WORLD’S LARGEST FAN VOTED AWARDS SHOW TO CELEBRATE 45 YEARS OF GIVING FANS THE VERY BEST IN MUSIC
Christina Aguilera will pay tribute to Whitney Houston and music from the successful film turned pop culture phenomenon, The Bodyguard, at the 2017 American Music Awards. The multi-talented songstress’ tribute, which will feature memorable tracks from The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album, comes on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the film, which was released on November 25, 1992 and starred one of Aguilera’s all-time favorite artists, the late Whitney Houston. Houston won 22 American Music Awards, including eight in a single year, making her the most awarded female vocalist of all time. A fan-favorite and true pop icon, Aguilera has treated fans to an array of American Music Awards performances throughout the years including her first AMA performance in 2000 with the hit singles “What a Girl Wants” and “I Turn to You,” her knockout medley of “Ain’t No Other Man,” “Beautiful,” “Dirrty,” “Genie in a Bottle” and “Keeps Gettin’ Better” in 2008, as well as her most recent performance of the moving piano ballad “Say Something” with A Great Big World in 2013. Viola Davis will be on hand to introduce Aguilera for this unforgettable homage. The 2017 American Music Awards, the world’s largest fan-voted awards show where music enthusiasts watch their favorite artists and pop culture icons come together to honor idols, newcomers and record-breakers in the contemporary music scene, will celebrate 45 years of music live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, November 19th at 8 pm ET on ABC.
“Whitney herself stated in 2001 that Christina Aguilera sang the best version of her song ‘Run To You,’” states the Estate of Whitney E. Houston. “It is with great appreciation and honor that she is returning to participate on the American Music Awards for a special tribute honoring the 25th anniversary of The Bodyguard. Whitney said that Christina is without a doubt one of the best voices she enjoyed in this generation of music. From the Estate of Whitney E. Houston, we thank you with great joy!”
“I am honored and humbled to be asked to participate in such a special tribute of a timeless soundtrack that has been a huge inspiration not only in my own personal life and career, but to countless aspiring singers – touching music lovers worldwide and influencing the history of music itself,” Aguilera says in a press release. “To be honoring THE one and only, Whitney Houston, is a blessing and I am grateful to celebrate the spirit of her songs and legend that lives on. I feel eternally fortunate to have personally met her on and off the stage. My deep appreciation for her kindness to me while coming up in the business – her graciousness, generosity, humanity and beauty – lived up to everything I could have hoped for in meeting my idol and will forever be cherished in my memory of her.”
Originally released on November 17, 1992, The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album–co-executive produced by Whitney Houston and Clive Davis–was the first album verified by SoundScan to sell more than one million copies in a single week, won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, has sold more than 45 million copies worldwide (and is certified 17x Platinum in the US by the RIAA) and is the top-selling soundtrack album of all-time. The Bodyguard marked Whitney’s debut as a movie star while the soundtrack–driven in part by Houston’s monumental interpretation of “I Will Always Love You”–became of one of the best-selling albums of any genre in history. Legacy Recordings (in cooperation with The Estate of Whitney E. Houston) is celebrating the 25th anniversary with the release of Whitney Houston – I Wish You Love: More From The Bodyguard on November 17th on CD and digital which includes never-before-released live recordings from Houston’s historic The Bodyguard Tour (1993-1995); alternate versions of the audio recordings from the The Bodyguard film; an alternate version of a remix of “I’m Every Woman”; additional artwork and more.
It was previously announced that music legend, Diana Ross, will take the stage at the 2017 American Music Awards for a rare performance, where she will also be honored with the “American Music Award for Lifetime Achievement” in recognition of her remarkable career and her outstanding artistic contributions to the entertainment industry and popular culture. Additionally, multi-platinum pop superstar Selena Gomez will treat fans to the world television premiere of her brand new single “Wolves.”
Nominations for the 2017 American Music Awards were announced earlier this month, revealing Bruno Mars leads with eight nominations, including Artist of the Year, Video of the Year, and Favorite Male Artist – Pop/Rock. The Chainsmokers, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran and The Weeknd tied with five nominations each, while Justin Bieber, Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi received four nominations each. Additionally, Keith Urban earned three nominations, and Rihanna and Halsey earned two nominations each.
The American Music Awards winners are voted entirely by fans. Voting is open in all categories except New Artist of the Year presented by T-Mobile and Collaboration of the Year presented by Xfinity, which will both open on Wednesday, November 1st. For New Artist of the Year and Collaboration of the Year, fans can vote for each award 100 times per day, per voting platform in one or two ways — billboard.com/amas and theamas.com/vote and by posting a tweet on Twitter that includes the nominee’s name or Twitter handle, the category name and #AMAs within the tweet.
The Artist of the Year nominees are Bruno Mars, The Chainsmokers, Drake, Kendrick Lamar and Ed Sheeran. Voting for Artist of the Year will close on Thursday, November 16th at 8:59:59 pm PT. Voting for all other editorial categories closes on Monday, November 13th at 8:59:59 am PT.
American Music Awards nominees are based on key fan interactions as reflected in Billboard Magazine and on Billboard.com, including album and digital song sales, radio airplay, streaming, social activity and touring. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound.
