Photo Credit: CBS
After a short hiatus and a network hop from NBC to CBS, the American Music Awards (AMAs) will celebrate its 50 year history in October.
CBS and Dick Clark Productions, the parent company of the AMAs, has announced the 50th anniversary AMAs for October 6, 2024. The two-hour broadcast of the AMAs 50th Anniversary Special will air at 8pm ET / 5 pm PT on both CBS and Paramount+.
The American Music Awards 50th Anniversary special will serve as a tribute to the past 50 years and feature dazzling new performances, heartfelt artist interviews, legendary special guests, and exclusive never-before-seen footage from DCP’s extensive archives, highlighting iconic moments that have defined the awards show over the last 50 years and shaping pop culture as we know it.
The program will feature themed highlights from AMAs expansive show archives, each culminating with an original performance or artist interview. Segments will look back on the evolution of specific artists and genres at the AMAs, as well as an award and performance milestones. The performances created just for the AMAs 50th Anniversary special will include collaborations, debuts from today’s hottest stars, and appearances from AMAs legends. Performers will be announced in the coming weeks.
The American Music Awards is the world’s largest fan-voted award show and will be returning fully in May 2025. The show was created by legendary producer and visionary Dick Clark and first awarded in 1974, celebrating the year’s top achievements in music as determined by the fans. The 50th Anniversary special is produced by Dick Clark Productions.
Ratings for the AMAs have been in precipitous decline in recent years, marking an all-time low in 2022 with a 0.6 rating among adults in the 18-49 demographic with just 3.53 million viewers. Shows from 2020 and 2021 fared marginally better, but low ratings on NBC explains the network hop and retooling focusing on the 50th anniversary this year. The height of the AMAs viewership occurred in the 80s, competing with the Grammys in terms of viewership.
