Ariana Grande, Jessie J & Nicki Minaj to Perform 'Bang Bang' on Sunday's AMA's

By: Nov. 18, 2014
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dick clark productions and ABC announced today the addition of several must-see acts to the line-up at the 2014 American Music Awards. Ariana Grande will take to the stage to perform a medley of some of her biggest songs including "Problem," Break Free" and "Love Me Harder," (featuring guest performer The Weeknd). Grande will also sing alongside Jessie J performing their hit single "Bang Bang." Lil Wayne will be joined by Christina Milian for the premiere of his upcoming single "Start A Fire" from his Tha Carter V album. Wyclef Jean and MAGIC! will collaborate on a compilation of their singles "Divine Sorrow" and "Rude." Additional stars slated to present throughout the evening include Jhene Aiko, Lauren Cohan, Gavin DeGraw, Ansel Elgort, Becky G, Brantley Gilbert, Danai Gurira, Lucy Hale, Ella Henderson, Miss America 2015 Kira Kazantsev, Mary Lambert, Danica McKellar, Pat Monahan, Kevin O'Leary, Pentatonix, Tracee Ellis Ross and Meghan Trainor. They join a star-studded line-up of performers made up of 5 Seconds of Summer, Mary J. Blige, Garth Brooks, Charli XCX, Fergie, Selena Gomez, Imagine Dragons, Lorde, One Direction, Sam Smith, Taylor Swift and the evening's host, Pitbull. Previously announced presenters include Uzo Aduba, Elizabeth Banks, Aloe Blacc, Jamie Foxx, Julianne Hough, Kendall Jenner, Kylie Jenner, Heidi Klum, Olivia Munn and Taylor Schilling. The 2014 American Music Awards will broadcast live from the NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE on SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23rd (8:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT) on ABC. Additional performers and presenters will be announced soon.

Ariana Grande has captured #1 on the Billboard Top 200 twice within less than a year - first with her Republic Records debut Yours Truly, and again with its 2014 follow-up My Everything. Upon release of the triple-platinum hit "Problem" featuring Iggy Azalea, Ariana became the "youngest woman to debut with over 400K sold first-week." She also became the first woman in history and the first artist since Michael Jackson to simultaneously have three songs - "Problem," "Break Free" featuring Zedd, and "Bang Bang" with Nicki Minaj and Jessie J - in the Top 6 of the Digital Songs Chart. In 2013, she was named "Best New Artist" at the American Music Awards®. Other accolades followed, with Ariana winning "Favorite Breakout Artist" at the 2014 People's Choice Awards, the "Young Influencer Award" at the iHeartRadio Music Awards, the "Radio Disney Chart Topper Award," "Choice Female Artist" and "Choice Single" "Problem" at the 2014 Teen Choice Awards, and more.

Jessie J is a palpable and powerful pop culture force. The world first took notice of the UK-born singer and songwriter in 2011 when her full-length debut album Who You Are [LAVA], heralded the songstress's arrival as a worldwide icon. It debuted Top 15 on the Billboard Top 200, and it generated an astounding six Top 10 smashes at radio. "Price Tag" [featuring B.o.B] went platinum stateside and seized #1 in 18 major territories. Then, "Domino," her biggest U.S. hit to date, took flight on the charts. The track went on to achieve double-platinum status and become a ubiquitous anthem around the globe. To date, her album sales exceed 3 million and single sales surpass 20 million and counting. Along the way, she received the prestigious BRIT Award for "Critic's Choice." In addition, the BBC crowned her with the high honor of Sound of 2011. She even received a Grammy Award nomination in 2012. Fans and tastemakers continued to wholeheartedly embrace Jessie J as she acted as the 2012 London Olympic Games Ambassador. 2014 sees her continue to stand out and set the pace though. In July, the first single from her forthcoming sophomore album arrived with a bang-literally. Jessie J teamed up with rising diva Ariana Grande and rap's reigning queen Nicki Minaj for "Bang Bang". It's a blockbuster anthem, combining Jessie J's inimitable delivery, Ariana Grande's massive range, and Nicki Minaj's deft wordplay. As soon as "Bang Bang" dropped, the charts exploded. Immediately, the track captured the #1 spot on iTunes Overall Top Songs Chart and reached Gold status within weeks of release.

Poet. Producer. Songwriter. Philanthropist. Wyclef Jean was born to a Nazarene minister in Haiti and moved to the projects in Brooklyn at the age of nine. As a founding member of the Fugees, with Pras Michel and Lauryn Hill, the group went on to earn two Grammys and sell more than 16 million albums. The Fugees' "The Score" was listed in Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. Wyclef's first solo project, "The Carnival", earned three Grammy nominations and platinum sales, and the following year, he won another Grammy for his work on Santana's "Supernatural". He is a prolific producer, developing the breakout single "No, No, No" for Destiny's Child and the platinum single "My Love is Your Love" for Whitney Houston. Over the last decade, Wyclef impacted the Grammy's three more times, receiving nominations for his collaborations with Mary J. Blige, Jerry Duplessis, and Shakira (with her "Hips Don't Lie" reaching the number one spot on charts in 55 countries, including the U.S. Billboard Hot 100). Wyclef's collaborations read like the who's who of the music industry, including Michael Jackson, Nora Jones, Bono, Mick Jagger, Tom Jones, Eric Clapton, The Black Eyed Peas, and countless more. Wyclef is currently working on his 7th studio album with Avicii, so get ready to hear Wyclef's "Ecleftic" style drop again early next year. The first single, "Divine Sorrow", premiered this week in the Wall Street Journal (WYCLEF JEAN + AVICII - DIVINE SORROW) and is part of the Coca-Cola (RED) Campaign to bring global awareness to AIDS solutions.

