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The American Music Awards have had plenty of unforgettable moments throughout the years, and the 2022 edition of the fan-voted award show was no different.
P!nk paying tribute to Olivia Newton-John
During the show, P!nk gave a powerhouse performance of “Hopelessly Devoted to You,” Olivia Newton-John‘s hit song from her starring role in the beloved movie Grease. Newton-John died in August 2022 after a battle with breast cancer.
Chris Brown winning — and Kelly Rowland controlling the crowd’s negative reaction
Singer Kelly Rowland took the stage to present the award for Favorite Male R&B Artist; the nominees were Brent Faiyaz, Chris Brown, Givēon, Lucky Daye, and The Weeknd. The award ultimately went to Chris Brown.
When Rowland announced Brown as the winner, the audience reacted with shock, as boos filled the room. Brown — who was scheduled to perform a tribute to Michael Jackson that was eventually scrapped — wasn’t in attendance at the show, and Rowland accepted the award on his behalf while calming down the crowd and thanking Brown for his contributions to music.
“Excuse me — chill out,” Rowland scolded while holding a finger up at the crowd. “But I wanted to tell Chris, thank you so much for making great R&B music. And I want to tell him thank you for being an incredible performer. I’ll take this award [and] bring it to you. I love you. Congratulations. And congratulations to all the nominees in this category.”
Kim Petras shines a light on the Colorado Springs shooting victims
The night before the 2022 American Music Awards, a gunman opened fire at Club Q in Colorado Springs, Colorado, killing 5 people and injuring at least 25 others. Kim Petras, who made history in October 2022 as the first trans woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with her Sam Smith collab “Unholy,” took a moment to honor the victims of the senseless tragedy before presenting the award for Favorite Pop Song.
“I can’t stop thinking about Colorado today,” Petras said. “Gay clubs raised me, basically. And I can confidently say that no one loves pop music more than gay clubs. So, my heart goes out to you.”
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Dove Cameron honors the queer community with her win
Singer and actor Dove Cameron, who won the award for New Artist of the Year, similarly took time during her speech to stand up for her community.
“I want to start by saying that every award that I ever win will always be first and foremost dedicated to the queer community at large,” Cameron said. “You guys have carved out such a space for me to be myself and to write music about it, and I’ve never felt safer or more loved and more supported, and I hope I can give you some semblance of that same feeling in my music.
“On the heels of the tragedy that happened at Club Q in Colorado Springs, I want to remind everyone how important queer visibility is, and how important our community is,” Cameron continued. “And I want to direct your attention to organizations like GLAAD and The Trevor Project for what you can do right now. I want to remind you that you are made absolutely right, and you are so loved and so held, and I want to thank you for supporting me. Thank you for holding the space — I’m holding it for you too.”
Artists singing ‘We Are the World’
In 1985, the biggest artists in music came together for “We Are the World,” a charity single originally written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson. Richie was honored with the Icon Award at the 2022 AMAs.
To help honor Richie, several popular artists today came together to perform the timeless uplifting song. Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson, who were a part of the original song, performed alongside Charlie Puth, Yola, Melissa Etheridge, Muni Long, Ari Lennox, Dustin Lynch, and Jimmie Allen together in homage to Richie’s lengthy career.
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