The American Music Awards is one event that is popular among music lovers. It was announced that this year’s show would be hosted by none other than the “Money” rapper, Cardi B. Although this is the artist’s hosting debut, it isn’t the first time she has graced the stage.
The rapper has no less than five AMAs under her belt and is the first female rapper to win the Favorite Hip Hop Song Award twice in the award show’s history. She even graced the stage in 2018 to perform “I Like It” with J Blavin and Bad Bunny. Over the years, the AMAs have been known for rewarding their viewers with iconic moments. One of which was Lady Gaga’s mind-blowing performance for “Bad Romance” and “Speechless” in 2009.
Another one was Kanye West’s famed award flare-up when he lost to country singer Gretchen Wilson. Concerning this year’s award show, keep reading to find out everything that happened at the award show, including the winners.
Cardi B Was The 2021 AMAs Host
Cardi B was made the host of this year’s award show. While announcing her hosting duties, the 29-year-old said, “I’m ready to bring my personality to the AMAs stage!”
The AMA’s executive producer Jesse Collins added, “We are immensely excited to have the dynamic Cardi B bring her infectious energy to the American Music Awards as a first-time host. She will excite the viewers, push the limits and deliver a show that will be remembered forever!”
The host arrived at the award show wearing Schiaparelli, including a black gown with a large veil and a gold mask. This was the first of many looks while the rapper was on stage.
“A lot of looks tonight, a lot of looks,” she joked. “I’m running on two hours’ sleep, and I arrived here today at 10 a.m. for rehearsal. We just finished at 2 o’clock, I got dressed, and I’m here, and I’m going back again for my big entrance, and [to] host the show!”
The 2021 AMAs Nominees
The award show’s nominees were revealed on Thursday, October 28, while the show was held on Sunday, November 21. According to the AMA’s website, the nominees were selected “based on key fan interactions— as reflected on the Billboard charts— including streaming, album and digital song sales, radio airplay and social activity.”
One of the most popular artists of the year, Olivia Rodrigo, was the most nominated artist of the award show with seven nominations, including Artist of the Year and New Artist of the Year.
She was closely followed by The Weekend, who was nominated six times. The third highest was Doja Cat, Giveon, and Bad Bunny, who got three nominations each.
Some of the most snubbed artists on the show include Kanye West, who got a single nomination for the Favorite Gospel Artist category, and Billie Eilish, who got no nomination even though her second album was released in July 2021.
The 2021 AMAs Performances
The performers lined up for the show included Rodrigo, Jennifer Lopez, Mickey Guyton, the Silk Sonic duo (Bruno Mars and Anderson Paak), and others.
Lopez was a late addition to the line-up and was set to perform “On My Way,” a track from her anticipated movie, “Marry Me.” Other performances included pop-rockers Maneskin, with their hit song “Beggin,” and country singer Walker Hayes and Kane Brown.
One of the most anticipated performances was probably the seven-man band BTS. The K-pop superstars performed twice on the award show, one with Coldplay and Megan Thee Stallion. However, the rapper pulled out from performing “Butter” last minute due to personal reasons.
She posted the update on November 20 via Twitter. “Hotties, I was so excited to go to the @AMAs and perform with @BTS_official, but due to an unexpected personal matter, I can no longer attend. I’m so sad! I really can’t wait to hit the stage with my guys and perform #BTS_Butter real soon!” BTS performed “Butter” themselves and collaborated with Coldplay on the second song.
The 2021 AMAs Winners
Artist of the Year award, which is the biggest honor of the night, went to the K-pop group BTS. The superstars beat famous artists like Drake, Ariana Grande, The Weekend, Taylor Swift, and Olivia Rodrigo. The group was nominated for three awards and snagged all three. BTS is the first Asian act ever to win Artist of the Year at the AMAs, and this is their third consecutive year winning the award for Favorite Pop Duo.
Taylor Swift wasn’t in attendance but took home two awards for Favorite Pop Artist and Favorite Pop Album. The artist thanked her fans for the award in a pre-recorded video. Swift has extended her 34-win record as the most awarded artist on the AMAs with her new wins.
For the New Artist of the Year award, Rodrigo took home the trophy. This year, the actress got the most nominations and was up against Swift’s idol in many categories. When receiving her award, she said, “Thank you so much to the AMAs and to the fans who voted for this award; it means so much to me. Writing songs is my favorite thing in the whole world, and I am so grateful for everyone who has embraced my music.”
Doja Cat also made an impression in the award show. The singer bagged three awards for Favorite Female R&B Artist, Best R&B Album for her “Planet Her,” and the Collaboration of the Year Award with SZA for “Kiss Me More.”
