An American Music Awards show where Taylor Swift doesn’t win a thing? Where KATSEYE, HUNTR/X and Sombr, who were little-known just a year or two ago, win three awards each? Where Morgan Wallen is passed over for favorite country album…again? (He has yet to win in the category.)
There were surprises galore at the 2026 AMAs, which were presented at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Monday (May 25). The show, hosted by Queen Latifah, aired on CBS and streamed on Paramount+.
The show included numerous short clips from past AMA ceremonies, most likely to remind the audience that the show has been around a really long time. Richard Nixon was president when the first AMAs were presented in February 1974. (Okay, not for much longer. He was forced out of office six months later.) Presidents come and go, but awards shows seem to go on forever.
The AMAs now covers a much broader range of music than it did in the early years. In the first five years of the show, awards were presented in just three broad genres – pop/rock, soul/R&B and country. This year, there were awards in each of those categories, but also hip-hop, Latin, rock/alternative, dance/electronic, K-Pop, Afrobeats and Americana/folk.
Here are some of the biggest snubs and surprises at the 2026 American Music Awards.
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.
