2026 American Music Awards Nominees Full List Taylor Swift Leads

The 2026 American Music Awards are set for May 25 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and the nominations are out. Taylor Swift leads all artists with eight nods, putting her in position to extend her own record as the all-time AMA wins leader with 40 trophies. Michael Jackson sits second on that list with 24.

Morgan Wallen, Olivia Dean, Sabrina Carpenter, and sombr each pulled seven nominations. Alex Warren and Lady Gaga follow with six apiece. Queen Latifah is back to host the 52nd ceremony, returning to the AMA stage for the first time since co-hosting in 1995.

2026 AMA Nominees by Category

Artist of the Year is stacked this cycle. The full field includes Bad Bunny, Bruno Mars, BTS, Harry Styles, Justin Bieber, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, Morgan Wallen, Sabrina Carpenter, and Swift. That is a legitimate cross-genre argument, and whichever name gets called will have earned it against real competition.

Justin Bieber holds four nominations and a shot at history of his own. He currently sits at 18 career AMA wins. One trophy puts him in a tie with Kenny Rogers for second among male artists, behind only Michael Jackson.

The new artist conversation this year centers on Olivia Dean and sombr. Both are competing in three overlapping categories: New Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, and the newly introduced Breakthrough Album of the Year. Dean already took home best new artist at the Grammys earlier this year, so she arrives with momentum. sombr is making a case for the underdog lane.

Several categories are new to the 2026 AMAs: Breakthrough Album of the Year, Breakout Tour, Best Throwback Song, Best Vocal Performance, and Song of the Summer. That Song of the Summer field alone is worth a bookmark. It runs from BTS and Harry Styles to PinkPantheress and Tame Impala with JENNIE, reflecting how wide the summer soundtrack actually spread in 2025.

Tour of the Year is not a soft category either. Beyonce's Cowboy Carter Tour, Kendrick Lamar and SZA's Grand National Tour, Lady Gaga's The Mayhem Ball, the Oasis Live '25 reunion, and Shakira's Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour are all in the running. Each of those runs moved real tickets and real culture.

Other notable first-time nominees this cycle include Alex Warren, BigXthaPlug, KATSEYE, Leon Thomas, PinkPantheress, RAYE, Role Model, Sienna Spiro, and Tate McRae. The mix of pop, R&B, country, and electronic across categories says something about where mainstream taste actually sits right now.

What the 2026 AMAs Mean for Artists and the Industry

For independent artists and emerging creators, the AMA nominations board functions as a real-time map of what mainstream audiences are actually streaming and engaging with, not just what labels push. Categories like Social Song of the Year and Song of the Summer pull from data that reflects listener behavior, which makes the field useful intel beyond the ceremony itself.

The show airs May 25 on Memorial Day. Winners will be announced live. Keep an eye on this space for the updated results as they come in, and check [/pass-the-aux](/pass-the-aux) for our takes on the night's biggest moments once the trophies are handed out.