The Weeknd, Doja Cat, Olivia Rodrigo, Justin Bieber and Kanye West up for most awards
MRC and NBC have announced the finalists for the 2022 Billboard Music Awards (BBMA), which honor the year’s most successful artists in 62 categories across all genres of music. The annual live broadcast showcases spectacular performances, unexpected collaborations, and buzzworthy pop culture moments that keep fans talking all year. Some of the most unforgettable moments of the evening take place during the presentation of both the prestigious Billboard Icon Award, which honors record-breaking artists and their impact on music, and the Billboard Change Maker Award, which honors an artist or group that speaks truth to power through their music, platform, and community.
The BBMAs will broadcast live coast-to-coast from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 15th at 8 pm ET/5 pm PT on NBC and stream live on Peacock.
The Weeknd leads as a finalist in 17 categories, the most of any artist this year, including Top Artist, Top Male Artist, and Top 100 Artist. His collaboration with Ariana Grande for the song “Save Your Tears (Remix)” is up for six awards.
Doja Cat is the leading female finalist with 14 categories including Top Artist, Top Female Artist, and Top Hot 100 Artist. Her album “Planet Her” is up for two awards, while her song “Kiss Me More,” featuring SZA is up for Top 100 Song and Top Collaboration, as well as in the new Top Viral song category.
First-time finalist Olivia Rodrigo bows with recognition as a finalist in 13 categories including Top Artist, Top New Artist, Top Female Artist, and Top Hot 100 Artist. Her album “SOUR” is a finalist for Top Billboard 200 Album and her song “good 4 u” is a finalist in four categories.
The most decorated BBMA artist of all time, Drake, who holds the record with 29 wins, is up for 11 categories including Top Artist, Top Male Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist and Top Hot 100 Artist. He’s up for the Billboard Album 200 category for “Certified Lover Boy,” along with multiple song nods.
The most decorated female BBMA artist of all time, Taylor Swift, had another banner year and is a finalist in seven categories; with her 25 previous wins, she could surpass Drake for most wins of all-time if she wins at least five this year. She’s up for Top Artist and Top Female Artist, as well as for two albums in the Top Country Album category for “Fearless (Taylor’s Version)” and “Red (Taylor’s Version).”
Justin Bieber, the third most decorated BBMA artist with 21 previous wins, also lands amongst the top finalists as he is up for 13 categories this year including Top Male Artist, Top Hot 100 Artist, and the new Top Billboard Global 200 Artist category.
Five new categories were unveiled this year, with four based on Billboard’s first authoritative global charts and one measuring viral songs. The Billboard global charts rank songs based on streams and download sales both worldwide and excluding the US. The related new categories are Top Billboard Global 200 Artist, Top Billboard Global Excl. U.S. Artist, Top Billboard Global 200 Song, and Top Billboard Global Excl U.S. Song. Ed Sheeran is a finalist in all four new global categories for artist and his song “Bad Habits,” while The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber’s “STAY” and The Weeknd & Ariana Grande’s “Save Your Tears” are represented in both new global song categories. Olivia Rodrigo and The Weeknd are finalists across both new global artist categories.
Billboard has the entire list of nominees.
This year’s awards are based on the chart period of April 10, 2021 through March 26, 2022. Billboard Music Awards 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.
For more than 30 years, the BBMAs have celebrated music’s greatest achievements, honoring the hottest names in music today. Unique among music awards shows, finalists are determined by performance on the Billboard Charts. Since 1940, the Billboard Charts have been the go-to guide for ranking the popularity of artists, songs, and albums, and are the ultimate measure of success in music.
Tickets to attend the show are open to the public. Prices per ticket start at $90 USD and are available for purchase via Ticketmaster.
