State Champ Radio Awards
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Cardi B will receive the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers Voice of the Culture Award, recognizing her groundbreaking influence on music and culture. On Wednesday (May 21), ASCAP announced that Cardi would be honored with the award for 2025, which comes after Usher received the award last year. “Cardi B has left an […]
This year, Kacey Musgraves will be honored with the Songwriter Icon award at the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) annual meeting. The NMPA will also honor longtime Nashville hitmaker Rhett Akins as its Non-Performing Songwriter Icon Award recipient this year for his three decades of contributions to country music, including songs performed by Brooks & Dunn, Blake Shelton, Thomas Rhett, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and more. The meeting will also feature a keynote conversation with Apple Music head Oliver Schusser.
The NMPA annual meeting, which will take place at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall on June 11 in New York, is known in the business as a state of the union for the music publishing sector each year and a gathering place for its top executives to mingle. Along with honoring some of the top songwriters in the industry, NMPA president/CEO David Israelite also gives a speech at each meeting, detailing how the publishing business is doing.
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Israelite has also been known to drop groundbreaking news every year in this speech. Last year, he targeted Spotify for cutting payments to songwriters and publishers by about 40% and announced his plan to send sending an official complaint to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as well as letters to the attorneys general of nine states and a list of consumer groups — urging them to stop Spotify’s efforts to bundle music and audiobooks into its premium tiers. That built on top of previous news that the NMPA had sent a cease and desist notice to Spotify for alleged unlicensed lyrics, video and podcast content on the platform, and thatthe Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) had sued Spotify. (In January, the MLC’s case was dismissed by a judge who said Spotify’s move to cut payments was supported by “unambiguous” regulations. The MLC said it plans to keep fighting.)
Other previous bombshell announcements have included major copyright infringement lawsuits against Roblox, Twitter and more, and legal action against 100 different apps for allegedly skimming music from digital services without a license.
This year’s annual meeting will include a special segment dedicated to the Billboard Songwriter Awards, which were scheduled to take place during Grammy week but were postponed due to the Los Angeles wildfires. The award recipients will be announced at the event.
“We are thrilled to honor Kacey Musgraves whose music has always been driven by lyric and melody,” says Israelite. “A consummate songwriter, she is a successful solo hitmaker and renowned collaborator. Additionally, we look forward to celebrating the career of Rhett Akins whose songwriting has been central to the growth of country music.
“We are particularly excited to feature the Billboard Songwriter Awards after our GRAMMY Week event was postponed. The honorees are incredibly deserving, and it will be a phenomenal special segment of the program.
“Finally, Oliver Schusser has been an innovator throughout his career and we are eager to get his perspective on the myriad of opportunities and challenges for digital services in the streaming economy.”
The 2025 American Music Awards will showcase a wide range of performers, from 22-year-old Benson Boone, who has back-flipped his way to stardom in the past year, to 80-year-old Sir Rod Stewart, who is set to receive a lifetime achievement award. This will mark Stewart’s first time on the AMAs stage since 2004.
The show, which is being held on Memorial Day for the first time, is set to kick off summer from the Fontainebleau Las Vegas on Monday, May 26. The 51st AMAs will air live coast to coast at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS, and stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
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This will mark the first regular American Music Awards broadcast since the show that aired in November 2022, and the first one to air on CBS. The show was a fixture on ABC from 1974 to 2022, and it will mark the first one not held in the Los Angeles area.
Jennifer Lopez is hosting the show for the second time. She previously hosted in 2015, when she opened the show with a performance of her 1999 hit “Waiting for Tonight” leading into a dance medley of the year’s biggest hits.
Two other performers on this year’s show are past AMAs hosts. Stewart co-hosted in 1989 with Anita Baker, Debbie Gibson and Kenny Rogers. Gloria Estefan co-hosted in 1990 with Alice Cooper, Anita Baker and The Judds, and in 1993 with Bobby Brown and Wynonna. Estefan will mark her first performance on the AMAs in 32 years, celebrating five decades of her career in music.
