The 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards are set to air live from The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on May 27.
The Weeknd was famously snubbed in the nominations for the 63rd annual Grammy Awards, but he's the leading contender for the 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards, which were announced Wednesday (April 7).
The Canadian star has eight nominations. Megan Thee Stallion and Roddy Ricch are a beat behind with seven nods. Harry Styles has six. Justin Bieber has five.
The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights" and Styles' "Watermelon Sugar" are nominated for the top award, song of the year. The other nominees are Post Malone’s “Circles,” Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now" and the DaBaby/Ricch collab “Rockstar.”
That smash collab is, however, not among the nominees for best collaboration, which makes no sense -- other than by using the logic of award shows. iHeart executives presumably thought that since “Rockstar” was nominated for their top award, they could share the wealth and spotlight other contenders in the collab category.
Ricch's seven nods include an impressive three of the five nominees for hip-hop song of the year -- “Rockstar” and his own hits “The Box” and “High Fashion” (featuring Mustard). Chris Brown and H.E.R. each have two nominations for R&B song of the year. Calibre 50 has two nominations for regional Mexican song of the year.
Pop Smoke, who died Feb. 19, 2020, is nominated for hip-hop artist of the year and also best new artist in both pop and hip-hop. Many thought the rapper would become the first artist to receive a posthumous Grammy nod for best new artist. In the end, the committee that determines the final Grammy nominees in the Big Four categories decided to stick with living artists.
Morgan Wallen was not nominated in any country categories. Wallen was also shut out in the recent ACM Awards nominations. He was suspended from competing for awards and appearing on the telecast for one year because of his use of the N-word on video.
Chloe x Halle, who released their first studio album three years ago and received a Grammy best new artist nomination two years ago, are nominated for best new hip-hop artist. This may be their last of many nominations at various award shows in a new artist category.
Andrew Watt, who won a Grammy for producer of the year this year, is nominated in that same category here, along with Dr. Luke, Frank Dukes, Louis Bell and Max Martin.
In a fun twist, Lizzo's cover of Styles' "Adore You" is nominated for best cover song, along with Styles' cover of Lizzo's "Juice."
Shawn Mendes' cover of Frankie Valli's 1967 classic "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" is also nominated for best cover song. “ily (i love you baby),” the sleeper hit by Surf Mesa featuring Emilee, which was built around Valli's timeless smash, is nominated for dance song of the year.
Now in its eighth year, the iHeartRadio Music Awards celebrate the most-played artists and songs on iHeartRadio stations and the iHeartRadio app throughout 2020. Nominations are based on consumption data, including streaming, album sales, song sales and radio airplay.
The 2021 iHeartRadio Music Awards are set to air live from The Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on May 27 (8-10 p.m. ET live/PT tape-delayed) on Fox. The event also will be heard on iHeartMedia radio stations nationwide and on the iHeartRadio app.
Due to the pandemic, the 2020 live TV broadcast of the iHeartRadio Music Awards on Fox was canceled. Instead, winners were revealed throughout Labor Day weekend across iHeartRadio stations nationwide and on the iHeartRadio App.
iHeartRadio listeners will have the opportunity to decide winners in several new and established categories. Fan voting will determine this year’s best fan army, best lyrics, best cover song, best music video, the social star award, favorite music video choreography award and the first-ever TikTok bop of the year award.
Social voting begins Wednesday and will close on May 19 at 11:59 p.m. ET for all categories. Fans can vote on Twitter using the appropriate category and nominee hashtags or by visiting iHeartRadio.com/awards.
“The iHeartRadio Music Awards is a true awards show recognizing the artists and songs fans have listened to and loved all year long,” said John Sykes, president of entertainment enterprises for iHeartMedia, in a statement.
“We couldn’t be more excited for this year’s iHeartRadio Music Awards,” added Tom Poleman, chief programming officer for iHeartMedia. “…We are looking forward to celebrating these top artists and their accomplishments, especially after a year that brought unprecedented challenges to the music industry and live events.”
Executive producers for the iHeartRadio Music Awards are Joel Gallen for Tenth Planet and Sykes, Poleman and Bart Peters for iHeartMedia.
