A Star-Studded Return to Las Vegas
The 52nd American Music Awards were held on Monday, May 25, 2026, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, hosted by Queen Latifah.
The ceremony aired live on CBS and Paramount+, marking the second time Latifah has hosted the event, following her co-hosting role in 1995. As a fan-voted awards show, nominees were determined by tracking data from Billboard and Luminate. The broadcast was produced by Dick Clark Productions.
Top Honors
Artist of the Year: BTS
Album of the Year: Sabrina Carpenter, Man's Best Friend
Song of the Year: HUNTR/X, "Golden"
New Artist of the Year: Katseye
Song of the Summer: BTS, "Swim"
By Genre and Special Categories
- Best Male Pop Artist: Justin Bieber
- Best Male K-Pop Artist: BTS
- Best Rock/Alternative Artist: Twenty One Pilots
- Best Latin Album: Karol G, Tropicoqueta
- Best Throwback Song: The Black Eyed Peas, "Rock That Body"
- Collaboration of the Year: Zara Larsson and PinkPantheress, "Stateside"
- Breakthrough Album of the Year: Zara Larsson, Midnight Sun
- Best Country Song: Ella Langley, "Choosin' Texas"
- Lifetime Achievement Award: Billy Idol
- International Artist Award of Excellence: Karol G
A remarkable seven acts tied for the lead with three awards each: BTS, Bruno Mars, Cardi B, Katseye, Sabrina Carpenter, HUNTR/X, and Sombr.
A Night of Milestones and Surprises
BTS earned three awards, bringing their career total to 14 AMAs. The group attended the ceremony for the first time in four years, following the completion of members' mandatory military service and their subsequent reunion tour.
Justin Bieber won his 19th AMA, tying Kenny Rogers for second-most among male artists. (Michael Jackson leads the category with 24 wins.)
Taylor Swift, who led all nominees with eight mentions—including Album of the Year and Best Pop Album for The Life of a Showgirl—did not win any awards. She remains the artist with the most AMAs in history, with 40 career wins.
Katseye became the seventh consecutive female act to win New Artist of the Year. In their acceptance speech, the group thanked BTS for their inspiration.
HUNTR/X’s "Golden" continued its award-season dominance, having previously won at the Grammys and the Academy Awards for Best Original Song. The track appears in the Netflix film K-Pop Demon Hunters.
Performances
The night featured a diverse lineup of live performances:
- Billy Idol
- The Black Eyed Peas
- Hootie & the Blowfish (featuring Darius Rucker)
- Karol G
- Katseye
- Keith Urban
- Maluma
- New Kids on the Block
- The Pussycat Dolls (with guest Busta Rhymes)
- Riley Green
- Sombr
- Teddy Swims
- Teyana Taylor
- Twenty One Pilots
Special Moments
Billy Idol received a Lifetime Achievement Award and performed a medley of his greatest hits. He expressed enthusiasm about his music reaching a younger audience through the television show Off Campus.
Karol G—the first Latina to headline the Coachella music festival—performed and received the International Artist Award of Excellence.
The AMAs saluted U.S. military personnel, with host Queen Latifah and singer Darius Rucker thanking active-duty members and veterans for their service.
Presenters
A star-studded roster of presenters included:
- Alysa Liu
- Anthony Ramos
- Ejae
- Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias
- GloRilla
- Hannah Berner
- Hilary Duff
- Jason Derulo
- John Legend
- Josh Groban
- Leon Thomas
- Lisa Rinna
- Mariah the Scientist
- Matt Rife
- Megan Stalter
- Paul W. Downs
- Melanie Martinez
- Nikki Glaser
- Paula Abdul
- Russell Dickerson
Nominations Breakdown
Taylor Swift led all nominees with eight. Morgan Wallen, Olivia Dean, Sabrina Carpenter, and Sombr each received seven nominations. Alex Warren and Lady Gaga received six nominations each.
First-time nominees included:
- Alex Warren
- BigXthaPlug
- Katseye
- Leon Thomas
- PinkPantheress
- RAYE
- Role Model
- Sienna Spiro
- Tate McRae