BTS leads the 2026 AMAs as Katseye, Sabrina Carpenter and K-Pop Demon Hunters score major wins
Held on May 25 in Las Vegas, the 2026 American Music Awards (AMAs) saw BTS emerge as the night’s biggest winners. The group took home Artist of the Year, marking its second win in the ceremony’s top category since 2021, alongside Song of the Summer for “Swim” and Best Male K-Pop Artist. BTS also made a triumphant return to the AMAs stage, opening the show with a performance of “Hooligan” from its comeback album Arirang.
Another major success story came from rising global girl group Katseye, which won New Artist of the Year, Breakthrough Pop Artist and Best Music Video for “Gnarly.” Meanwhile, Sabrina Carpenter continued her winning streak with three awards, including Album of the Year and Best Pop Album for “Man’s Best Friend,” further solidifying her position as one of pop’s leading stars.
One of the night’s biggest surprises was the dominance of K-pop Demon Hunters. The animated phenomenon won Best Soundtrack, while its breakout track “Golden,” performed by HUNTR/X – Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami – claimed Song of the Year, Best Pop Song and Best Vocal Performance. Together, the soundtrack and song accounted for four awards, making the franchise one of the ceremony’s standout winners.
Elsewhere, Sombr swept the rock categories, winning Breakthrough Rock/Alternative Artist, Best Rock/Alternative Song for “back to friends” and Best Rock/Alternative Album for “I Barely Know Her.” In hip-hop, Cardi B collected three awards, including Best Female Hip-Hop Artist, Best Hip-Hop Song and Best Hip-Hop Album. Bruno Mars also enjoyed a major comeback year, sweeping the R&B categories with wins for Best Male R&B Artist, Best R&B Song and Best R&B Album for “The Romantic.”
Check out the full winners list below.
Genre-Neutral categories
Artist of the Year: BTS
New Artist of the Year: Katseye
Album of the Year: Sabrina Carpenter – “Man’s Best Friend”
Song of the Year: The Singing Voices of HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami – “Golden”
Collaboration of the Year: PinkPantheress, Zara Larsson – “Stateside”
Social Song of the Year: Tyla – “Chanel”
Best Music Video: Katseye – “Gnarly”
Best Soundtrack: K-Pop Demon Hunters
Tour of the Year: Shakira – “Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran World Tour”
Breakout Tour: Benson Boone – “American Heart World Tour”
Breakthrough Album of the Year: Zara Larsson – Midnight Sun
Best Throwback Song: Black Eyed Peas – “Rock That Body”
Best Vocal Performance: The Singing Voices of HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami – “Golden”
Song of the Summer: BTS – “Swim”
Pop categories
Best Male Pop Artist: Justin Bieber
Best Female Pop Artist: Sabrina Carpenter
Breakthrough Pop Artist: Katseye
Best Pop Song: The Singing Voices of HUNTR/X: Ejae, Audrey Nuna, Rei Ami – “Golden”
Best Pop Album: Sabrina Carpenter – “Man’s Best Friend”
Country categories
Best Male Country Artist: Morgan Wallen
Best Female Country Artist: Ella Langley
Best Country Duo or Group: Zac Brown Band
Breakthrough Country Artist: Sam Barber
Best Country Song: Ella Langley – “Choosin’ Texas”
Best Country Album: Megan Moroney – “Cloud 9”
Hip-hop categories
Best Male Hip-Hop Artist: Kendrick Lamar
Best Female Hip-Hop Artist: Cardi B
Breakthrough Hip-Hop Artist: Monaleo
Best Hip-Hop Song: Cardi B – “ErrTime”
Best Hip-Hop Album: Cardi B – “AM I THE DRAMA?”
R&B Categories
Best Male R&B Artist: Bruno Mars
Best Female R&B Artist: SZA
Breakthrough R&B Artist: Leon Thomas
Best R&B Song: Bruno Mars – “I Just Might”
Best R&B Album: Bruno Mars – “The Romantic”
Latin Categories
Best Male Latin Artist: Bad Bunny
Best Female Latin Artist: Shakira
Best Latin Duo or Group: Fuerza Regida
Breakthrough Latin Artist: Kapo
Best Latin Song: Bad Bunny – “NUEVAYoL”
Best Latin Album: Karol G – “Tropicoqueta”
Rock categories
Best Rock/Alternative Artist: Twenty One Pilots
Breakthrough Rock/Alternative Artist: Sombr
Best Rock/Alternative Song: Sombr – “back to friends”
Best Rock/Alternative Album: Sombr – “I Barely Know Her”
Dance/Electronic categories
Best Dance/Electronic Artist: David Guetta
K-pop categories
Best Male K-Pop Artist: BTS
Best Female K-Pop Artist: TWICE
Afrobeats categories
Best Afrobeats Artist: Tyla
Americana/Folk categories
Best Americana/Folk Artist: Noah Kahan
Special awards
Lifetime Achievement Award: Billy Joel
International Artist Award of Excellence: Karol G
Veterans Voice Award: Darius Rucker
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