Alicia Keys and Jay-Z after performance of "Empire State of Mind (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
And the winner is…? Hov. Jay-Z took home two American Music Awards for Rap/Hip-Hop Favorite Male artist and Rap/Hip-Hop Favorite Album for Blueprint 3. The end of his acceptance speech was quickly quoted and tweeted, “Men lie, women lie; numbers don’t”
No other solo rappers received awards in any other categories. Eminem and T.I. were the only other rappers nominated in categories outside of Rap/Hip-Hop. They shared a nod for Pop/Rock Favorite Male Artist with the late Michael Jackson, who won the award.
The Black Eyed Peas won for Pop/Rock Favorite Band Duo or Group and Soul R&B Favorite Band, Duo or Group. Does the Peas’ exclusion from all hip-hop categories officially mean that they are no longer classified as a hip-hop group?
Among the hip-hop performances of the evening were, Jay-Z with Alicia Keys, Eminem with 50 Cent and Timbaland featuring Nelly Furtado and So Shy. Jay-Z, the self-proclaimed Frank Sinatra of rap opened “Empire State of Mind” with Ms. Keys singing part of the Ol’ Blue Eyes standard, “New York, New York.”
Eminem rocked the stage with 50 Cent on “Crack a Bottle” and “Forever.” Emimem moved across the stage with same energy he had when he first started, while 50 struggled with projecting his hook and rhymes to make them fully audible to at-home viewers.
Post-show online commentary has not been kind to Timbaland in his debut of “The Morning After Dark.” He was criticized not only for giving a lackluster performance but appearing to have regained the weight he lost a few years earlier.
Though their street credibility has been questionable for years, The Black Eyed Peas wowed the crowd with their funky medley ending in a mash-up of “Boom Boom Pow and the Nirvana classic, “Smells Like Teen Spirit.”
See below: Jay-Z’s acceptance speech for Rap/Hip-Hop Favorite Male Artist and the full list of American Music Awards winners and nominees appears below. The winners are shown in bold.
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Kings of Leon
Taylor Swift
Lady Gaga
Eminem
Michael Jackson
POP/ROCK - Favorite Male Artist
Eminem
Michael Jackson
T.I.
POP/ROCK - Favorite Female Artist
Beyonce
Lady Gaga
Taylor Swift
POP/ROCK - Favorite Band, Duo or Group
The Black Eyed Peas
Kings of Leon
Nickelback
POP/ROCK - Favorite Album
Fame - Lady Gaga
Number Ones - Michael Jackson
Fearless - Taylor Swift
COUNTRY - Favorite Male Artist
Jason Aldean
Darius Rucker
Keith Urban
COUNTRY - Favorite Female Artist
Reba McEntire
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood
COUNTRY - Favorite Band, Duo or Group
Rascal Flatts
Sugarland
Zac Brown Band
COUNTRY - Favorite Album
Unstoppable - Rascal Flatts
Fearless - Taylor Swift
Foundation - Zac Brown Band
RAP/HIP-HOP - Favorite Male Artist
Eminem
Jay-Z
T.I.
RAP/HIP-HOP - Favorite Album
Relapse - Eminem
Blueprint 3 - Jay-Z
Paper Trail - T.I.
SOUL/R&B - Favorite Male Artist
Jamie Foxx
Michael Jackson
Maxwell
SOUL/R&B - Favorite Female Artist
Beyonce
Keyshia Cole
Keri Hilson
SOUL/R&B - Favorite Band, Duo or Group
The Black Eyed Peas
Day26
Mary Mary
SOUL/R&B - Favorite Album
I Am...Sasha Fierce - Beyonce
The E.N.D. - The Black Eyed Peas
Number Ones - Michael Jackson
SOUNDTRACKS - Favorite Album
Hannah Montana: The Movie
Hannah Montana 3
Twilight Soundtrack
ALTERNATIVE ROCK - Favorite Artist
Green Day
Kings of Leon
Shinedown
ADULT CONTEMPORARY - Favorite Artist
Daughtry
Jason Mraz
Taylor Swift
LATIN - Favorite Artist
Aventura
Luis Fonsi
Wisin Y Yandel
CONTEMPORARY INSPIRATIONAL - Favorite Artist
Jeremy Camp
Brandon Heath
Mary Mary
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