the American Music Awards were put on hiatus. In March 2024, it was announced that the AMAs would move to CBS as part of a deal with its rights to broadcast the now DCP-owned

Golden Globe Awards The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual Awards ceremony, award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally ...

. The event remained on hiatus for 2024, with CBS airing a 50th anniversary special in October 6, ahead of a return in 2025, which was held on May 26, 2025, and hosted by

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

Conception

The AMAs was created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammy Awards after the move of that year's show to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

led to CBS (which has broadcast all Grammy Award shows since then) picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC. In 2014, American network

Telemundo Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of Comcast. It provides content ...

acquired the rights to produce a Spanish-language version of the American Music Awards and launched the

Latin American Music Awards The Latin American Music Awards (Latin AMAs) is an annual American music awards show produced by TelevisaUnivision. It is the Spanish-language counterpart of the American Music Awards (AMAs). As with AMAs, the Latin AMAs are determined by a poll ...

in 2015. Nominations are selected based on commercial performance, such as sales and airplay. Winners have been determined by a poll of the public and fans, who can vote through the AMAs website, while nominations have remained based on sales, airplay, now including activity on social networks, and video viewing. Before 2010, nominations were based only on sales and airplay and nominated every work, even if old. The Grammys have nominations based on vote of the Academy and only nominate a work from their eligibility period that changes often. The award statuette is manufactured by New York firm

Society Awards Society Awards is an American company best known for designing and manufacturing high-profile entertainment industry awards, including the Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, GLAAD Media Award, and YouTube Creator Awards, among others. History So ...

History

The hosts for the first AMAs were

Helen Reddy Helen Maxine Reddy (25 October 194129 September 2020) was an Australian-American singer, actress, television host, and activist. Born in Melbourne to a show business family, Reddy started her career as an entertainer at age four. She sang on ra ...

Roger Miller Roger Dean Miller Sr. (January 2, 1936 – October 25, 1992) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known for his honky-tonk-influenced novelty songs and his chart-topping country hits " King of the Road", "Dang Me", and " England Swing ...

, and

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. He was the founder and frontman of the pioneering Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he ...

. Reddy not only hosted the show but also became the first artist to win an AMA for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist. For the first two decades, the AMAs had multiple hosts, each representing a genre of music. For instance,

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

, who co-hosted the AMAs five times, would host the country portion, while other artists would co-host to represent their genre. In recent years, however, there has been a single host. In 1991,

Keenen Ivory Wayans Keenen Ivory Desuma Wayans (born June 8, 1958) is an American actor, comedian, director and filmmaker. He is a member of the Wayans family of entertainers. Wayans first came to prominence as the host and creator of the 1990–1994 Fox sketch c ...

became the first Hollywood actor to host the AMAs. The first two AMAs in 1974 and 1975 and the 1994 ceremony were held in February, but from 1976 to 1993 and 1995 through early 2003, the AMAs were held in mid- to late-January, but were moved to November (usually the Sunday before Thanksgiving) beginning in late 2003 so it would prevent the ceremony to further compete with other major awards shows (such as the

and the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

) and allows for ABC to have a well-rated awards show during November sweeps. For the 2008 awards,

Jimmy Kimmel James Christian Kimmel (born November 13, 1967), known professionally as Jimmy Kimmel, is an American television host, comedian, writer, voice actor, and producer. He has been the host and executive producer of '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', a late-n ...

hosted for his fifth year, tying with

for the most AMAs hosted or co-hosted. From 2009–2012, there was no host. Instead, the AMAs followed the Grammys' lead in having various celebrities give introductions. However, rapper Pitbull hosted the 2013 ceremony and 2014 ceremony.

hosted the 2015 show.

Gigi Hadid Jelena Noura "Gigi" Hadid ( ; born April 23, 1995) is an American fashion model and television personality. In 2016, she was named International Model of the Year by the British Fashion Council. Throughout her career, Hadid has made at least ...

and Jay Pharoah hosted the 2016 show. Tracee Ellis Ross hosted the show in 2017 and 2018.

