Amid intense competition from the likes of Bad Bunny, Harry Styles, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift, BTS took home the coveted Artist of the Year trophy at the 2026 American Music Awards.
With the South Korean boy band making their first awards show appearance in four years, RM told the cheering audience, “Thank you. It’s an honor to have this precious award once again after everybody’s done their military service.”
J-hope smiled and cheered with the crowd, gesturing a ‘6-7,’ adding “We have been overwhelmed by the reaction from the album. Thank you for embracing us on every single song on the album.”
Apart from BTS, Katseye won New Artist of the Year, Sabrina Carpenter won Album of the Year for Man’s Best Friend, and Huntr/X bagged Song of the Year with ‘Golden.’
Heading into the night, Taylor Swift stood out with eight nominations, including in the Artist of the Year and Best Female Pop Artist, but confirmed shortly before the event that she would not be attending. With 40 AMA trophies to her credit, Swift is the most-awarded artist in the show’s history but came up short at the 2026 event with zero wins.
Hosted by Queen Latifah, the 52nd AMAs were held in Las Vegas, where the audience was treated to musical performances by Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Billy Idol, International Artist Award of Excellence recipient Karol G, Hootie & the Blowfish, New Kids on the Block, Katseye, Teddy Swims, Teyana Taylor and Sombr.
The list of 2026 AMA winners include:
Artist of the year: BTS
New artist of the year: Katseye
Album of the year: Sabrina Carpenter, Man’s Best Friend
Song of the year: Huntr/X, Golden
Collaboration of the year: PinkPantheress, Zara Larsson, Stateside
Best music video: Katseye, Gnarly
Tour of the year: Shakira, Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour
Best male pop artist: Justin Bieber
Best female pop artist: Sabrina Carpenter
Best pop song: Huntr/X, Golden
Best pop album: Sabrina Carpenter, Man’s Best Friend
Best male country artist: Morgan Wallen
Best female country artist: Ella Langley
Best male hip-hop artist: Kendrick Lamar
Best female hip-hop artist: Cardi B
Best male R&B artist: Bruno Mars
Best female R&B artist: SZA
Best male Latin artist: Bad Bunny
Best female Latin artist: Shakira
Best dance/electronic artist: David Guetta
Best Rock/Alternative Artist: Twenty One Pilots
Best male K-Pop artist: BTS
Best female K-Pop artist: Twice
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Author: Saul Goode
Photo: Korean Culture and Information Service 공공누리 제1유형 출처 표시