Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga at the 76th Annual Golden Globe Awards on January 6, 2019. (Photo by Paul Drinkwater/NBC)
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced several entertainers who will be performers and presenters at the 91st Annual Academy Awards ceremony, which will take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. ABC will have the U.S. telecast of the show, which will not have a host. As previously reported, comedian/actor Kevin Hart was going to host the show, but he backed out after the show’s producers demanded that he make a public apology for homophobic remarks that he made several years ago. After getting a firestorm of backlash for the homophobic remarks, Hart later made several public apologies but remained adamant that he would still not host the Oscars this year.
The celebrities who will be on stage at the Oscars this year are several of those whose songs are nominated for Best Original Song. Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper will perform their duet “Shallow” from their movie remake of “A Star Is Born.” Jennifer Hudson will perform “I’ll Fight” from the Ruth Bader Ginsburg documentary “RBG.” David Rawlings and Gillian Welch will team up for the duet “When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings” from the Western film “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs.” It has not yet been announced who will perform “The Place Where Lost Things Go” from the Disney musical sequel “Mary Poppins Returns.”** It also hasn’t been announced yet if Kendrick Lamar and SZA will take the stage for “All the Stars” from the superhero flick “Black Panther.”
Gustavo Dudamel and the L.A. Philharmonic do the music for the “In Memoriam” segment, which spotlights notable people in the film industry who have died in the year since the previous Oscar ceremony.
Meanwhile, the following celebrities have been announced as presenters at the ceremony: Whoopi Goldberg (who has hosted the Oscars twice in the past), Awkwafina, Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Tina Fey, Jennifer Lopez, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Amandla Stenberg, Tessa Thompson Constance Wu, Javier Bardem, Angela Bassett, Chadwick Boseman, Emilia Clarke, Laura Dern, Samuel L. Jackson, Stephan James, Keegan-Michael Key, KiKi Layne, James McAvoy, Melissa McCarthy, Jason Momoa and Sarah Paulson. Goldberg and Bardem are previous Oscar winners.
Other previous Oscar winners taking the stage will be Gary Oldman, Frances McDormand, Sam Rockwell and Allison Janney, who won the actor and actress prizes at the 2018 Academy Awards.
Donna Gigliotti (who won an Oscar for Best Picture for 1998’s “Shakespeare in Love) and Emmy-winning director Glenn Weiss are the producers of the 2019 Academy Awards. This will be the first time that Gigliotti is producing the Oscar ceremony. Weiss has directed several major award shows, including the Oscars and the Tonys. He will direct the Oscar ceremony again in 2019.
**February 18, 2019 UPDATE: Bette Midler will perform “The Place Where Los Things Go,” the Oscar-nominated song from “Mary Poppins Returns.” British rock band Queen, whose official biopic is the Oscar-nominated film “Bohemian Rhapsody,” will also perform on the show with lead singer Adam Lambert. It has not been revealed which song(s) Queen will perform at the Oscars.
February 19, 2019 UPDATE: These presenters have been added to the Oscar telecast: Elsie Fisher, Danai Gurira, Brian Tyree Henry, Michael B. Jordan, Michael Keaton, Helen Mirren, John Mulaney, Tyler Perry, Pharrell Williams, Krysten Ritter, Paul Rudd and Michelle Yeoh.
February 21, 2019 UPDATE: These celebrities will present the Best Picture nominees: José Andrés, Dana Carvey, Queen Latifah, Congressman John Lewis, Diego Luna, Tom Morello, Mike Myers, Trevor Noah, Amandla Stenberg, Barbra Streisand and Serena Williams.
Taylor Swift at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas (Photo by Brian Friedman/NBC)
Panic! At the Disco’s Brendon Urie
The following is a press release from Dick Clark Productions and ABC:
Dick Clark Productions and ABC, in partnership with YouTube Music, announced that global superstar Taylor Swift is opening the “2018 American Music Awards” with a performance of “I Did Something Bad,” marking Swift’s first awards show performance in nearly three years. A 19-time American Music Award winner, Swift garnered four 2018 nominations and is the current record holder of most wins for Artist of the Year, a category for which she is nominated again this year.
