The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show produced by Dick Clark Productions since 1974. Nominees are selected on commercial performance such as sales and airplay. Winners are determined by a poll of the public who vote through the AMAs website and social media.
The event originally aired on ABC after the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired. After the 2022 ceremony, when ABC's rights to broadcast the ceremony expired, the American Music Awards were placed on a two-year hiatus. In March 2024, it was announced that the AMAs would move to CBS, as part of a package with its rights to the now DCP-owned Golden Globe Awards. The event remained on hiatus for 2024, but CBS aired a 50th anniversary special in October. The ceremony returned for 2025, moving to a new May scheduling.
Conception The AMAs was created by Dick Clark in 1973, to compete with the Grammy Awards after ABC's contact to air the Grammys expired and moved to CBS (which would broadcast all Grammy Awards shows until 2026, when ABC reacquired the rights to broadcast the Grammys starting in 2027), with that year's Grammys ceremony held in Nashville, Tennessee. In 2014, American network Telemundo acquired the rights to produce a Spanish-language version of the American Music Awards and launched the Latin American Music Awards in 2015. AMAs conception
Nominations are selected based on commercial performance, such as sales and airplay. Winners have been determined by a poll of the public, who could vote through the AMAs website and social media, while nominations have remained based on sales, airplay, 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.Nominations / Winners selection
The award statuette is manufactured by New York firm Society Awards.
History The hosts for the first AMAs were Helen Reddy, Roger Miller, and Smokey Robinson. Reddy not only hosted the first show but also won the inaugural 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, 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 became the first Hollywood actor and comedian 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, in order to prevent the ceremony to further compete with other major awards shows (such as the Golden Globe Awards and the Academy Awards) and allowed for ABC to have a well-rated awards show during November sweeps.
For the 2008 awards, Jimmy Kimmel hosted for his fifth year, tying with Glen Campbell for the most AMAs hosted or co-hosted. From 2009 to 2012, there was no host. Instead, the AMAs followed the Grammys' lead in having various celebrities give introductions. However, the hosting portion would return after 2012, with rapper Pitbull hosting the ceremony in 2013 and 2014. Jennifer Lopez hosted in 2015 and 2025.Jennifer Lopez to Host and Perform at the 2015 American Music Awards | American Music Awards . Theamas.com. Retrieved on October 21, 2015. Gigi Hadid and Jay Pharoah hosted in 2016. Tracee Ellis Ross hosted in 2017 and 2018. Ciara hosted in 2019.
Between 2012 and 2014, the American Music Awards used the lock screen wallpaper of Samsung Galaxy smartphones rather than envelopes to reveal winners, as part of a sponsorship by Samsung Electronics. 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, which appeared to have only lasted for the 2018 ceremony, as there was no mention of it during the 2019 show.
In March 2023, it was announced that the Billboard Music Awards, which are also produced by DCP via co-owned Billboard, 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 format in November 2023.
In March 2024, it was announced that CBS had acquired the rights to broadcast the AMAs in a deal of unspecified length. The rights were bundled with CBS's five-year agreement to televise the Golden Globe Awards, whose telecast has historically been produced by DCP, and whose assets had been acquired by DCP in 2023.
In August 2024, it was announced that the AMAs would return in May 2025. In place of a 2024 ceremony, DCP also announced that CBS would broadcast an AMAs 50th anniversary special on October 6, 2024 (marking 50 years since the inaugural ceremony in 1974), featuring performances and retrospectives highlighting the ceremony's history. 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 ceremony would be held on May 26. In August 2025, CBS renewed its rights to broadcast the AMAs under a five-year agreement similar to that of the Golden Globe Awards; the ceremony will supplant the Grammy Awards on CBS's lineup after its move to ABC in 2027.
