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2025 American Music Awards—Performers List & What to Expect

  • May 18, 2025
  • 9 minute read
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The American Music Awards is waking up from a nine-year hibernation in 2025, shaking things up in the entertainment scene. This musical moment has celebrities and their entourages buzzing with electric anticipation, while fans worldwide count down the seconds. The pressure cooker is set to maximum for performers who must dazzle after such a lengthy absence. Behind the scenes, organizers have orchestrated a perfect storm of legendary icons and fresh-faced superstars, crafting what promises to be less of a comeback and more of a cultural renaissance.

After nine years in the wings, the American Music Awards ignite a dazzling fusion of legends and rising stars, setting the stage ablaze. Here is the list of performers and what to expect.

Janet Jackson

The beat is about to take over the nation once again as Janet Jackson returns to the American Music Awards stage after a seven-year pause, ready to accept the coveted ICON Award with her signature elegance. Fans can brace themselves for a spectacular show, as Jackson’s performance is expected to deliver a powerful mix of ‘Rhythm Nation,’ ‘Nasty,’ and ‘That’s the Way Love Goes,’ all brought to life with flawless choreography.

As the American Music Awards celebrate their fifty-first year, Jackson’s presence shines as a dazzling testament to her unstoppable reign as the queen of pop and R&B.

Jackson

’s triumphant return as the American Music Awards ICON sets a high bar, while the stage soon shifts to another multi-talented star ready to juggle hosting and performing with unmatched flair.

Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez is juggling dual duties at the 2025 American Music Awards

, slipping into hosting heels for the first time in a decade

while still planning to set the stage ablaze with her performance.

Despite recently tangoing with injury, Lopez refuses to dial down her trademark hurricane of dance, music, and visual spectacle. Fans are crossing their fingers for a surprise resurrection of ‘Louboutins’ alongside guaranteed showstoppers ‘On the Floor’ and ‘Let’s Get Loud,’ 

cementing her status as the night’s most multitasking maven.

As Lopez battles through injury with relentless energy, the night moves on to Gwen Stefani’s nostalgic yet fresh solo comeback, blending past hits with new vibes.

Gwen Stefani

Two decades after unleashing ‘Love.Angel.Music.Baby.’

upon an unsuspecting world, Gwen Stefani returns to the American Music Awards platform to celebrate her solo evolution. Musical time travel awaits as ‘Hollaback Girl,’ ‘Rich Girl,’ and ‘What You Waiting For?’ collide with fresh tracks from her latest offering, ‘Bouquet.’

Breaking a ten-year American Music Awards absence, Stefani’s performance promises to be a kaleidoscopic blend of nostalgic bangers and contemporary earworms that bridges generational musical divides.

While Gwen bridges decades of music with a dynamic set, a true legend is gearing up to prove that five decades of rhythm still pack a powerful punch.

Gloria Estefan

The rhythm is absolutely going to get you as Gloria Estefan makes her triumphant American Music Awards comeback after three decades of conspicuous absence.

This living legend brings five decades of musical brilliance to a performance expected to shake the room, with the possibility of ‘Conga,’ ‘Get on Your Feet,’ and ‘1-2-3’ lighting up the stage in signature high-energy style.

Estefan’s vibrant Latin-infused sonic tapestry does not just entertain; it delivers a masterclass in longevity and cross-cultural musical alchemy that continues to inspire decades after her debut.

Estefan’s Latin-infused return shows the timelessness of her sound, setting the scene for a new generation phenom ready to explode from social media to the American Music Awards spotlight.

Benson Boone

Fresh-faced phenom Benson Boone is about to graduate from TikTok sensation to Benson Boone debut artist

, unleashing his volcanic vocals on the prestigious stage. Showcasing his latest ‘American Heart’ single, Boone arrives with Grammy-tested performance chops and a reputation for turning stages into personal gymnastics equipment.

His tornado-like energy and emotional delivery promise to transform the auditorium into a pressure cooker of raw talent, making this virgin voyage into American Music Awards waters one to bookmark in music history.