Swift is set to take the stage on the heels of her record-breaking Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour in support of the chart-topping and critically acclaimed album of the same name, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, marking her fifth leader on the chart. She is nominated for Artist of the Year, Tour of the Year, Favorite Female Artist – Pop/Rock and Favorite Album – Pop/Rock.
Also performing is multi-platinum selling band Panic! At the Disco will pay tribute to legendary British rock band, Queen, with a special performance of the award-winning hit, “Bohemian Rhapsody.” This performance will take place at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia as part of the “2018 American Music Awards.” The song, written by Freddie Mercury for the band’s 1975 album “A Night at the Opera,” remains one of Queen’s most popular and is often considered one of the greatest rock songs of all time. Rami Malek, Joe Mazzello and Gwilym Lee, cast of the upcoming 20th Century Fox Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody,” will introduce Panic! At the Disco’s performance live from the awards show in Los Angeles. Nominated this year for Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock, this will mark Panic! At the Disco’s first performance on the AMAs. Hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross, the 2018 American Music Awards, the world’s largest fan-voted awards show, will broadcast live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 8:00 p.m. EDT, on ABC.
“If there is one song that I wish I would’ve written myself, it’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” said Panic! At the Disco frontman, Brendon Urie. “Freddie Mercury’s genius is clear from the very first note to the last and I’m honored to be able to pay tribute to Queen with my performance.”
Panic! At the Disco joins previously announced performers Benny Blanco with Halsey and Khalid, Cardi B featuring Bad Bunny and J Balvin, Mariah Carey, Ciara featuring Missy Elliott, Dua Lipa, Post Malone featuring Ty Dolla $ign, and Carrie Underwood, as well as a moving tribute to the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin.
Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift’s critically-adored new album, “Reputation,” was the biggest selling album of 2017 and #1 in over 111 countries on iTunes’ sales charts upon release. With almost 1.3 million albums sold in a seven-day period, Taylor is the only artist in history to have four consecutive albums sell over one million copies in their week of release (2010’s “Speak Now,” 2012’s “RED,” 2014’s “1989” and 2017’s “Reputation”).
Taylor’s chart-topping first single, “Look What You Made Me Do,” broke multiple records within hours of its release. With over 10 million streams, it was the most-streamed song in a one-day period, the lyric video for “Look What You Made Me Do” broke the standing record with over 19 million views, while the music video shattered the original most viewed video (28 million) record with 43.2 million views in only 24 hours. Her current single, “Delicate” is already a multi-week #1 at both Pop and Hot AC radio.
Taylor is a 10-time GRAMMY winner, a singer, songwriter, musician and producer. She is the youngest person in history to win the music industry’s highest honor, the Grammy Award for Album of the year and she is the first female solo artist to win this prestigious award twice. Rolling Stone listed Taylor as one of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time. Time magazine featured Taylor on their prestigious 2017 Person of the Year cover, named her one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world and identified her as one of only eight candidates for the 2014 Person of the Year. An Emmy and Brit Award winner, Taylor is Billboard’s youngest-ever Woman of the Year and the only artist to have been awarded this honor twice.
Panic! At the Disco released their #1 album “Pray for the Wicked” in June (via Fueled by Ramen/DCD2 Records) off the heels of their critically acclaimed fifth album, “Death of a Bachelor.” The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 Chart and was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 2017 GRAMMY Awards. The RIAA platinum selling release was the highest selling rock album and fourth-highest selling album released in 2016, according to Nielsen Soundscan. “Death of a Bachelor” has also spawned RIAA-certified gold singles “Hallelujah,” “LA Devotee,” Don’t Threaten Me With a Good Time,” and platinum singles “Death of a Bachelor,” “Emperor’s New Clothes,” and “Victorious.” Panic! At the Disco have been nominated for multiple awards, including the GRAMMYS, Teen Choice Awards, Alternative Press Music Awards, Kerrang! Awards and MTV VMAs. At the 2006 MTV VMAs they won Video of the Year for their smash “I Write Sins Not Tragedies.”
