Queen Latifah To Host 52nd American Music Awards as Multiple Artists Chase Records

Queen Latifah will host the 52nd American Music Awards on May 25 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. She's the first person to host the GRAMMYs and the AMAs solo. Latifah led the GRAMMYs in 2005.

Taylor Swift will lead with eight nominations. Morgan Wallen, Olivia Dean, Sabrina Carpenter, and SOMBR will also appear. Swift earned nominations for Artist of the Year, Album of the Year for The Life of a Showgirl, Song of the Year for "The Fate of Ophelia," Best Music Video, Song of the Summer, Best Female Pop Artist, Best Pop Song, and Best Pop Album. She already holds 40 AMA wins, making her the most awarded artist in the show's history. If she sweeps all eight categories, her total would hit 48. That would tie the single-night record of eight wins held by Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston.

Kendrick Lamar could become the first hip-hop artist to win Artist of the Year, and Bad Bunny might be the first Latin artist to claim that category. Beyoncé is nominated for Tour of the Year for her Cowboy Carter Tour, and she could become the first solo artist to win in that category twice.

Billy Idol will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award and deliver his first-ever AMA performance. Karol G will play and be honored with the International Artist Award of Excellence.

"All roads lead back to music for me," said Queen Latifah to Billboard. "Everything I've done in my career, it all started with music."

Latifah led the BET Awards in 2010, the NAACP Image Awards in 2023 and 2024, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2024. She'll be a coach on The Voice this fall with Adam Levine, Kelly Clarkson, and Riley Green.

Other performers include Hootie & the Blowfish, KATSEYE, Keith Urban, Maluma, New Kids on the Block, Riley Green, SOMBR, Teddy Swims, Teyana Taylor, The Pussycat Dolls with Busta Rhymes, and Twenty One Pilots.