Boone’s raw energy and vocal passion make waves as the night pivots to country’s rising star, whose southern charm promises to lasso hearts and charts alike.

Lainey Wilson

Fresh off a triple-crown sweep at the ACM Awards, country powerhouse Lainey Wilson

is expected to bring her Southern charm to the American Music Awards stage, possibly with a performance of ‘Whirlwind’ from her latest chart-topping release.

Wilson’s performance promises to lasso together Nashville tradition with contemporary swagger, wrapped in authentic southern charm and delivered with hurricane-force vocals. Her magnetic stage presence transforms lyrics into living emotional landscapes, cementing her status as country music’s most compelling new storyteller.

Wilson’s powerhouse country presence will bring heartfelt storytelling to the stage, just as Reneé Rapp prepares to inject fearless vulnerability and vocal daring into the night’s lineup.

Reneé Rapp

The American Music Awards stage is about to get a baptism by fire as Reneé Rapp makes her awards show performance debut, armed with fresh ammunition from her sophomore album arsenal.

Prepare for lyrical fearlessness and vocal acrobatics as Rapp’s emotionally transparent storytelling cuts through industry noise. This milestone moment offers musical voyeurs a front-row seat to witness an artist evolving in real-time, shedding past skins and embracing raw vulnerability with unapologetic confidence.

Rapp’s emotional debut reveals a fearless artist in evolution, paving the way for Jon Bellion’s boundary-blurring, genre-defying musical experiment to captivate ears next.

Jon Bellion

Musical mad scientist Jon Bellion is expected to enter the American Music Awards spotlight, emerging from his creative lab with murmurs of a new sonic experiment, ‘Kid Again,’ 

ready to stir the senses. This potential appearance signals a bold chapter in Bellion’s evolution, where genre lines blur under his calculated precision and creative freedom reigns. If he takes the stage, it could unfold as a kaleidoscopic trip through introspective soundscapes, led by an artist who has rediscovered the pure joy of creating without compromise.

Bellion’s sonic reinvention invites listeners on an introspective journey, before the spotlight shifts to Forrest Frank, whose spiritual and streetwise fusion electrifies the stage.

Forrest Frank

The American Music Awards red carpet rolls out for Forrest Frank’s debut appearance

, as the Christian music maverick brings his genre-blurring sonic alchemy to a wider stage. Expected to deliver a spiritual-meets-street fusion, his performance could weave together hip-hop swagger, pop accessibility, and lo-fi chill-wave textures.

With nods to ‘Child of God’ and its thematic successor, the set is poised to offer theological depth wrapped in sleek production, infusing the American Music Awards with a fresh wave of spiritual energy amid its secular spotlight.

Frank’s genre-bending set breathes new life into the American Music Awards, as the atmosphere darkens for The Weeknd’s haunting return, weaving cinematic intensity with haunting melodies.

The Weeknd, Playboi Carti, and Mike Dean

The Weeknd, Playboi Carti, and Mike Dean are set to deliver a pre-recorded performance at the 2025 American Music Awards

, captured during their After Hours Til Dawn Tour at Ford Field in Detroit.

This collaboration showcases The Weeknd’s signature atmospheric visuals and haunting vocals, complemented by Playboi Carti’s experimental trap elements and Mike Dean’s synthesizer expertise. The performance features tracks from The Weeknd’s latest album, ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow

,’ including the collaborative song ‘Timeless’ with Playboi Carti,

blending cinematic storytelling with genre-defying soundscapes.

As the 2025 American Music Awards

 prepares to unleash its constellation of stars, music enthusiasts stand at the threshold of a truly historic night. This perfectly calibrated cocktail of legendary veterans and hungry newcomers promises a rollercoaster ride through music’s evolving landscape. From Janet Jackson’s iconic mastery to Reneé Rapp’s emotional baptism by fire, the ceremony transcends mere entertainment to become a cultural touchstone.

Read More: AMAs 2025: Is There A Dress Code at American Music Awards?

What are you expecting from their performances? And who are you most excited to see hit the stage? Drop your thoughts in the comments below.

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