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The 2022 Billboard Music Awards are almost here! The long-running awards show has celebrated some of the most popular and prominent artists of the last three decades, and this year’s edition will be no different. The show will be broadcast live at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 15. The show will air at 8 pm ET / 5 pm PT on NBC. It will also be available for streaming on NBC’s Peacock service for those who’d prefer to watch that way.
Fresh off his stint of playing peacemaker backstage at the 94th Annual Academy Awards, Sean “Diddy” Combs will make his hosting debut as he helms the 2022 Billboard Music Awards. The Bad Boy icon is just one of the major talents who will grace the MGM Garden Arena’s stage this year, so here’s what you can expect when the show kicks off.
About The Billboard Music Awards
The 2022 BBBMas will be the second music awards show at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in as many months. The 64th Grammy Awards were initially scheduled to take place on Jan. 31 at the Crypto.com Arena (fka the Staples Center), but the Omicron COVID-19 outbreak postponed the awards to April – and forced the show to relocate to the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Typically, the MGM is the home to the BBMAs, so it was odd to see another show invade their turn.
The Billboard Music Awards held its first ceremony in 1990. The show bounced around cities for the first few years – Santa Monica, New York, Vegas – before finding its home in 1997 when it took place from the MGM Grande for the first time. In the 25 years since then, the BBMAs have taken place from the MGM Grand eighteen times (and that’s including when the show went on hiatus from 2007 to 2010). For two years – 2016 and 2017 – the show switched it up by hitting Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena. In 2020, it relocated to the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, and in 2021, the show originated from L.A.’s Microsoft Theater, but now, it’s back in Vegas!
Unlike the Grammys, which relies on the Recording Academy to vote, the BBMA’s “finalists and winners are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital song sales, streaming, radio airplay, and social engagement, tracked by Billboard and its data partners, including Luminate (formerly MRC Data)” (per Billboard.)
In addition to hosting, Diddy will executively produce this year’s show. “This will be unlike any awards show. I’m bringing the love and setting the frequency at an all-time high,” said Combs in a statement, per Deadline. “The Billboard Music Awards truly represent the artists and where music is today, so I’m excited to curate the biggest live performances and surprises. The world has to tune in to see.”
This Year’s Awards
The Weeknd leads the 2022 Billboard Music Awards nominees with 17. Doja Cat is the most-nominated female act with 14. BTS is also nominated – the K-Pop superstars are the most-nominated duo/group with seven. Olivia Rodrigo, Justin Bieber, and Kanye West follow behind, with each scoring 13 nods. For a complete list of performers, click here.
When the BBMAs shared the first slate of performers, Mary J. Blige led the pack. The R&B legend was one of the highlights of the 2022 Super Bowl Halftime Show, and she will be on hand to receive the 2022 Billboard Icon Award. Rauwn Alejandro, Latto, Burna Boy, and Megan Thee Stallion were also announced as performers for this year’s show. The Red Hot Chili Peppers will also perform at the BBMAs for the first time since 1999.
This year’s show follows the 2021 show, which featured Alicia Keys performing a Songs in A Minor medley, a showcase from the 2021 Icon award-winner Pink, and sizzling performance of “Kiss Me More” by Doja Cat and SZA. Drake received the Artist of the Decade award and brought out his son, Adonis, to accept it with him. It’s hard to top that, but expect the 2022 Billboard Music Awards to try.
