Music Sound

The American Music Awards show is one of four annual major US music awards shows (the others being the Billboard Music Awards, the Grammy Awards, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony). The AMAs were created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammys after the move of that year's show to Nashville, Tennessee led to CBS picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC. Michael Jackson and Donny Osmond co-hosted the first award show with Rodney Allen - Rippy. While the Grammys are awarded based on votes by members of the entertainment industry, the AMAs are determined by a poll of music buyers. The "big three" established awards shows (AMAs, Billboard Music Awards, and Grammys) compete for prestige and television ratings, with the Grammys nominally rewarding quality and both the AMAs and Billboard Music Awards rewarding popularity. Stories of artists being pressured to participate in one awards show over the other have been fodder for tabloid gossip and controversy.

The only other major difference between the Grammys and Billboard Music Awards is that the AMAs do not currently have an award for Best Single/Record but the Grammys and Billboard Music Awards do.

However, since the establishment of the Billboard Music Awards in 1989, there have been instances where artists (such as The Dixie Chicks and Céline Dion) have won all of the "big three" major music awards (including the AMAs). But the need for a unified music awards system (on the mold of horse racing's Triple Crown) only complicates the competition between the AMAs and the other awards shows.

For the first decade or so, the AMAs had multiple hosts, each representing a genre of music. For instance, Glen Campbell would host the country portion (Campbell, in fact, has co-hosted the AMAs more times than any other host or co-host), while other artists would co-host to represent his/her genre. In recent years, however, there has been one single host.

From its inception in 1973 until 2003, the AMAs have been held in mid- to late-January, but were moved to November beginning in 2003 so as not to further compete with other major awards shows (such as the Golden Globe Awards and the Academy Awards).

The most American Music Awards belong to Alabama who have collected twenty-two awards. The record for a solo artist belongs to Whitney Houston, who has collected twenty.

The record for the most American Music Awards won in a single year is held by both Michael Jackson (for 1983's Thriller), and Whitney Houston (for 1993's The Bodyguard Soundtrack), each with 8 awards to their credit (including the Award of Merit, which both artists were awarded during their respective year).

Pop/Rock Category

Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist
Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist
Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group
Favorite Pop/Rock Album
Favorite Pop/Rock Single
Favorite Pop/Rock Video
Favorite Pop/Rock Male Video Artist
Favorite Pop/Rock Female Video Artist
Favorite Pop/Rock Band/Duo/Group Video Artist
Favorite Pop/Rock New Artist

Soul/R&B Category

Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist
Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist
Favorite Soul/R&B Band/Duo/Group
Favorite Soul/R&B Album
Favorite Soul/R&B Single
Favorite Soul/R&B Video
Favorite Soul/R&B Male Video Artist
Favorite Soul/R&B Female Video Artist
Favorite Soul/R&B Band/Duo/Group Video Artist
Favorite Soul/R&B New Artist

Country Category

Favorite Country Male Artist
Favorite Country Female Artist
Favorite Country Band/Duo/Group
Favorite Country Album
Favorite Country Single
Favorite Country Video
Favorite Country Male Video Artist
Favorite Country Female Video Artist
Favorite Country Band/Duo/Group Video Artist
Favorite Country New Artist

Rap/Hip-Hop Category

Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist
Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Male Artist
Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Female Artist
Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Band/Duo/Group
Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album
Favorite Rap/Hip=Hop New Artist

Adult Contemporary Category

Favorite Adult Contemporary Artist
Favorite Adult Contemporary Album
Favorite Adult Contemporary New Artist

Heavy Hetal/Hard Rock Category

Favorite Heavy Hetal/Hard Rock Artist
Favorite Heavy Hetal/Hard Rock Album
Favorite Heavy Hetal/Hard Rock New Artist

Alternative Category

Favorite Alternative Artist

Dance Category

Favorite Dance Artist
Favorite Dance Album
Favorite Dance New Artist

Latin Category

Favorite Latin Artist

Inspirational Category

• Favorite Contemporay Inspirational Artist

Soundtrack

• Favorite Soundtrack

Other Categories

Award of Merit
Award of Achievement
Fan's Choice Award
Artist of the Year

U.S. Music Awards
Major Ceremonies
American Music Awards | Billboard Music Awards | Grammy Awards | Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
Minor award ceremonies
Soul Train Music Awards | MTV Video Music Awards | Latin Grammy Awards | BET Awards | Teen Choice Awards | Radio Music Awards

External links

• American Music Awards, official site
• "More Show than Music", a scathing critique of the 2001 awards show