BTS Makes 2026 AMAs Comeback After Four Years, Earns Artist of the Year Nomination
On Monday, May 25, BTS will appear at the 52nd American Music Awards - their first award show appearance in four years. CBS and Dick Clark Productions confirmed the special appearance Wednesday. The show airs live at 8 p.m. ET from MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, also on Paramount+.
The group is nominated in three categories: Artist of the Year, Song of the Summer for "Swim," and Best Male K-Pop Artist. Artist of the Year puts them against Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, and Bruno Mars. BTS won that award in 2021, becoming the first group to take the top prize since One Direction in 2014-15. They currently hold 11 AMA trophies, second only to Alabama's 23 among groups.
The AMA appearance lands inside what is already a stacked BTS week in Las Vegas. The group is playing four sold-out nights at Allegiant Stadium - May 23-24 and 27-28 - as part of the Arirang World Tour. The strip is also hosting BTS The City Arirang, the immersive citywide experience HYBE has run alongside major tour stops, including an "Arirang Red Illumination" on Las Vegas Boulevard. BTS performs at the MGM Grand Garden on Monday, then returns to Allegiant Stadium two nights later.
The AMA history matters here. BTS performed "DNA" on the 2017 ceremony - their first US television performance - becoming the first Korean group on the show, which has aired since 1974. They returned in 2020 with "Life Goes On" and "Dynamite," and in 2021 with "Butter" and their Coldplay collaboration "My Universe." Wednesday's announcement describes the May 25 slot as a "special appearance" without specifying a performance. Fan voting for Social Song of the Year and Tour of the Year remains open through the first 30 minutes of the broadcast at VoteAMAs.com.
The Arirang album, released in March, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with 641,000 equivalent album units - the largest single-week figure for a group since 2014. Its lead single "Swim" reached No. 1 on the Hot 100. The tour, now mid-run through North America, spans 85 shows across 34 cities, the largest single tour ever by a Korean artist.
The Artist of the Year vote has already closed. The winner gets announced live Monday night.