Ciara Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. She was discovered by record producer Jazze Pha in the early 2000s, and rose to prominence with her debut studio album, ''Goodies ...

hosted the 2019 show. Between 2012 and 2014, the American Music Awards used the lock screen

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rather than envelopes to reveal winners, as part of a sponsorship by

Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (SEC; stylized as SΛMSUNG; ) is a South Korean multinational major appliance and consumer electronics corporation founded on 13 January 1969 and headquartered in Yeongtong District, Suwon, South Korea. It is curr ...

. A magnetic screen cover on each phone kept the wallpaper image with the winner's name secret until opened. In August 2018, Dick Clark Productions announced a two-year sponsorship and content partnership with

YouTube Music YouTube Music is a music streaming service developed by the American video platform YouTube, a subsidiary of Google. The service is designed with an interface that allows users to simultaneously explore music audios and music videos from YouTu ...

. However, this partnership seemed to have lasted only for the 2018 ceremony, as there was no mention of the YouTube Music partnership in the 2019 show. In March 2023, it was announced that the ''Billboard'' Music Awards, which are also produced by DCP via co-owned ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'', had been moved from May to the November scheduling that was typically occupied by the American Music Awards, leading to speculation that the AMAs would be discontinued in order to focus on the ''Billboard'' Music Awards, or at the very least cancelled for 2023, so it could move to May in its place. It was reported that the broadcast rights for both events (which had been held by NBC and ABC respectively) would also be shopped; the ''Billboard'' Music Awards moved to an online only event in November 2023. In March 2024, it was announced that CBS had acquired the rights to broadcast the AMAs under a multi-year deal of unspecified length. The rights were bundled with CBS's five-year agreement to televise the

, whose telecast has historically been produced by DCP, and whose assets had been acquired by DCP in 2023. It was not stated whether the contract is for the same period as the Golden Globes agreement. The AMAs continued to be on hiatus for 2024, with a return scheduled for May 2025. In lieu of a 2024 ceremony, a televised special honoring the AMAs' 50th anniversary was aired by CBS on October 6, 2024, including performances and retrospectives paying tribute to the ceremony's history and memorable moments. Ratings for the special were up from the last ceremony aired on ABC, with an average of 6.1 million viewers. In February 2025, it was announced that the 51st American Music Awards would air on May 26, 2025 on CBS.

Ceremonies

Most wins

The record for most American Music Awards won is held by

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Known for her autobiographical songwriting, artistic versatility, and Cultural impact of Taylor Swift, cultural impact, Swift is one of the Best selling artists, w ...

with 40 awards. The record for most American Music Awards won by a male artist belongs to

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

, who has collected 26 awards. The record for most American Music Awards won by a group belongs to

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, who have collected 18 awards.

Most wins in a single ceremony

The record for the most American Music Awards won in a single year is held by Michael Jackson (in 1984) and Whitney Houston (in 1994), each with 8 awards to their credit (including the Award of Merit, with which both artists were honored in the respective years). *

8 (1984) *

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, film producer, model, and philanthropist. Commonly referred to as "Honorific nicknames in popular music, the Voice", she is List of awards and no ...

8 (1994)

Most wins by category

The following list shows the artists with most wins in each category, adapted from the AMAs official website. * Artist of the Year:

(7 wins) * Collaboration of the Year:

Justin Bieber Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is recognized for his multi-genre musical performances. He was discovered by record executive Scooter Braun in 2008 and subsequently brought to the U ...

(3 wins) * Song of the Year:

Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...

(5 wins) * Favorite Music Video:

(3 wins) * Favorite Male Artist – Pop/Rock:

(4 wins) * Favorite Female Artist – Pop/Rock:

(6 wins) * Favorite Duo or Group – Pop/Rock:

BTS BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010. The band consists of Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jung Kook, who co-write or co-produce much of their material. Originally a hip hop group, they ...

(4 wins) * Favorite Album – Pop/Rock:

(4 wins) * Favorite Male Artist – Country:

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American Country music, country singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him his immense popularity, particularly in the United States, ...

(8 wins) * Favorite Female Artist – Country:

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire ( ; born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music, country singer and actress. Dubbed "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Sin ...

(11 wins) * Favorite Duo or Group – Country:

(13 wins) * Favorite Album – Country: Carrie Underwood (6 wins) * Favorite Artist – Rap/Hip-Hop:

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian rapper, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as the "Queen of Rap" and one of the most influential rappers of all time, she is noted for her ...