As previously announced, Janet Jackson will receive the Icon Award, which recognizes an artist whose body of work has marked a global influence over the music industry. The 11-time American Music Award-winner will also take the stage, marking her first television performance since 2018.
Gwen Stefani will perform a medley celebrating the 20th anniversary of her debut solo album Love.Angel.Music.Baby, including her Billboard Hot 100-topping smash “Hollaback Girl,” and a song from her newest album, Bouquet, which was released in November.
Fresh from winning four awards at the 2025 Academy of Country Music Awards, country music star Lainey Wilson will perform.
Breakout artist and first-time American Music Award nominee Benson Boone will perform his latest single, “Mystical Magical,” from his upcoming sophomore album American Heart, which is due June 20.
Three-time American Music Award winner Blake Shelton will make his AMAs performance debut with a track from his new album, For Recreational Use Only, which was released on May 9.
Reneé Rapp will also make her AMAs debut, performing new music off her upcoming sophomore album.
The American Music Awards is the world’s largest fan-voted award show. Tickets to the show are available now on Ticketmaster.
Kendrick Lamar leads this year’s nominees with 10 nominations, followed closely by Post Malone with eight nods, and Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan and Shaboozey with seven each.
Nominees are based on key fan interactions — as reflected on the Billboard charts — including streaming, album and song sales, radio airplay and tour grosses. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and Luminate, and cover the data tracking eligibility period of March 22, 2024, through March 20, 2025.
Fan voting is now closed with the exception of collaboration of the year and social song of the year, which will remain open for web voting through the first 30 minutes of the AMAs broadcast via VoteAMAs.com.
The AMAs and Easy Day Foundation, a Las Vegas-based nonprofit organization committed to helping veterans transition to civilian life, will partner to present several in-show moments that celebrate veterans while raising funds for a variety of national and local organizations.
The 2025 American Music Awards will re-air on MTV (Tuesday, May 27, at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT), CMT (Wednesday, May 28, at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) and BET (Thursday, May 29, at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT).
The show will also livestream on Harmony, Penske Media’s proprietary live streaming platform that can be viewed across Penske Media’s owned and operated websites, including Variety, Rolling Stone, The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, WWD, Deadline, Vibe, IndieWire and Gold Derby.
The AMAs have also identified additional presenters and participants, including Nikki Glaser, who hosted this year’s Golden Globe Awards and has already been tapped to host next year’s show. Other presenters and participants include Tiffany Hadish and Wayne Brady, who have hosted other awards shows, and Shaboozey, who amassed seven AMA nominations this year.
Here is a list of performers and presenters on the 2025 American Music Awards. Additional names will be added as they are announced.
Performers
Benson Boone
Blake Shelton
Gloria Estefan
Gwen Stefani
Janet Jackson (Icon Award recipient)
Jennifer Lopez (host)
Lainey Wilson
Reneé Rapp
Rod Stewart (Lifetime Achievement Award recipient)
Participants & Presenters
Alix Earle
Cara Delevingne
Ciara
Dan + Shay
Dylan Efron
Jordan Chiles
Kai Cenat
Megan Moroney
Nikki Glaser
Shaboozey
Tiffany Haddish
Wayne Brady
The American Music Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.
Grammy-winning artist Ciara, stylist and creative director June Ambrose, and music executives Phylicia Fant and Sylvia Rhone will be honored on Tuesday (June 3) at the inaugural Black Women in Music Dinner. The event, which honors Black women “for their contributions to music and for shaping popular culture,” will be held at the Audrey Irmas Pavilion in Los Angeles. The event was originally set for Jan. 28 but was rescheduled due to the L.A. wildfires, which devastated the region in January.