Here is the full list of nominees:
Song of the Year:
“Blinding Lights” - The Weeknd
“Circles” - Post Malone
“Don't Start Now” - Dua Lipa
“Rockstar” - DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch
“Watermelon Sugar” - Harry Styles
Female Artist of the Year:
Ariana Grande
Billie Eilish
Dua Lipa
Megan Thee Stallion
Taylor Swift
Male Artist of the Year:
Harry Styles
Justin Bieber
Post Malone
Roddy Ricch
The Weeknd
Best Duo/Group of the Year:
BTS
Dan + Shay
Jonas Brothers
Maroon 5
twenty one pilots
Best Collaboration:
“Go Crazy” - Chris Brown & Young Thug
“Holy” - Justin Bieber featuring Chance the Rapper
“I Hope” - Gabby Barrett featuring Charlie Puth
“Mood” - 24kGoldn featuring iann dior
“Savage” (Remix) - Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé
Best New Pop Artist:
24kGoldn
blackbear
Doja Cat
JP Saxe
Pop Smoke
Alternative Rock Song of the Year:
“Bang!” - AJR
“Bloody Valentine” - Machine Gun Kelly
“everything i wanted” - Billie Eilish
“Level Of Concern” - twenty one pilots
“Monsters” - All Time Low featuring blackbear
Alternative Rock Artist of the Year:
AJR
All Time Low
Billie Eilish
Cage the Elephant
twenty one pilots
Best New Rock/Alternative Rock Artist:
Ashe
Dayglow
Powfu
Royal & The Serpent
Wallows
Rock Song of the Year:
“Death By Rock And Roll” - The Pretty Reckless
“Patience” - Chris Cornell
“Shame Shame” - Foo Fighters
“Shot In The Dark” - AC/DC
“Under The Graveyard” - Ozzy Osbourne
Rock Artist of the Year:
AC/DC
Five Finger Death Punch
Ozzy Osbourne
Shinedown
The Pretty Reckless
Country Song of the Year:
“Even Though I'm Leaving” - Luke Combs
“I Hope” - Gabby Barrett
“Nobody But You” - Blake Shelton with Gwen Stefani
“One Margarita” - Luke Bryan
“The Bones” - Maren Morris
Country Artist of the Year:
Blake Shelton
Luke Bryan
Luke Combs
Maren Morris
Thomas Rhett
Best New Country Artist:
Ashley McBryde
Gabby Barrett
HARDY
Ingrid Andress
Jameson Rodgers
Dance Song of the Year:
“Head & Heart” - Joel Corry x MNEK
“ily (i love you baby)” - Surf Mesa featuring Emilee
“Lasting Lover” – Sigala & James Arthur
“Rain On Me” - Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande
“Roses” (Imanbek Remix) - SAINt JHN
Dance Artist of the Year:
Anabel Englund
Diplo
Marshmello
Surf Mesa
Tiësto
Hip-Hop Song of the Year:
“High Fashion” - Roddy Ricch featuring Mustard
“Life Is Good” - Future featuring Drake
“Rockstar” - DaBaby featuring Roddy Ricch
“Savage” (Remix) - Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé
“The Box” - Roddy Ricch
Hip-Hop Artist of the Year:
DaBaby
Lil Baby
Megan Thee Stallion
Pop Smoke
Roddy Ricch
Best New Hip-Hop Artist:
Jack Harlow
Moneybagg Yo
Pop Smoke
Rod Wave
Roddy Ricch
R&B Song of the Year:
“B.S.” - Jhené Aiko featuring H.E.R.
“Go Crazy” - Chris Brown & Young Thug
“Heat” Chris Brown featuring Gunna
“Playing Games” - Summer Walker
“Slide” - H.E.R. featuring YG
R&B Artist of the Year:
Chris Brown
H.E.R.
Jhené Aiko
Snoh Aalegra
Summer Walker
Best New R&B Artist:
Chloe x Halle
Lonr.
