bma's 2016 coverage

Britney Spears kicked off proceedings with a medley of her hits that began with "Work Bitch," "Womanizer" and "I Love Rock and Roll" -- delivered while gyrating on a giant guitar -- and culminated with "Toxic," showcasing both her well-known hits ("I'm a Slave 4 U" was also included) and some deeper cuts. And Madonna's tribute to Prince put an exclamation point on the evening -- she began singing "Nothing Compares 2 U" on a purple throne and brought out Stevie Wonder to assist her on a powerful rendition of "Purple Rain" that had Rihanna dabbing and The Weeknd singing along.Prince was on everybody's mind from the beginning -- The Weeknd dedicated his Top Hot 100 Artist victory to the late icon early in the show -- but there were plenty of highlights in the build-up to Madge's tribute. Fifth Harmony got sensual while performing "Work From Home" with Ty Dolla $ign, while Meghan Trainor strolled through the crowd to her latest single "No." And Pink delivered the world television debut of her latest single "Just Like Fire," a cut from the Alice Through the Looking Glass soundtrack, by reprising her high-flying awards show routine on a harness above the crowd; toward the end, she rose above the stage sitting on the hands of a giant clock that erupted into flames.Nick Jonas ran through a pared-down version of his latest hit "Close" alongside a seductive Tove Lo, which led directly into Demi Lovato's "Cool For the Summer," which found the singer wearing an inclusive bathroom symbol on her shirt in protest of North Carolina's "bathroom law." Nick's brother Joe Jonas led another highlight from the show, as his new band DNCE brought along confetti and balloons during a celebratory performance of "Cake By the Ocean," which prompted an adventurous Joe to venture into the crowd while his brother Nick cheered louder than anyone. And Rihanna's vocals stole the show during her performance of "Love on the Brain," focusing on passion over pageantry and putting her whole body into her delivery.All eyes were on Kesha when she took the stage midway through the event for her first televised performance -- which almost didn't happen -- since her long-running lawsuit with producer Dr. Luke started. Her spare, plaintive and emotional rendition of Bob Dylan's "It Ain't Me Babe" -- accompanied by Ben Folds' deft piano and haunting strings -- was a clear highlight of the evening, and reminded anyone who may have forgotten that she is a fantastic singer.Speaking of fantastic singers, the elegant Celine Dion looked resplendent and sounded even better when powering through "The Show Must Go On" in front of a full orchestra, imparting as much meaning as possible into every word while the musicians behind her -- including Lindsey Stirling on violin -- did the same. Seal, who introduced her, called her performance "exquisite" before bringing out her son to deliver the Icon Award to his mother, which brought her to tears. It was the most emotional moment in a night that promised -- and delivered -- plenty of them.Despite not being there, Adele still made an impact, winning five awards and using the opportunity to debut her new music video, for "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)." And though the awards broadcast featured plenty of fireworks -- Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and the Go-Go's all delivered eye-catching performances -- there were a lot of low key, stripped down renditions as well from the likes of Lukas Graham ("7 Years"), Shawn Mendes ("Stitches") and Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani ("Go Ahead and Break My Heart").But the end of the show was all about the Purple One, and Questlove took on the task of introducing Madonna's performance. "All of us live in the land of music," Quest said of Prince, "And his departure was an earthquake." As Stevie Wonder walked on stage during the first notes of "Purple Rain" and the arena lit up with purple lights, it was hard not to feel a little emotional.

BMA'S 16

Millennium Award: Britney Spears
Icon Award: Celine Dion
Top Artist: Adele
Top New Artist: Fetty Wap
Top Male Artist: Justin Bieber
Top Female Artist: Adele
Top Duo/Group: One Direction
Top Billboard 200 Artist: Adele
Top Hot 100 Artist: The Weeknd
Top Song Sales Artist: The Weeknd
Top Radio Songs Artist: The Weeknd
Top Streaming Songs Artist: The Weeknd
Top Social Media Artist: Justin Bieber
Top Touring Artist: Taylor Swift
Top R&B Artist: The Weeknd
Top Rap Artist: Drake
Top Country Artist: Luke Bryan
Top Rock Artist: twenty one pilots
Top Latin Artist: Romeo Santos
Top Dance/Electronic Artist: David Guetta
Top Christina Artist: Hillsong United
Top Gospel Artist: Kirk Franklin
Top Billboard 200 Album: Adele, 25
Top Soundtrack: Pitch Perfect 2
Top R&B Album: The Weeknd, Beauty Behind the Madness
Top Rap Album: Meek Mill, Dreams Worth More Than Money
Top Country Album: Chris Stapleton,Traveller
Top Rock Album: twenty one pilots,Blurryface
Top Latin Album: Juan Gabriel, Los Dúo
Top Dance/Electronic Album:​ Zedd, True Colors
Top Christian Album: Lauren Daigle, How Can It Be
Top Gospel Album: Kirk Franklin, Losing My Religion
Billboard Chart Achievement Award (Fan-Voted): Rihanna
Top Hot 100 Song: Wiz Khalifa feat. Charlie Puth, "See You Again"
Top Selling Song: Adele, "Hello"
Top Radio Song: Walk the Moon, "Shut Up and Dance"
Top Streaming Song (Audio): The Weeknd, "The Hills"
Top Streaming Song (Video): ​Silentó, "Watch Me"
Top R&B Song: The Weeknd, "The Hills"
Top Rap Song: Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth, "See You Again"
Top Country Song: Thomas Rhett, "Die A Happy Man"
Top Rock Song: Walk the Moon, "Shut Up And Dance"
Top Latin Song: Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias, "El Perdon"
Top Dance/Electronic Song: Major Lazer & DJ Snake Featuring MØ, "Lean On"
Top Christian Song: ​Hillsong UNITED, "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)"
Top Gospel Song: Kirk Franklin, "Wanna Be Happy?"

RDMA 2016

Best Music Group: Fifth Harmony
Best Anthem: Sabrina Carpenter, “Eyes Wide Open”
Best Song That Makes You Smile: Meghan Trainor, “Better When I’m Dancing”
Best Crush Song: One Direction, “Perfect”
Artist With the Best Style: Becky G
Best Song to Lip Sync To: Justin Bieber, “What Do You Mean”
Best Song of the Year: Taylor Swift, “Bad Blood”
Breakout Artist of the Year: Tori Kelly
Best Female Artist: Selena Gomez
Favorite Country Song: Maddie & Tae, “Fly”
Favorite Country Artist: Maddie & Tae
Hero Award: Gwen Stefani
Best New Artist: Kelsea Ballerini
Fiercest Fans: Fifth Harmony
Best Song to Dance To: Ariana Grande, “Focus”
Radio Disney’s Most Talked About Artist: Taylor Swift
Best Male Artist: Ed Sheeran
Best Breakup Song: Taylor Swift, “Bad Blood”