The Black Women in Music Dinner will serve as The Connie Orlando Foundation’s first fundraiser focused on supporting breast cancer awareness and research. By raising funds and driving attention to this critical cause, the foundation aims to empower women with the knowledge, resources and support they need to fight breast cancer and improve health outcomes.
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“Black women in music continue to be a transcendent and driving force of creative expression, shaping the musical landscape and enriching diverse cultures worldwide,” said Orlando, founder of The Connie Orlando Foundation, in a statement. “Their contributions are not just transformative; they are the heartbeat of innovation and culture. It is an immense honor to celebrate the trailblazing careers of Ciara, June Ambrose, Phylicia Fant, Sylvia Rhone, DJ Kiss, and Flo Ngala at our inaugural event. These powerful women come from diverse paths, yet they share a unified commitment to pushing boundaries and sparking meaningful change across the music industry.
“As we embark on this momentous journey to celebrate Black women in all their brilliance and as ‘guards’ of an ever-evolving industry, we are deeply grateful for the unwavering support of HarbourView Equity Partners as our founding partner, and Sherrese Clarke, whose leadership has been instrumental in bringing this mission to life.”
In addition to being the founder of the foundation that bears her name, Orlando is the executive vp of specials, music programming and music strategy at BET. She is serving as executive producer of the 2025 BET Awards, set for June 9.
Here’s a closer look at the 2025 Black Women in Music Dinner honorees:
Ciara, a singer/songwriter, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, will receive the Avant-Garde Award, recognizing her artistry and influence. Ciara topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 2004 with “Goodies” featuring Petey Pablo, topped the Billboard 200 in 2006 with Ciara: The Evolution and won a Grammy in 2006 for best short form music video for “Lose Control.”
June Ambrose, a creative director, costume designer and entrepreneur, will receive the Guardian of Vision Award. Ambrose is best known for styling prominent hip-hop and R&B artists, such as Missy Elliott and Jay-Z, in high-fashion pieces. Ambrose has designed for more than 200 music videos; published a book, Effortless Style, in 2006; and was hired at Puma in 2020.
Phylicia Fant will receive The New Guard Award, celebrating her role as a transformative leader. Fant is the head of music industry partnerships at Amazon Music and the former head of urban music at Columbia Records. She is also the founder/CEO of The Purple Agency, a public relations and marketing agency.
Sylvia Rhone, a trailblazing music industry veteran and the first Black woman to lead a major label, will receive the Vanguard Award. Rhone is the chair/CEO of Epic Records. Rhone previously served in senior positions at Universal Motown, Elektra Entertainment Group and Atlantic Records.
DJ Kiss, media personality and influencer, and Flo Ngala, editorial photographer and photojournalist, will be honored with The Guardian Angel Spotlights. This award recognizes individuals who serve as messengers, protectors and guides within the music industry, driving both artistic and commercial success.
H.E.R. was initially slated to be one of this year’s honorees, but that changed in the rescheduling, with Ciara now being honored instead.
Additional program details, including host, performers and presenters, will be announced at a later date.
If it seems as if Jennifer Lopez has been a part of the American Music Awards for decades, well, she has. Lopez was just 21 in 1991 when she made her AMAs debut as a dancer behind New Kids on the Block. She first performed on the show as a star attraction in 2001. She […]
Lady Gaga took home a Sports Emmy on Tuesday night (May 20) for her pre-Super Bowl performance of “Hold My Hand” in tribute to victims of the New Orleans terror attack on New Year’s Eve, Hurricane Helene in Florida and Georgia in the fall, and the January wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles County. In a […]
Jackie Patillo, Gospel Music Association president, is set to receive the BMI Spotlight Award for her dedication to the genre and for her career as an advocate for all Christian and gospel music creators. Previous recipients of the award include Dottie Leonard Miller, Randy Edelman and Frank Gari.
