The American Music Awards for 2025 have come and gone, and there were several surprises. One thing we will get out of the way quickly: Taylor Swift was nominated for six awards but won zero of them. Swift also did not appear at the ceremony, so maybe she had a good idea she wasn’t going to win. Or maybe she doesn’t care so much about the AMAs.
Maybe Swift’s not winning an award means her popularity is waning a bit, and that Billie Eilish’s is still rising. Swifty sadness meant Eilish's happiness. But more on that in a minute.
We can’t go on without mentioning how amazing host Jennifer Lopez was. She has always exuded class, but she also proved that she still has boundless energy. She performed 23 of the nominated songs over a six-minute melody and did it all while dancing her butt off. Classy and sexy.
Who were some of the winners and losers from the 2025 American Music Awards?
Winner: The viewers
We don’t watch the AMAs because career-defining trophies are handed out. The categories are fan-voted, so who wins or loses can be blamed on us. We watch the ceremony because of the performances and silly moments, and there were a lot.
Gwen Stefani performed fantastically while dressed in some kind of tawdry majorette uniform. Janet Jackson danced like it was 1989 again. We learned that Rod Stewart’s nickname among his children is Papa Stew. The whole thing was done for our delight.
Loser: Swifties
Not only did Taylor Swift not win an award, but she didn’t appear at the ceremony, so we might have suffered the biggest letdown of the night. Many thought that she might announce the release of Reputation (Taylor’s Version), but there was no chance to even if she had shown up.
Winner: Billie Eilish
Always a unique performer and songwriter, Eilish did something else few people do: She won every category she was up for. Seven in all. One of them was Artist of the Year, a trophy she had never won before. One can assume she will probably win again, possibly many times.
Loser: Kendrick Lamar
The hip-hop great was nominated 10 times, but received only one award, which was for Favorite Hip-Hop song (“Not Like Us). He lost twice to Eminem, and who saw that coming? Maybe Lamar will do us all a favor and write a diss track about how he was mostly snubbed at the AMAs.