Jennifer Lopez’s American Music Awards History: From New Kids on the Block Backup Dancer to Two-Time Host

Date of Show: Jan. 28, 1991

Notes: Lopez performed behind New Kids, who sang “Games,” their hard-edged rebuke to their detractors. With this single, the group changed its name to NKOTB in an effort to distance itself from its lightweight teen image. Flavor Flav joined them for the AMAs performance. J.Lo was a member of the dance troupe The Fly Girls on In Living Color at the time. In Living Colour star Keenen Ivory Wayans hosted the AMAs that year.

Watch here

Date of Show: Jan. 8, 2001

Notes: Ten years later, Lopez was back on the AMAs, but this time she was out front, in the star position. She opened the telecast with an elaborate production number built around “Love Don’t Cost a Thing,” the lead single from her sophomore album J.Lo. The sequence opens with a bit of “Thank Heavens for Little Girls,” the French-sounding trifle from Gigi. Performing under a replica of the base of the Eiffel Tower, Lopez showcased tight dance moves and a very toned midsection. At the end of her performance, she broke into a smile. She knew she had done what she came to do. “Love Don’t Cost a Thing” reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. J.Lo became her first No. 1 album on the Billboard 200.

Watch here

Date of Show: Nov. 22, 2009

Notes: Lopez momentarily fell in the middle of her elaborately staged AMAs performance of “Louboutins,” but she recovered so quickly that many viewers probably didn’t even notice. The song was introduced as being from J.Lo’s upcoming album Love? When that album finally appeared in 2011, this non-hit was nowhere to be found. “Louboutins” was J.Lo’s last release for Epic Records. She resurfaced two years later on Island Records with the hit “On the Floor.”

Watch here

Date of Show: Nov. 20, 2011

Notes: J.Lo had two performance spots on the show. In the first, she performed a medley consisting of “Until It Beats No More,” “Papi” and “On the Floor,” the latter featuring Pitbull; in the second, she performed “T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever)” with will.i.am.

The first spot opened with Lopez wearing a full gown and singing a dramatic ballad. It was much closer to Adele than J.Lo. It was also an elaborate fake-out. About 30 seconds in, she looked directly at the camera, smiled, ditched the gown and switched to a more suitable song. (Even more clothes came off before she ended the spot with “On the Floor.”)

“On the Floor” reached No. 3 on the Hot 100 in May 2011, becoming J.Lo’s 10th and most recent top 10 hit. will.i.am’s “T.H.E. (The Hardest Ever),” featuring Mick Jagger and J.Lo, reached No. 36 in 2011. Jagger, who, like Lopez, has long been famous for his stage moves, did not appear on the AMAs, but the producers laid in video of him performing another song over his vocal parts.

Watch performance with Pitbull here

Watch performance with will.i.am here

Date of Show: Nov. 24, 2013

Notes: In tribute to the Cuban-born Queen of Salsa, who had died 10 years earlier at age 77, Lopez performed “Químbara,” “Carnaval” and “Bemba Colorá.” Lopez was elegantly dressed and coiffed as the performance began. The gown had come off and the hair had come down by the end. This performance, in which she paid tribute to her Latin culture, was one of her most effective.

Watch here

Date of Show: Nov. 23, 2014

Notes: The two singers closed the show with this carnal celebration. Best moment: A dancer shows J.Lo a smartphone with a call coming in. She glances at it and dismisses it by saying, “Booty call.” Azalea had topped the Hot 100 earlier in the year with “Fancy,” her collab with Charli xcx. “Booty,” which reached No. 18 on the Hot 100, was featured on Lopez’s album A.K.A., her eighth album to make the top 10 on the Billboard 200.

Watch here

Date of Show: Nov. 22, 2015

Notes: Lopez performed her 1999 smash “Waiting for Tonight” (which was her second top 10 hit on the Hot 100) and then dramatically stopped and said “Wait! Don’t clap. Tonight is not about me. Tonight is about the music – and this year’s music made me want to dance.” She then danced to a medley of “Uptown Funk,” “Anaconda,” “7/11,” “Feeling Myself,” “The Hills,” “Can’t Feel My Face,” “Girl Crush,” “Bad Blood,” “Trap Queen,” “Hotline Bling,” “Thinking Out Loud,” “Love More,” “Where Are Ü Now” and “Bitch Better Have My Money.” The producers sprinkled in reaction shots from a few of the performers whose songs were included, namely Nicki Minaj, The Weeknd, Little Big Town and Justin Bieber.

Watch here

Date of Show: Oct. 9, 2018

Notes: This power ballad was from the film in which Lopez starred, alongside Leah Remini, Vanessa Hudgens, Treat Williams and Milo Ventimiglia. Lopez also served as a producer on the film, which had the motivational tag line, “The only thing stopping you…is you.”

Watch here

Date of Show: Nov. 22, 2020

Notes: J.Lo was joined by Colombian star Maluma for this bilingual performance of “Pa’Ti” and “Lonely.” “Pa’ Ti,” which translates to “For You,” was later featured in J.Lo’s pandemic-delayed 2022 film Marry Me, in which Maluma co-starred. “Lonely” didn’t make the cut.

Watch here

Date of Show: Nov. 21, 2021

Notes: Lopez performed this ballad, which gains in tempo as it proceeds, backed by scenes from the film, in which she starred with Owen Wilson, Maluma, John Bradley, Chloe Coleman and Sarah Silverman. Lopez also served as a producer of the film.

Watch here