The award will be presented at the 2025 BMI Christian Awards, which will be held on June 17 at the organization’s Nashville office. The private event will be hosted by Leslie Roberts, BMI’s avp of creative, Nashville, and Mike O’Neill, BMI’s president & CEO. In addition, BMI’s Christian songwriter of the year, song of the year, publisher of the year and the 25 most-performed Christian songs of the previous year will be announced.
“Through Jackie’s dynamic leadership, innovative vision, and unwavering love for Christian and Gospel music, she’s been able to bring both genres together through a message that unifies all while reaching a new generation of music lovers,” Roberts said in a statement. “The work that she’s done over her illustrious career is inspiring, and we’re thrilled to be presenting Jackie with the BMI Spotlight Award. We’re also looking forward to celebrating all our award-winning songwriters and producers, highlighting their achievements through community, worship and music.”
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As a veteran music executive with posts at Star Song, Benson, Integrity, and Verity Records, Patillo helped shape the careers of such artists as Natalie Grant, Stephen Hurd, Lisa McClendon, Donnie McClurkin, Joe Pace, Israel & New Breed, Marvin Sapp and Alvin Slaughter. As the president of the Gospel Music Association and GMA Foundation, where she has led the organization since 2010, Patillo has demonstrated her commitment to advocating for all Christian and Gospel music makers.
Patillo also serves as the co-executive producer of the GMA Dove Awards, which is viewed by over 3 million people annually on TBN. She was inducted into the Stellar Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2019, the SOURCE Hall of Fame in 2023, and was honored on her 10th anniversary with the Jackie Patillo Leadership Dove Award.
Sir Rod Stewart is set to receive a lifetime achievement award at the 2025 American Music Awards. He will also perform one of his classics, marking his first time on the AMAs stage since 2004 when he performed the Louis Armstrong classic “What a Wonderful World.” The ballad was featured on his Billboard 200-topping and Grammy-winning album Stardust: The Great American Songbook, Volume III.
Stewart, 80, is one of several artists set to perform on this year’s AMAs who are over 50. Others are host Jennifer Lopez, 55; Gwen Stefani, also 55; ICON Award recipient Janet Jackson, 59; and Gloria Estefan, 67. (To be sure, the show has also booked such younger performers as Benson Boone, 22; Reneé Rapp, 25; Lainey Wilson, 33; and Blake Shelton, 48.) This dramatizes how TV producers like to build a big tent to attract audiences of all ages and musical persuasions.
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The AMAs are set to “kick off summer” from the Fontainebleau Las Vegas, on Monday, May 26. The 51st AMAs will air live coast to coast at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBS and stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.
Stewart, who co-hosted the AMAs in 1989 with Anita Baker, Debbie Gibson and Kenny Rogers, has received several previous lifetime achievement accolades, including a Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music in 1993; a Legend Award from the World Music Awards, 1993; the Ivor Novello Awards Lifetime Achievement Award, 1999; induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame, 2006; and the ASCAP Founders Award, 2011.
Stewart is also a two-time inductee into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He was enshrined as a solo artist in 1994 and with Faces in 2012.
“Sir Rod Stewart is a master showman whose charisma and energy have defied time and embody the very spirit of rock and roll,” executive producers Barry Adelman, evp, television, and Alexi Mazareas, svp, programming & development, Dick Clark Productions, said in a joint statement. “We are looking forward to another epic performance on the AMAs stage as well as celebrating his incredible body of work when he receives the Lifetime Achievement Award.”
Stewart has amassed four No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and four No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200. His No. 1 singles are the double-sided smash “Maggie May”/“Reason to Believe” (1971), “Tonight’s the Night (Gonna Be Alright)” (1976-77), “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” (1979) and “All for Love,” a collab with Bryan Adams and Sting (1994). His No. 1 albums are Every Picture Tells a Story (1971), Blondes Have More Fun (1979), Stardust: The Great American Songbook, Volume III (2004) and Still the Same…Great Rock Classics of Our Time (2006).
