Taylor Swift has been nominated six times – she has won six times: The pop sensation is the big winner of the American Music Awards. The rest of the evening is rather mixed. There are laughs, boos and expressions of condolence.
Big, bigger, Taylor Swift: At the 50th American Music Awards (AMAs) on Sunday night, the 32-year-old turned all six nominations into trophies, including in the top division for Artist of the Year. In doing so, Swift increased her own record from 34 to 40 awards – she is also the musician with the most AMA awards in the history of the awards ceremony, ahead of Michael Jackson with 26 awards.
Things didn’t fare so well for the night’s most-nominated favorite, Bad Bunny. The Latin star won in just two out of eight possible categories. Meanwhile, there was joy at Maneskin: The Italian ESC winners from 2021 were able to take home the trophy for the best rock song (“Beggin”) after they went away empty-handed last time.
The three-hour ceremony was moderated by US entertainer Wayne Brady. In changing colorful suits and in front of a neon backdrop in the style of “Miami Vice”, the comedian led through the evening with all sorts of self-deprecating gags and singing interludes. He himself does not know exactly how he ended up on this stage. In any case, the central message is: Just be yourself. Brady’s dig at the recent Oscars, where Hollywood star Will Smith slapped his fellow actor Chris Rock in front of the cameras, earned embarrassed laughter. “Nobody’s going to gossip here today,” Brady joked.
In places, however, the mood also became serious. This is how the moderator commemorated the victims of a bloody crime at a nightclub in Colorado Springs that is popular with gays, lesbians and the trans community. A gunman had killed 5 people and injured 25 others the day before. Some of the award winners also used their moment to express their condolences. Dove Cameron, who won Best Newcomer, dedicated her award to the LGBTQ community. “I want to remind everyone how important it is for queer people to be visible,” the 26-year-old said in her acceptance speech.
The honoring of Chris Brown as the best R
Two pianos were rolled onto the stage at the end of the show in honor of Lionel Richie. Soul legend Stevie Wonder and singer Charlie Puth thrilled in a duet with a medley of his most famous songs. The 73-year-old received the “Icon Award” this year – since the music award was launched in 1973, Lionel Richie has been the only artist to be represented on the AMA stage in each of the five decades.
The American Music Awards are – along with the Grammys, for example – one of the most important awards in the US music industry. They are used in genres such as pop, country, hip-hop, rock and R