Grammy Award winning, hip hop icon Lil Wayne has dominated the airwaves for the past 20 years throughout his legendary career. The multi-platinum recording artist, who holds the record for most entries on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart with an astounding 123 songs, has cemented his name in music and pop culture over his ten chart topping solo albums. As the CEO of Young Money Entertainment, Lil Wayne has also created one of the most dynamic, powerful music labels the industry has ever seen, spawning award winning, multi-platinum artists Drake and Nicki Minaj. In addition to Lil Wayne's musical endeavors, he also established his skate inspired clothing line TRUKFIT, sold at major retailers across the country. Currently, Lil Wayne is gearing up for the release of his highly anticipated eleventh studio album Tha Carter V. This is the fifth installment of his celebrated Tha Carter series, all of which have debuted in the Top 5 of the Billboard Top 200.

Toronto born, Los Angeles based quartet MAGIC! consists of Nasri (lead singer), Mark Pelli (guitar), Ben Spivak (bass) and Alex Tanas (drums). Their debut album, Don't Kill The Magic debuted at #6 on the Billboard Top 200 and #2 on the Digital Albums Chart. The album produced the certified platinum single "Rude" which was #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 for 6 consecutive weeks, the most Shazammed song of the Summer in the US and has sold over 4 million singles worldwide. The music video for "Rude" has over 240 million views. MAGIC! is set to hit the road in 2015 with Maroon 5 in support of Don't Kill The Magic. Their follow up single, "Let Your Hair Down" is currently rising up the charts.

Young Money recording artist, actress and Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Christina Milian has written for the likes of Jennifer Lopez ("Play") and Justin Bieber ("Baby" - RIAA certified diamond) in addition to performing her own hit singles including "Dip It Low". In addition to Milian's entertainment career, she has started several successful business ventures including Viva Diva Wines, Platinum E Hookahs, Shelby Star and WeArePopCulture.com. The premier of her new show, "Christina Milian Turned Up" airs Sunday, January 18th on E!. Several of Christina's features can be heard on Lil Wayne's Tha Carter V, and her third US album release is set for 2015.

The 2014 American Music Award nominations were announced last month, revealing six nominations for Iggy Azalea--the most of any artist. Other top contenders include John Legend, Katy Perry and Pharrell Williams, who each earned five nominations, and Lorde who earned four.

As always at the American Music Awards, artists will be honored in the genres of Pop/Rock, Country, Rap/Hip-Hop, Soul/R&B, Alternative Rock, Adult Contemporary, Latin, Contemporary Inspirational, Electronic Dance Music, as well as categories for Top Soundtrack, New Artist of the Year Presented by Kohl's, Artist of the Year and Single of the Year. For a full list of nominees visit AMAvote.com.

American Music Awards nominees are based on key fan interactions as reflected in Billboard Magazine and on Billboard.com, including album and digital singles sales, radio airplay, streaming and social activity. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Entertainment and Next Big Sound.

The American Music Awards is voted on by the fans. Winners will be determined through online and Twitter voting. Voting began on October 13 for all categories except New Artist of the Year Presented by Kohl's. Fans can vote once per day at the Coca-Cola AMA voting site, AMAvote.com, as well as once per day via Twitter by including the nominee's name, category name and #AMAs within a tweet.

Voting for New Artist of the Year Presented by Kohl's opened on November 1 and will remain open throughout the first hour of the ABC live broadcast on November 23, with the winner being announced in the final hour. Fans can vote via AMAVote.com and Twitter.

Preceding the ABC broadcast for the 6th consecutive year will be the "Coca-Cola Red Carpet LIVE! @ The 2014 AMAs" pre-show. The show will be hosted by Lance Bass, Chelsea Briggs, Kandi Burruss, Gavin DeGraw, Franke Grande, Taryn Manning, Jordin Sparks, Morgan Stewart and Ted Stryker, and will feature performances by this year's hottest emerging artists including Becky G, Ella Henderson, Katy Tiz, Mary Lambert and R5. Live coverage will stream online for fans worldwide starting at 5:00 p.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. PT on November 23. The live stream can be watched at ABC.com, TheAMAs.comand yahoo.com.

Once the show starts, the full digital experience kicks into high gear on ABC.com and the WATCH ABC app for smartphones and tablets. Sponsored by Kohl's®, the "AMAs Backstage Live" on WATCH ABC is designed to be the ultimate complement to the live telecast. Beginning at 8:00 PM ET, WATCH ABC viewers nationwide can choose between four different live feeds that deliver insider viewpoints into all the action happening on the show and backstage: Kohl's Director's Cut, Backstage and the Press Room. Verified pay TV viewers in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, Fresno, Raleigh-Durham and Philadelphia can also access a live stream of the full awards show as part of WATCH ABC's regular service. Once aired, the full show will be available on demand via WATCH ABC for 14 days.

The 2014 American Music Awards partners include Cumulus, Music Choice, Time Warner Cable and Yahoo.

The 2014 American Music Awards is produced by dick clark productions. Allen Shapiro and Mike Mahan are Executive Producers, Barry Adelman and Mark Bracco are Co-Executive Producers, and Larry Klein is Producer.

For the latest American Music Awards news, exclusive content and more, be sure to follow the AMAs on social and join the conversation by using the official hashtag for the show, #AMAs.



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