(5 wins) * Favorite Song – Rap/Hip-Hop:

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Cephus (; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper. Noted for her unfiltered public image and lyrics, Cardi B is one of the most successful female rappers. From 2015 to early 2017, she ga ...

(3 wins) * Favorite Album – Rap/Hip-Hop:

(3 wins) * Favorite Male Artist – Soul/R&B:

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American Soul music, soul and Contemporary R&B, R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer. Over his career, he achieved eleven consecutive RIAA certification, RIAA-certified ...

(7 wins) * Favorite Female Artist – Soul/R&B:

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

(7 wins each) * Favorite Album – Soul/R&B:

(4 wins) * Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock:

Linkin Park Linkin Park is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Agoura Hills, California, in 1996. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist/rhythm guitarist/keyboardist Mike Shinoda, lead guitarist Brad Delson, DJ/turntablist Joe Hahn, bass ...

(6 wins) * Favorite Artist – Adult Contemporary:

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had ...

(4 wins) * Favorite Artist – Latin Music:

Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican label Fonovisa where he released three Spanish albums ''Enrique Iglesias (album), Enrique ...

(7 wins) * Favorite Artist – Contemporary Inspirational:

Casting Crowns Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band which began in Daytona Beach, Florida. The band was formed in 1999 by lead vocalist Mark Hall. They moved to Stockbridge, Georgia, and more members joined. Some members of the ...

(4 wins) * Favorite Artist – Electronic Dance Music:

Marshmello Christopher Comstock (born May 19, 1992), known professionally as Marshmello, is an American DJ and record producer. His songs "Silence (Marshmello song), Silence" (featuring Khalid (American singer), Khalid), "Wolves (Selena Gomez and Mar ...

(3 wins)

Special awards

Award of Merit

The American Music Award of Merit has been awarded to 32 artists, the latest being Sting (2016).

International Artist Award of Excellence

The International Artist Award of Excellence is described as "an award which recognizes artists whose popularity and impact cross national boundaries and is only given when there is a deserving recipient who is worthy of recognition for their accomplishments" and has been awarded to seven artists: *

(1993) *

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British singer and songwriter. Known for his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists of all time, having sold ...

(1994) *

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

(1995) *

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry Gibb, Barry, Robin Gibb, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in ...

(1997) *

Aerosmith Aerosmith is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Boston in 1970. The group consists of lead vocalist Steven Tyler, bassist Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarists Joe Perry (musician), Joe Perry and B ...

(2001) *

(2007) *

(2009)

Icon Award

The Icon Award was introduced in the 2013 ceremony, producer Larry Klein stated that the award was created "to honor an artist whose body of work has made a profound influence over pop music on a global level." *

(2013) *

Lionel Richie Lionel Brockman Richie Jr. (born June 20, 1949) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He rose to fame in the 1970s as a songwriter and the co-lead singer of the Motown group Commodores; writing and recor ...

(2022) *

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

(2025)

Dick Clark Award for Excellence

At the 2014 award ceremony, the Dick Clark Award for Excellence was given. It was created to recognize "an artist who achieves a groundbreaking feat or creates a landmark work." *

(2014)

Award of Achievement

(1989) *

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

(1990) *

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey ( ; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Songbird Supreme" by ''Guinness World Records'', Carey is known for her five-octave voc ...

(2000 and 2008) *

Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. She is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selling music artists in hist ...

(2011)

Lifetime Achievement Award

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born Diane Ernestine Earle Ross March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Known as the "Queen of Motown Records", she was the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown#Major divisions, Motown's most suc ...

(2017) *

(2025)

Artist of the Decade

* 2010s:

(2019) * 1990s:

(2000) In 2000, the AMAs held a poll to elect the Artist of the Decade for each previous decade of the Rock and Roll era. According to some sources, the result of this poll is not counted in the total of AMAs won by these artists. The results were: * 1950s:

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

* 1960s:

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

* 1970s:

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

* 1980s:

Artist of the Century

•

(2002)

Ratings

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:American Music Awards American Broadcasting Company original programming Television series by Dick Clark Productions Awards established in 1974 1974 establishments in the United States