HOLLYWOOD HEADLINES

BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS: Drake Has Record Night

Written by KingCnote on May 2, 2019

At least awards-wise, Wednesday’s Billboard Music Awards belonged to Drake, as the MC took home a total of 12 awards, setting a new record and bringing his all-time total to 27. Yet the show, broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, still show delivered plenty of performance punch from a diverse roster of other artists, as well as a few head-scratching moments to boot.

The most-hyped performances were by acts with long track records – from Madonna, with her 35-year resume to the Jonas Brothers, coming back after nearly a decade on the shelf. The winners list went about as expected, with top nominees Cardi B and Drake cleaning up — so much so that he’s now the top BBMA winner of all time.

Taylor Swift went very big in opening the show with the first semi-live performance of “Me!,” bringing out a marching band and dance team, then stripping down to a bedazzled micro-mini for the duet with the equally glammed-up Brendon Urie.
Madonna went even bigger for her epic take on “Medellin,” complete with holograms, CGI and an eye patch. It supposedly cost the Material Girl a pretty penny – five million bucks of her own cash – but it didn’t really add any spice to the shapeless song itself.
Producers lured Mariah Carey to the show by handing over this year’s Icon Award, which she accepted after belting out a series of hits, including “Always Be My Baby” and “Emotions.” Yes, she can still hit those crazy high notes.
And Paula Abdul proved she still has all those crazy moves, ending the show with a throwback mini-set of all her biggest hits. She didn’t do a lot of live singing, but she did dance up a storm – and so did her old cartoon pal, MC Skat Kat, who looks as good as ever.
Host Kelly Clarkson took her turn in the spotlight with a medley of other peoples’ hits – including “The Middle,” “Meant to Be” and Panic! at the Disco’s “High Hopes” – adding a bit of a giggle by starting the set while being mock evicted from her seat in the crowd. She book-ended that with a tear-jerking last-hour version of her Ugly Dolls theme “Broken and Beautiful.”
Halsey took things in the other direction entirely, writhing on the floor for the first part of the dark “Without Me,” before bringing on a female partner for a sexually charged, vaguely violent dance piece.
Ciara leveled up in a big way with a very Janet Jackson-inspired version of “I’ve Been Thinkin’ About You,” which has “song of the summer” potential in a major way.
Dan and Shay put a twist on their hit “Speechless” by adding a third voice – in the form of pop star-turned-gospel singer Tori Kelly.
Ariana Grande cranked up the Broadway vibe with a staging of “7 Rings” that was straight out of Hairspray – with a little extra dose of girl power.
The Jonas Brothers pretty much picked up where they left off before their split, charming their way through a mix of oldies like “Jealous” and Joe’s DNCE hit “Cake by the Ocean” and recent hit “Sucker.” Heck, they even let middle bro Kevin hit the stage for a little while.
It took Brendon Urie about two minutes to let the rest of his bandmates get some screen time during “Hey, Look Ma I Made It,” which featured more dancers and horn players than actual Panic! at the Disco dudes.
BTS took home a few awards over the course of the evening, and probably deserved a special one for loudest screams of the night – earned for “Boy With Luv,” which featured a barely-noticeable cameo from Halsey.

2019 Billboard Music Awards Winners

Top Artist – Drake
Top Male Artist – Drake
Top Female Artist – Ariana Grande
Top Duo/Group – BTS
Top New Artist – Juice Wrld
Top Rock Artist – Imagine Dragons
Top Rock Tour — Elton John
Top R&B Artist – Ella Mai
Top R&B Male Artist — The Weeknd
Top R&B Tour — Beyonce & Jay-Z
Top R&B Album — XXXTENTACION: 17
Top R&B Song– Ella Mai: “Boo’d Up”
Top Hot 100 Song – Maroon 5 feat. Cardi B: “Girls Like You”
Top Billboard Hot 100 Artist – Drake
Top Rap Artist — Drake
Top Male Rap Artist — Drake
Top Female Rap Artist — Cardi B
Top Rap Song – Cardi B: “I Like It”
Top Rap Album – Drake: Scorpion
Top Rap Tour — Beyonce & Jay-Z
Top Rock Song – Panic! at the Disco: “High Hopes”
Top Rock Album – Panic! at the Disco: Pray for the Wicked
Top Country Song – Florida Georgia Line (w/ Bebe Rexha): “Meant to Be”
Top Country Duo/Group – Dan & Shay
Top Country Artist — Luke Combs
Top Country Album — Luke Combs: This One’s for You
Top Country Song– Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line: “Meant to Be”
Top Country Male Artist — Luke Combs
Top Country Female Artist — Carrie Underwood
Top Country Tour — Kenny Chesney
Top Billboard 200 Album – Drake: Scorpion
Top Billboard Top Artist – Drake
Top Latin Artist — Ozuna
Top Latin Album — Ozuna: Aura
Top Latin Song — Casper Magico, Nio Garcia, Darell, Nicky Jam, Bad Bunny & Ozuna: “Te Bote”
Top Social Artist – BTS
Billboard Chart Achievement Award – Ariana Grande
Billboard Icon Award — Mariah CareyI
Top Streaming Songs Artist — Drake
Top Streaming Songs (Audio) — Travis Scott: “Sicko Mode”
Top Streaming Songs (Video) — Drake: “In My Feelings”
Top Song Sales Artist — Drake
Top Selling Song — Maroon 5 ft. Cardi B: “Girls Like You”
Top Radio Song — Maroon 5 ft. Cardi B: “Girls Like You”
Top Collaboration– Maroon 5 ft. Cardi B: “Girls Like You”
Top Radio Songs Artist — Drake
Top Touring Artist — Ed Sheeran
Top Dance/Electronic Artist — The Chainsmokers: Sick Boy
Top Dance/Electronic Album — The Chainsmokers
Top Dance/Electronic Song —Zedd, Maren Morris & Grey “The Middle”
Top Christian Artist — Lauren Daigle
Top Christian Album — Lauren Daigle: Look Up Child
Top Christian Song — Lauren Daigle: “You Say”
Top Gospel Artist — Tasha Cobbs Leonard
Top Gospel Song — Koryn Hawthorne: “Won’t He Do It”
Top Gospel Album — Tori Kelly: Hiding Place
Top Soundtrack — The Greatest Showman