This summer, Stewart will launch the North American leg of his “One Last Time” world tour, which ranked among the Top 20 Global Concert Tours of 2024. He’ll return to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in May-June and September-October 2025 with “The Encore Shows.”
The American Music Awards is the world’s largest fan-voted awards show. Tickets to the show are available now on Ticketmaster.
Kendrick Lamar leads this year’s AMA contenders with 10 nominations, followed closely by Post Malone with eight nods, and Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, and Shaboozey, with seven each.
Nominees are based on key fan interactions – as reflected on the Billboard charts – including streaming, album and song sales, radio airplay and tour grosses. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and Luminate, and cover the data tracking eligibility period of March 22, 2024, through March 20, 2025.
Fan voting is now closed, with the exception of collaboration of the year and social song of the year, which will remain open for web voting through the first 30 minutes of the AMAs broadcast via VoteAMAs.com.
The AMAs and Easy Day Foundation, a Las Vegas-based nonprofit organization committed to helping veterans transition to civilian life, will partner to present several in-show moments that celebrate veterans while raising funds for a variety of national and local organizations.
The American Music Awards are produced by Dick Clark Productions, which is owned by Penske Media Eldridge, a joint venture between Eldridge Industries and Billboard parent company Penske Media.
Steve Miller is set to become the 2025 recipient of the Les Paul Spirit Award on Monday, June 9, at a private event at the Gibson Garage Nashville. The event will take place on what would have been Paul’s 110th birthday. Miller is the fifth recipient of the award, following Bob Weir (founding member of Grateful Dead), Nile Rodgers, U2‘s The Edge and Peter Frampton.
The annual award, created and presented by the Les Paul Foundation (in partnership with Gibson Gives, the philanthropic division of Gibson), goes to an individual who exemplifies the spirit of the late Les Paul through innovation, engineering, technology and/or music. In addition to the award, a grant from the Les Paul Foundation will be made in the honoree’s name to the charity of his choice.
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“I cannot think of anyone more deserving to be honored with the Les Paul Spirit Award than Steve Miller,” Michael Braunstein, executive director of The Les Paul Foundation, said in a statement. “Not only is he an extraordinary talent and a wonderful friend of the Les Paul Foundation, Steve holds the very distinct title of being Les’ godson. They had a very unique relationship which Les cherished. If anyone understands the ‘spirit’ of Les Paul, it’s Steve.”
The Steve Miller Band’s enduring popularity has been demonstrated twice in the past year. The band’s 1982 hit “Abracadabra” was interpolated in Eminem’s “Houdini,” which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 2024. The band’s hit-laden 1976 album, Fly Like an Eagle, was inducted into the National Recording Registry this year.
Miller had three No. 1 hits on the Hot 100 – “The Joker” (1974), “Rock’n Me” (1976) and “Abracadabra” (1982). He never quite landed a No. 1 album on the Billboard 200, but four of his albums – The Joker, Fly Like an Eagle, Book of Dreams and Abracadabra – reached the top three. In addition, Miller’s 1978 compilation Greatest Hits 1974-78 has received a RIAA Diamond Award with U.S. shipments of more than 15 million copies.
Miller was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2016) and the Songwriters Hall of Fame (2022).
Miller and Paul were both signed to Capitol Records in their heydays. They also had a long and personal relationship. Their connection began in Miller’s early childhood in Milwaukee, where his parents frequently attended Les Paul and Mary Ford’s performances. Miller’s father, Sonny, was even the best man at Les Paul’s wedding. A young Steve Miller was introduced to Paul, who gave him his first informal guitar lessons and taught him his first three chords. Miller has often recalled how these early experiences watching Paul perform and receiving personal instruction were pivotal in inspiring his own musical journey. Miller joined Paul on stage at the latter’s 90th birthday concert in New York City in 2005.
The Les Paul Spirit Award is made from hand-carved acoustic boards built by Paul that he used in his home studio. Given the unique nature of the studio pieces that are being used to create them, no two Les Paul Spirit Awards will be exactly the same.