Ceremonies Year Order Date of ceremony Host(s) Venue Network 1974 1February 19, 1974Roger Miller, Helen Reddy, Smokey RobinsonEarl Carroll TheatreABC 1975 2February 18, 1975Roy Clark, Helen Reddy, Sly StoneSanta Monica Civic Auditorium 1976 3 January 31, 1976Glen Campbell, Aretha Franklin, Olivia Newton-John 1977 4January 31, 1977Glen Campbell, Helen Reddy, Lou Rawls 1978 5January 16, 1978Glen Campbell, Natalie Cole, David Soul 1979 6January 12, 1979Glen Campbell, Helen Reddy, Donna Summer 1980 7January 18, 1980Elton John, Toni Tennille, Natalie ColeABC Studios 1981 8January 30, 1981Mac Davis, Crystal Gayle, Teddy Pendergrass 1982 9January 25, 1982Glen Campbell, Sheena Easton, Donna SummerShrine Auditorium 1983 10January 17, 1983Mac Davis, Aretha Franklin, Melissa Manchester 1984 11January 16, 1984Lionel Richie 1985 12January 28, 1985 1986 13January 27, 1986Diana Ross 1987 14January 26, 1987 1988 15January 25, 1988Barry Gibb, Maurice Gibb, Mick Fleetwood, Robin Gibb and Whitney Houston 1989 16January 30, 1989Anita Baker, Debbie Gibson, Kenny Rogers and Rod Stewart 1990 17January 22, 1990Alice Cooper, Anita Baker, Gloria Estefan, Naomi Judd and Wynonna Judd 1991 18January 28, 1991Keenen Ivory Wayans 1992 19January 27, 1992MC Hammer, Reba McEntire 1993 20January 25, 1993Bobby Brown, Gloria Estefan and Wynonna Judd 1994 21February 7, 1994Meat Loaf, Reba McEntire and Will Smith 1995 22January 30, 1995Queen Latifah, Tom Jones, Lorrie Morgan 1996 23January 29, 1996Sinbad 1997 24January 27, 1997 1998 25January 26, 1998Drew Carey 1999 26January 11, 1999Brandy and Melissa Joan Hart 2000 27January 17, 2000Norm Macdonald 2001 28January 8, 2001Britney Spears and LL Cool J 2002 29January 9, 2002Jenny McCarthy and Sean Combs 2003 (January) 30January 13, 2003Jack Osbourne, Kelly Osbourne, Ozzy Osbourne and Sharon Osbourne 2003 (November) 31November 16, 2003Jimmy Kimmel 2004 32November 14, 2004 2005 33November 22, 2005Cedric the Entertainer 2006 34November 21, 2006Jimmy Kimmel 2007 35November 18, 2007Peacock Theater 2008 36November 23, 2008 2009 37November 22, 2009rowspan="4" 2010 38November 21, 2010 2011 39November 20, 2011 2012 40November 18, 2012 2013 41November 24, 2013Pitbull 2014 42November 23, 2014 2015 43November 22, 2015Jennifer Lopez 2016 44November 20, 2016Gigi Hadid and Jay Pharoah 2017 45November 19, 2017Tracee Ellis Ross 2018 46October 9, 2018 2019 47November 24, 2019Ciara 2020 48November 22, 2020Taraji P. Henson 2021 49November 21, 2021Cardi B 2022 50November 20, 2022Wayne Brady colspan="6" 2025 51 May 26, 2025 Jennifer Lopez Fontainebleau Las Vegas CBS 2026 52 May 25, 2026 Queen Latifah MGM Grand Garden Arena
Categories Current award categories Source:
Artist of the Year New Artist of the Year Album of the Year Song of the Year Collaboration of the Year Social Song of the Year Best Music Video Best Soundtrack Tour of the Year Breakthrough Touring Artist Breakthrough Album of the Year Throwback Song of the Year Best Vocal Performance Song of the Summer Best Male Pop Artist Best Female Pop Artist Breakthrough Pop Artist (1989–January 2003, 2026) Best Pop Album Best Pop Song Best Male R&B Artist Best Female R&B Artist Breakthrough R&B Artist (1989–January 2003, 2026) Best R&B Album Best R&B Song Best Male Country Artist Best Female Country Artist Best Country Duo or Group Breakthrough Country Artist (1989–January 2003, 2026) Best Country Album Best Country Song Best Male Hip Hop Artist Best Female Hip Hop Artist Breakthrough Hip Hop Artist (1990–1994, 2026) Best Hip Hop Album Best Hip Hop Song Best Male Latin Artist Best Female Latin Artist Best Latin Duo or Group Breakthrough Latin Artist Best Latin Album Best Latin Song Best Rock/Alternative Artist Breakthrough Rock/Alternative Artist Best Rock/Alternative Album Best Rock/Alternative Song Best Dance/Electronic Artist Best Male K-Pop Artist Best Female K-Pop Artist Best Afrobeats Artist Best Americana/Folk Artist
Discontinued awards
Fan's Choice Award (2003) Favorite Social Artist (2018–2020) Favorite Trending Song (2021) Favorite Inspirational Artist (2002–2022) Favorite Gospel Artist (2021–2022) Favorite Pop Duo or Group (1974–2022) Favorite Pop/Rock Video (1984–1988) Favorite Pop/Rock Male Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Pop/Rock Female Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Soul/R&B Band/Duo/Group (1974–November 2003, 2005–2006, 2009) Favorite Soul/R&B Video (1984–1988) Favorite Soul/R&B Male Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Soul/R&B Female Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Soul/R&B Band/Duo/Group Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Country Video (1984–1988) Favorite Country Male Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Country Female Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Country Band/Duo/Group Video Artist (1985–1987) Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Band/Duo/Group (2003–2008) Favorite Disco Male Artist (1979) Favorite Disco Female Artist (1979) Favorite Disco Band/Duo/Group (1979) Favorite Disco Album (1979) Favorite Disco Song (1979) Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Artist (1989–1997) Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock Album (1989–1992) Favorite Heavy Metal/Hard Rock New Artist (1990–1993) Favorite Dance Artist (1990–1992) Favorite Dance Song (1990–1992) Favorite Dance New Artist (1990–1992) Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist (1992–2020) Favorite Adult Contemporary Album (1992–1994) Favorite Adult Contemporary New Artist (1992–1994)
Most wins The record for most American Music Awards won is held by Taylor Swift with 40 awards. The record for most American Music Awards won by a male artist is Michael Jackson with 26 awards. The record for most American Music Awards won by a group is Alabama with 18 awards.