The 2020 ''Billboard'' Music Awards were held on Wednesday October 14, 2020 at the

Dolby Theatre The Dolby Theatre (formerly known as the Kodak Theatre) is a live-performance auditorium in the Ovation Hollywood shopping mall and entertainment complex, on Hollywood Boulevard and Highland Avenue, in the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. Si ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. The ceremony was broadcast live from NBC. Hosted by

Kelly Clarkson Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of ''American Idol'' in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA. Her debu ...

for the third year in a row, the ceremony was sponsored by

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and

Xfinity Comcast Cable Communications, LLC, doing business as Xfinity, is an American telecommunications company and division of Comcast Corporation used to market consumer cable television, internet, telephone, and wireless services provided by the com ...

. The ceremony was originally scheduled for April 29, 2020, but was later postponed first indefinitely and then to October due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. Nominees were announced on September 22, 2020. Voting opened on TikTok on October 1 and closed on October 13. Presenters were announced October 13. Post Malone was the most awarded, with nine awards. Malone was also the most nominated, with 16 nominations.

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the co ...

and Killer Mike received the Icon Award and the inaugural Change Maker Award, respectively.

Background

The 2020 ceremony was originally scheduled to be held April 29, 2020 at the

MGM Grand Garden Arena The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip. Sporting events From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...

in Las Vegas.

was announced as the host. She had previously hosted the

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and

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

ceremonies. On March 17th, NBC and

Dick Clark Productions Dick Clark Productions (DCP, stylized in lowercase as dick clark productions or dcp) is an American multinational television production company founded by radio and TV host Dick Clark. The studio primarily produces award shows and other music en ...

issued a joint statement postponing the ceremony due to the

. In the statement, they stated " naccordance with the current guidelines set forth by national and local health officials and in order to ensure the health and safety of our artists, fans, guests and staff, are postponing the Billboard Music Awards." On August 14 of the same year, the show was rescheduled for October 14. On September 22, the nominees for all categories were announced. The first round of performers were announced September 29.

received the Icon Award, as announced on February 26, 2020; succeeding

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

, who won the award in 2019. Killer Mike received the inaugural Change Maker Award, as announced two days before the ceremony. Voting for fan-voted categories opened on dance video platform

on October 1. TikTok and

Performers

Notes * Pre-taped at the P.W. Gillibrand Co. Silver Sand quarry in Simi Valley, California. * Pre-recorded in

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South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

Winners and nominees

Nominees were announced in a series of

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

statements on September 22, 2020. Post Malone was the most nominated, with 16 nominations, followed by Lil Nas X with 13, and

Khalid Khalid (variants include Khaled and Kalid; Arabic: خالد) is a popular Arabic male given name meaning "eternal, everlasting, immortal", and it also appears as a surname.

and Billie Eilish with 12. Voting for the three fan-voted categories, ''Billboard'' Chart Achievement, Top Social Artist and Best Collaboration opened on dance-sharing video app

on October 1, 2020, and closed on October 13. Winners are first and are in bold.

Presenters

Presenters were announced October 13 in a series of Twitter statements. *

Nicole Richie Nicole Camille Richie (; born September 21, 1981) is an American television personality, fashion designer, socialite, and actress. She came to prominence after appearing in the reality television series ''The Simple Life'' (2003–2007), in whic ...

- presented Top ''Billboard'' 200 Album * Julia Michaels - presented Top Hot 100 Song * Jharrel Jerome - presented Top Female Artist * Jane Lynch - presented Top Country Artist *

Sheila E. Sheila Cecilia Escovedo (born December 12, 1957) better known under the stage name Sheila E., is an American percussionist and singer. She began her career in the mid-1970s as a percussionist and singer for The George Duke Band. After leaving t ...

- presented Top Song Sales Artist * Keisha Bottoms – presented Change Maker Award * Twitch - presented Top Latin Artist * Lilly Singh - presented Top Male Artist *

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

– presented the Icon Award *

Jay Ellis Wendell Ramone "Jay" Ellis Jr. (born December 27, 1981) is an American actor. In 2013, Ellis received his first major role on BET's series ''The Game (American TV series), The Game''. He is a main cast member on HBO's series ''Insecure (TV serie ...

- presented Top R&B Artist *

Addison Rae {{Infobox person , name = Addison Rae , image = Addison Rae - Pandora 2021 3.jpg , alt = , caption = Rae in an interview for Pandora in 2021 , birth_name = Addison Rae Easterlin ...

- presented ''Billboard'' Chart Achievement *Spencer X - presented Top Social Artist * Garcelle Beauvais - presented Top Christian Artist *

Taraji P. Henson Taraji Penda Henson ( ; born September 11, 1970) is an American actress. She studied acting at Howard University and began her Hollywood career in guest roles on several television shows before making her breakthrough in '' Baby Boy'' (2001). Sh ...

- presented Top Artist

References

{{Billboard Music Awards Billboard Music Award Billboard awards 2020 music awards

Billboard Music Awards The ''Billboard'' Music Awards are honors given out annually by '' Billboard'', a publication covering the music business and a music popularity chart. The ''Billboard'' Music Awards show has been held annually since 1990, with the exception of ...