Paul, who died in 2009 at age 94, won Grammys for best instrumental performance in pop, rock and country categories, a sign of his broad influence. He received a trustees award from the Recording Academy in 1983 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an early/musical influence in 1988. In addition to his innovations with the guitar, Paul was half of one of the top vocal duos of the 1950s. Les Paul and Mary Ford’s biggest hits were “How High the Moon” and “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be With You).”
In 2014, John Mellencamp signed a lifetime recording agreement with Republic Records. He demonstrated why that was a smart investment on Republic’s part with a winning performance at the second annual Grammy Hall of Fame Gala. The event was held on Friday night (May 16) at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. — the site of the first Grammy ceremony in 1959.
Mellencamp performed as part of a salute to Republic Records, which was this year’s record company honoree. Conan Gray performed his 2020 hit “Heather” as part of that salute, though Muni Long, who had been announced as a third performer in the segment, did not appear. (Atlantic Records was the label honoree at last year’s inaugural Grammy Hall of Fame Gala, which was held at the Novo Theater at L.A. Live.)
The Grammy Hall of Fame Gala, presented jointly by the Recording Academy and the Grammy Museum, was conceived as a way to elevate the stature of the annual Hall of Fame inductions, which had long announced with little more than a press release. The Grammy Hall of Fame was established by the Recording Academy’s national trustees in 1973, initially to honor recordings that were released prior to the inception of the Grammy Awards in 1959. The selection criteria was long ago changed to include any recording that is at least 25 years old.
The Grammy Hall of Fame used to be the only major institutional award to honor classic recordings, but the arrival in 2002 of the National Recording Registry, administered by the Library of Congress, means the Grammy Hall of Fame no longer has this field all to itself.
Though it’s not their stated purpose, the Grammy Hall of Fame serves as a second chance for the Grammys to honor recordings they may have missed when they were first released. Of this year’s 13 honorees, 11 were released since the inception of the Grammy Awards. Of those 11, only two — Santana’s Supernatural (1999) and Emmylou Harris’ Wrecking Ball (1995) — had won Grammys when they were eligible. Only one other — Luther Vandross’ Never Too Much (1981) — had even been nominated.
Inducted recordings are selected annually by a member committee, with final ratification by the academy’s national board of trustees. Counting these 13 new titles, the Grammy Hall of Fame has 1,165 inducted recordings. The full list of past inducted recordings can be found here.
The artists could have as much or as little involvement in the Grammy Hall of Fame Gala as they wanted. Harris performed two songs from Wrecking Ball. R&B veteran Eddie Floyd performed his 1966 hit “Knock on Wood.”
Carlos Santana, honored for Supernatural, and Yusuf, the former Cat Stevens, honored for his 1970 album Tea for the Tillerman, accepted their awards with remarks on video. Santana thanked Clive Davis, who signed the band to both Columbia Records and, 30 years later, Arista Records. Of the Arista deal, which kicked off with Supernatural, he thanked Davis “and his belief that we could rock the world. Together we created a masterpiece of joy.”
JAY-Z, who is tied with Ye (formerly Kanye West), for the most Grammy wins by a rapper (25), didn’t even send in a video to acknowledge his Hall of Fame induction for his 1996 album, Reasonable Doubt.
The event attempted to serve multiple agendas. At one point, the proceedings were interrupted by a fund-raising drive for the Grammy Museum. That’s a worthy endeavor, but it undermined the program’s momentum.
Anthony Mason of CBS News hosted the event, with production led by Ken Ehrlich, who produced or executive produced the Grammy telecast for 40 years. Ron Basile, Lindsay Saunders Carl and Lynne Sheridan were also on the production team. Grammy and Latin Grammy winner Cheche Alara served as music director.
Here are eight highlights of the second annual Grammy Hall of Fame Gala.
John Mellencamp Honors Republic Records
