Entertainment

Swift tops American Music Awards

SOUNDS FAMILIAR - Baby A. Gil - The Philippine Star

October 12, 2018 | 12:00am

Taylor Swift was named for the highest honor, the Artist of the Year for the fourth time.

Who needs Drake and Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran and all those other guys? As far as the 2018 American Music Awards go, the answer is nobody. Those guys were among this year’s nominees but did not bother to show up at the event held at the Microsoft Center in Los Angeles last Oct. 9.

It looked like nobody missed them during the show though and I only realized that they were not there and that they did not win any trophies when I went to check out the nominees. You know, to find out who lost. Well, they did.

A lot of divas were around though and all of them, from icons like Gladys Knight and Missy Elliott to the new girls like Cardi B and Dua Lipa really made for enjoyable viewing.

Cardi B led J. Balvin and Bad Bunny in a rousing fireworks spectacular for I Like It; Ciara and Missy Elliott rapped with a marching band; Gladys was joined by Donnie McClurkins, Cece Williams, Ledesi and Mary Mary in a gospel tribute to the late Aretha Franklin; country music superstar Carrie Underwood was all emotions with Spinning Bottles from her new album Cry Pretty.

Jennifer Lopez had dancers galore for her Limitless; Dua Lipa sounded pitchy and seemed lethargic but her songs One Kiss and Electricity are big sellers; Ella Mai did crowd favorite Booed; Camila Cabello was lovely and subdued with a heavenly, orchestra-backed Consequence; and Mariah Carey launched her latest ballad With You with dancers hiding under her skirt.

Oh, I must mention that some guys also performed. Panic! At The Disco covered Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody via satellite from Australia to promote that biopic of the same title; Shawn Mendes turned crooner with Zedd for Lost In Japan; twentyone pilots had an exploding car onstage for its new heavy rocker Jumpsuit from the album Trenched; and Post Malone did his breakthrough hit Rockstar.

But topping all of them male or female was Taylor Swift. The belle of the ball at the AMAs had a large snake join her when she opened the show with a cut from her reputation album, I Did Something Bad. Taylor sang and danced and tantalized the audience when she made pregnant pause with the lyrics “If a man talks shit, then I owe him nothing.” Then just as she did a few days earlier on social media, she enjoined people to vote in the coming US elections.

That was not all that Taylor did. She also went home with the lion’s share of the trophies. She was named for the highest honor, the Artist of the Year for the fourth time. She also won for Tour of the Year, Favorite Pop Rock Female Artist and Favorite Pop Rock Album, reputation. With a total now of 28 AMA trophies in her collection, Taylor has now broken the record set by the late Whitney Houston.

And now here they are, the winners of this year’s American Music Awards:

•Artist of the Year: Taylor Swift

•New Artist of the Year: Camila Cabello

•Favorite Music Video: Camila Cabello, Havana

•Tour of the Year: Taylor Swift

•Collaboration of the Year: Camila Cabello ft. Young Thug, Havana

Pop Rock

•Favorite Female Artist: Taylor Swift

•Favorite Male Artist: Post Malone

•Favorite Duo or Group: Migos

•Favorite Song: Camila Cabello ft. Young Thug, Havana

•Favorite Album: Taylor Swift, reputation.