LOS ANGELES, CA – Marking another step towards normalcy, the 2021 Billboard Music Awards welcomed back a live audience for the first time since the pandemic started and provided music lovers a show packed with electrifying performances, moments of nostalgia, and a true celebration of the songs and artists that topped the charts in 2020.
Alternating between indoor and outdoor locations from the Microsoft Theater and L.A. Live in Los Angeles, the show kicked off with a performance from DJ Khaled, H.E.R., and Migos who came together to perform “We Going Crazy” from DJ Khaled’s new album “Khaled Khaled.”
Hosted by Nick Jonas, the show saw incredible performances from artists including Doja Cat, Twenty One Pilots, BTS, Bad Bunny, Duran Duran, The Weeknd and Karol G.
Alicia Keys also performed a soulful medley of her songs including, “Fallin” and “A Woman’s Worth” from her debut album, “Songs In A Minor,” which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary.
Pink, who was honored with the “Icon Award,” delivered a show-stopping performance that featured a special appearance from her daughter, Willow, where the two gracefully executed a beautiful aerial routine while their song, “Cover Me In Sunshine,” played in the background.
She also performed some of her greatest hits including, “Get the Party Started,” “Just Give Me A Reason,” “Just Like A Pill,” “So What,” “Blow Me (One Last Kiss),” “Who Knew,” and her latest single “All I Know So Far.”
“I love what I do and I love the people I get to do it with. And we’re pretty good at what we do, but it wouldn’t matter if no one came to see us and play with us,” Pink said during her acceptance speech. “So, all you guys out there and around the world, thank you for coming out. Thank you for letting us all heal together. I cannot wait until we can do it again.”
In addition to taking home the award for “Top Streaming Songs Artist,” Drake was also honored as Billboard’s “Artist of the Decade” and accepted the award with his young son, Adonis, by his side.
During his acceptance speech, Drake spoke about how self-conscious he is about his music and shared that despite his immense success, he’s rarely ever one to celebrate his own achievements.
“I didn’t really write a grandiose speech about how to make it work or what it took, ‘cause you know, to be really honest with you I don’t quite understand it myself, but just know…I’ve spent an incalculable amount of hours trying to analyze all the things I did wrong,” Drake said. “But tonight, for once, I’m sure as hell we did something right.”
Throughout his career, Drake has released nine number one albums, recorded a whopping 45 Hot-100 Top-10 hits, logged 232 songs on the Hot-100 charts and is currently the most awarded artist in Billboard’s history with 27 awards under his belt.
After earning 16 Billboard nominations, The Weeknd walked away with 10 awards including “Top Artist,” “Top Male Artist,” “Top Hot 100 Artist,” “Top R&B Artist,” and “Top R&B Album.”
The late rapper Pop Smoke won five posthumous awards including “Top New Artist,” “Top Rap Artist,” “Top Rap Album” and “Top Billboard 200 Album” for his 2020 debut album “Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon.”
His mother, Audrey Jackson, accepted the award for “Top Billboard 200 Album” on her son’s behalf.
“Thank you to the fans for honoring the life and spirit of my son, so much that he continues to manifest as if he was still here in flesh,” Jackson said.
Bad Bunny and BTS each took home four awards, while country singer Gabby Barrett won three Billboard awards including “Top Country Song” and “Top Female Country Artist.”
The Jonas Brothers, who were joined by Marshmello to perform their new song “Leave Before You Love Me,” closed out the show with a preview of their upcoming song “Remember This” and medley of their other hits “Sucker,” “Only Human,” and “What a Man Gotta Do.”