Mahalia
Skip Marley
Snoh Aalegra
Latin Pop/Reggaeton Song of the Year:
“Caramelo” - Ozuna
“Dákiti” - Bad Bunny & Jhay Cortez
“Hawái” (Remix) - Maluma & The Weeknd
“RITMO (Bad Boys For Life)” - Black Eyed Peas & J Balvin
“Tusa” - KAROL G & Nicki Minaj
Latin Pop/Reggaeton Artist of the Year:
Bad Bunny
J Balvin
KAROL G
Maluma
Ozuna
Best New Latin Artist:
Chesca
Jay Wheeler
Natanael Cano
Neto Bernal
Rauw Alejandro
Regional Mexican Song of the Year:
“Palabra De Hombre” - El Fantasma
“Se Me Olvidó” - Christian Nodal
“Sólo Tú” - Calibre 50
“Te Volvería A Elegir” - Calibre 50
“Yo Ya No Vuelvo Contigo” - Lenin Ramírez featuring Grupo Firme
Regional Mexican Artist of the Year:
Banda Los Sebastianes
Calibre 50
Christian Nodal
Edwin Luna y La Trakalosa de Monterrey
Gerardo Ortíz
Producer of the Year:
Andrew Watt
Dr Luke
Frank Dukes
Louis Bell
Max Martin
Songwriter of the Year:
Ali Tamposi
Amy Allen
Ashley Gorley
Dan Nigro
Finneas
Best Lyrics: *Socially Voted Category
“Adore You” - Harry Styles
“Before You Go” - Lewis Capaldi
“Blinding Lights” - The Weeknd
“cardigan” - Taylor Swift
“Don’t Start Now” - Dua Lipa
“everything i wanted” - Billie Eilish
“I Hope” - Gabby Barrett featuring Charlie Puth
“If The World Was Ending” - JP Saxe featuring Julia Michaels
“Intentions” - Justin Bieber featuring Quavo
“Life Is Good” - Future featuring Drake
Best Cover Song: *Socially Voted Category
“Adore You” (Harry Styles) - Lizzo cover
“Can't Take My Eyes Off You” (Frankie Valli) - Shawn Mendes cover
“Fix You” (Coldplay) - Sam Smith cover
“Heart Of Glass” (Blondie) - Miley Cyrus cover
“Juice” (Lizzo) - Harry Styles cover
Best Fan Army: *Socially Voted Category
#Agnation - Agnez Mo
#Arianators - Ariana Grande
#Beliebers - Justin Bieber
#BLINK - BLACKPINK
#BTSARMY - BTS
#Harries - Harry Styles
#Limelights - Why Don't We
#Louies - Louis Tomlinson
#MendesArmy - Shawn Mendes
#NCTzens - NCT 127
#Selenators - Selena Gomez
#Swifties - Taylor Swift
Best Music Video: *Socially Voted Category
“Blinding Lights” - The Weeknd
“Don't Start Now” - Dua Lipa
“Dynamite” - BTS
“Hawái” - Maluma
“How You Like That” - BLACKPINK
“Life Is Good” - Future featuring Drake
“Rain On Me” - Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande
“WAP” - Cardi B featuring Megan Thee Stallion
“Watermelon Sugar” - Harry Styles
“Yummy” - Justin Bieber
Social Star Award: *Socially Voted Category
Dixie D'Amelio
Jaden Hossler
LILHUDDY
Nessa Barrett
Olivia Rodrigo
Tate McRae
Favorite Music Video Choreography: *Socially Voted Category
BTS – Son Sung Deuk
“34+35” (Ariana Grande) - Scott & Brian Nicholson
“Do It” (Chloe x Halle) - Kendra Bracy & Ashanti Ledon
“Honey Boo” (CNCO & Natti Natasha) - Kyle Hanagami
“Physical” (Dua Lipa) - Charm La'Donna
“Rain On Me” (Lady Gaga & Ariana Grande) - Richy Jackson
“Say So” (Doja Cat) - Cortland Brown
“WAP” (Cardi B featuring Megan Thee Stallion) - JaQuel Knight
“Bop” (DaBaby) - Coach Cherry & DaniLeigh
TikTok Bop of the Year (New Category): *Socially Voted Category
“Blinding Lights” - The Weeknd
“Lottery (Renegade)” - K CAMP
“Savage” - Megan Thee Stallion
“Savage Love” (Laxed-Siren Beat) - Jawsh 685, Jason Derulo
“Say So” - Doja Cat
“WAP” - Cardi B featuring Megan Thee Stallion
Additional categories include label of the year, titanium song of the year and titanium artist of the year, and winners for album of the year in pop, country, alternative rock, rock, dance, hip-hop, R&B, Latin pop/reggaeton and regional Mexican formats.
For more information, visit iHeartRadio.com/awards.
