Billboard Music Award


The [Nielsen SoundScan|]Billboard Music Award is an honor given out annually by Billboard, a publication and music popularity chart covering the music business. The Billboard Music Awards show had been held annually since 1990 and the event was formerly held in December until it went dormant in 2006. The awards returned in 2011 and are now held annually in May.

Awards process

Unlike other awards, such as the Grammy Award, which determine nominations as a result of the highest votes received by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Billboard Music Awards finalists are based on album and digital songs sales, streaming, radio airplay, touring, and social engagement. These measurements are tracked year-round by Billboard and its data partners, including
Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound. The 2018 awards are based on the reporting period of April 8, 2017 through March 31, 2018. Awards are given for the top album, artist and single in a number of different music genres.

Awards

Categories

From 1989 to 2006, the show had the same categories and category names every year. In 2011, for the first time, all of the awards were renamed to "Top ". The "of the year" portion of each category title no longer exists, and many of the awards have been further renamed. Other awards, including both "crossover" awards were discontinued. As of 2017, there are two fan-voted categories.

Current categories

The general categories are Top Artist, Top Billboard 200 Album, Top Hot 100 Song and Top New Artist. These categories highlighted in each award and other categories are divided by genre.

Artist Achievement Award

In 1988, Michael Jackson was honored with Billboard's first Spotlight Award for being the first artist in music history to have five consecutive number ones singles on Billboard Hot 100 from one album. This happened before the Awards were televised. In 2012, Katy Perry was honored with Billboard's second Spotlight award for being the second and first female artist in music history to have five consecutive number ones singles on Billboard Hot 100 from one album.

Other special awards

The record for most Billboard Music Awards won is held by Drake with 27. The record for most Billboard Music Awards won by a female artist is held by Taylor Swift who has won 23 awards.
RankArtistNumber of awards
1.Drake27
2.Taylor Swift23
3.Justin Bieber20
4.Garth Brooks19
5.Adele18
5.Usher18
6.Whitney Houston16
7.Mariah Carey15
8.Beyoncé13
9.Rihanna12
10.Carrie Underwood11
10.Janet Jackson11
11.Mary J. Blige10
11.Eminem10
11.Destiny's Child10
11.50 Cent10

Broadcast

Since its inception, the BMAs had been telecast on the Fox network; however due to contractual expirations and other unforeseen circumstances, the awards were cancelled for 2007. Plans for a new version of the awards in 2008 fell through, and the BMAs were not held until 2011.
On February 17, 2011, Billboard announced that it would bring the BMAs back to television, moving from its original home on Fox to its new network, ABC, on May 22, 2011. A new award statuette was created by New York firm Society Awards. Dick Clark Productions, which is co-owned with Billboard, began producing the ceremony in 2014. On November 28, 2017, it was announced that the Billboard Music Awards would be moving from ABC to NBC beginning in 2018 under a multi-year contract.
The 2020 ceremony, originally scheduled for April 29, was postponed indefinitely on March 17 due to coronavirus-related public assembly concerns.

Ratings