“Bohemian Rhapsody” is a foot-stomping celebration of Queen, their music and their extraordinary lead singer Freddie Mercury. Freddie defied stereotypes and shattered convention to become one of the most beloved entertainers on the planet. The film traces the meteoric rise of the band through their iconic songs and revolutionary sound. They reach unparalleled success, but in an unexpected turn Freddie, surrounded by darker influences, shuns Queen in pursuit of his solo career. Having suffered greatly without the collaboration of Queen, Freddie manages to reunite with his bandmates just in time for Live Aid. While bravely facing a recent AIDS diagnosis, Freddie leads the band in one of the greatest performances in the history of rock music. Queen cements a legacy that continues to inspire outsiders, dreamers and music lovers to this day.
The American Music Awards winners are voted entirely by fans. Voting is now open in all categories.
For New Artist of the Year presented by Capital One® Savor® Card, Favorite Social Artist presented by Xfinity and Collaboration of the Year, fans can vote for each award 100 times per day, per voting platform in one or both of the ways below. Fans can vote for all other awards once per day, per voting platform.
Posting a tweet on Twitter that includes the nominee’s name or Twitter handle, the category name and #AMAs within the tweet
Voting for New Artist of the Year presented by Capital One Savor Card and Collaboration of the Year will close on Tuesday, Oct. 9 at 5:59:59 p.m. PDT, one hour into the live broadcast. Voting for all other categories will close on Thursday, Oct. 4 at 11:59:59 p.m. PDT.American Music Awards nominees are based on key fan interactions as reflected on Billboard.com, including streaming, album and digital song sales, radio airplay, social activity and touring. These measurements are tracked by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound, and reflect the time period of Sept. 15, 2017, through Aug. 9, 2018.
YouTube Music is the presenting sponsor of the “2018 American Music Awards.”
Capital One Savor Card and Subaru of America, Inc. are sponsors of the “2018 American Music Awards.” Media partner is Cumulus Media/Westwood One.
The “2018 American Music Awards” is produced by dick clark productions. Barry Adelman, Mark Bracco and Tracee Ellis Ross are executive producers. 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.
About the American Music Awards
The American Music Awards, the world’s largest fan-voted award show, features performances from today’s hottest artists and presents fan-voted awards in the music genres of Pop/Rock, Alternative Rock, Country, Rap/Hip-Hop, Soul/R&B, Adult Contemporary, Contemporary Inspirational, Latin, EDM and Soundtrack, and the categories of Artist of the Year, New Artist of the Year presented by Capital One Savor Card, Collaboration of the Year, Tour of The Year, Favorite Social Artist presented by Xfinity and Favorite Music Video. The American Music Awards pays tribute to today’s most influential and iconic artists. The show is produced by dick clark productions and is seen in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. For more information, visit www.theamas.com, www.dickclark.com or abc.go.com/shows/american-music-awards.
About dick clark productions
dick clark productions (dcp) is the world’s largest producer and proprietor of televised live event entertainment programming with the “Academy of Country Music Awards,” “American Music Awards,” “Billboard Music Awards,” “Golden Globe Awards,” “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest” and the “Streamy Awards.” Weekly television programming includes “So You Think You Can Dance” from 19 Entertainment and dcp. dcp also owns one of the world’s most unique and extensive entertainment archive libraries with over 60 years of award-winning shows, historic programs, specials, performances and legendary programming. dcp is a division of Valence Media, a diversified media company with divisions and strategic investments in premium television, wide release film, specialty film, live events and digital media. For additional information, visit www.dickclark.com.
About YouTube Music
YouTube Music is a completely reimagined streaming music service with music videos, official albums, singles, remixes, live performances, covers and hard-to-find music you can only get on YouTube. It’s ALL here! YouTube Music serves music based on your tastes and what’s moving the community around you. Discover something new or keep up with what’s trending. Basic functions such as playing music and watching videos are totally free, but you can upgrade to YouTube Music Premium to explore the world of music ad-free, offline, and with the screen locked. Available on mobile and desktop. For additional information, visit www.youtube.com/musicpremium.
