Buzzy presenters, fire performances and some v. well-placed political commentary were successfully jam-packed into this year’s AMAs. In case you missed last night’s action, we broke the biggest moments of the awards show for you.
1. Bruno Mars showing off his moves
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Bruno Mars performed his hit “24 Karat Magic” and the crowd was def feelin’ it, but it was his killer dance moves that really took centre stage.
2. Jay Pharoah’s spot-on impressions
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Throughout the night, co-hosts Gigi Hadid and Jay Pharoah engaged in sly banter about president-elect Donald Trump. Gigi’s Melania Trump impression was a crowd-pleaser, but it was Pharaoh who really killed it. From Jay-Z to Kanye, no one was safe from the hilarious co-host’s v. accurate impressions.
3. Bella Thorne couldn’t choose a hair colour
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‘Kay, can we just take a minute? Bella gets mad props for being bold AF with her colour choice, but some colours just do not work together. Case and point: deep red and lime green.
4. Fifth Harmony’s post-apocalyptic performance
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Fifth Harmony—clad in p. Carrie B.-esque nude ensembles—tore the AMA stage up with their performance of “That’s My Girl” amongst some dystopian rubble and broken telephone poles.
5. Drake cleans up and breaks MJ’s 1984 record
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The 6God is at it again. Last night Drake scored 4 awards and broke the record for American Music Award nominations set in 1984 by the King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson. During his acceptance speech for Favourite Rap/Hip Hop Album, Drake gave a heartwarming shoutout to the greatest city in the world, Toronto. Awh.
6. The Weeknd proved he looks great in all hues
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While we miss the dreads, our boy The Weeknd’s new haircut looked great with his magical ice-crystal chamber during his performance of new album title track, “Starboy.” (Serious flashbacks to Lorde circa the 2014 AMAs when she performed “Yellow Flicker Beat” from inside a colour-shifting cube, tho.)
7. Oliva Munn and T.J. Miller’s hella awkward poses
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While promo-ing their new comedy Office Christmas Party, the two presenters did a cringe-inducing bit that fell epically flat.
8. Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj’s jungle-themed performance
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Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj belted a steamy rendition of “Side to Side” ft. a v. lengthy grind train.
9. Biebs brings the tears
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Beliebers have been known to shed a few tears when their idol takes the stage and last night was no exception. As soon as Justin began his performance of “Let Me Love You,” the crowd erupted into equal parts cheers and sobs.
10. Lady Gaga’s starry-skied number
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Something about Gaga singin’ barefoot in the grass with a twinkly sky and a guitar as her only accessories has us all emotional. With that embellished leather ensemble and those powerhouse vocals, we see a little Dolly Parton inspo in there.
11. Billy Joe proved he is a vampire
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When Green Day took the stage, it was hard not to be transported back to the early nineties—especially when the camera zoomed close on Billy Joe’s face. Chanting “No Trump, no KKK, no fascist USA,” the 44 year-old eyeliner-rocking lead singer looked EXACTLY like he did when the Dookie poster adorned the walls of pre-teen girls 20 years ago. Our answer? Undead, obvs.
12. Sting wins the Award of Merit and steals the whole damn show
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Proving he’s among the greatest, the former Police frontman graciously accepted the award from presenter Robert Downey Jr. before hitting the stage to perform a medley of career-spanning classics like “Message In A Bottle,” “Every Breath You Take,” and “I Can’t Stop Thinking About You.”
Related:
10 Craziest American Music Awards Moments from the Last 10 Years
2016 American Music Awards Red Carpet Round-Up
Who Was The Best Dressed at the AMAs?