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Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
Entertainment
Christi Carras

Kelly Rowland tells booing crowd to ‘chill out’ after Chris Brown wins AMA

LOS ANGELES — Kelly Rowland stood by Chris Brown at the American Music Awards on Sunday after his win elicited a mix of applause and boos from the crowd.

After presenting the award for male R&B artist at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, the “Motivation” hitmaker accepted the prize on Brown’s behalf. Brown — who released his latest album, “Breezy,” in June — was not in attendance after the AMAs allegedly removed him from the performance lineup last minute.

Brown was nominated for male R&B artist alongside Brent Faiyaz, Giveon, Lucky Daye and the Weeknd.

“Excuse me — chill out,” Rowland told the booing portion of the audience after announcing Brown’s victory.

“I want to tell Chris thank you so much for making great R&B music. And I want to tell him thank you for being an incredible performer. I’ll take this award, bring it to you. I love you. Congratulations — and congratulations to all the nominees in this category.”

On Friday, Brown claimed via Instagram that his AMA performance — a tribute to Michael Jackson — was canceled “for reasons unknown.” The “Under the Influence” singer shared footage from one of his AMA rehearsals, in which he dances along to various Jackson hits, including “Beat It,” “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’” and “Thriller.”

“U SERIOUS?” he captioned the video on Instagram.

Representatives for the AMAs did not immediately respond Monday to The Times’ request for comment.

In 2009, Brown pleaded guilty to the felony assault of his then-girlfriend, Rihanna. The recording artist, who completed his probation sentence for that case in 2015, has been accused and arrested on charges of assault multiple times since then.

Elsewhere in the AMAs broadcast, Taylor Swift broke her own record for the most wins of all time; Pink and Wayne Brady paid tribute to the late Olivia Newton-John and Takeoff, respectively; and several artists mourned the victims of a Saturday shooting at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs.

Below is a full list of this year’s AMA winners.

Artist of the Year: Taylor Swift

New Artist of the Year: Dove Cameron

Collaboration of the Year: “Cold Heart - PNAU Remix,” by Elton John and Dua Lipa

Touring Artist: Coldplay

Music Video: “All Too Well: The Short Film” by Taylor Swift

Male Pop Artist: Harry Styles

Female Pop Artist: Taylor Swift

Pop Duo or Group: BTS

Pop Album: “Red (Taylor’s Version)” by Taylor Swift

Pop Song: “As It Was” by Harry Styles

Male Country Artist: Morgan Wallen

Female Country Artist: Taylor Swift

Country Duo or Group: Dan + Shay

Country Album: “Red (Taylor’s Version)” by Taylor Swift

Country Song: “Wasted on You” by Morgan Wallen

Male Hip-Hop Artist: Kendrick Lamar

Female Hip-Hop Artist: Nicki Minaj

Hip-Hop Album: “Mr. Morale & the Big Steppers” by Kendrick Lamar

Hip-Hop Song: “Wait For U” by Future featuring Drake and Tems

Male R&B Artist: Chris Brown

Female R&B Artist: Beyoncé

R&B Album: “Renaissance” by Beyoncé

R&B Song: “Essence” by Wizkid featuring Tems

Male Latin Artist: Bad Bunny

Female Latin Artist: Anitta

Latin Duo or Group: Yahritza Y Su Esencia

Latin Album: “Un Verano Sin Ti” by Bad Bunny

Latin Song: Sebastián Yatra “Dos Oruguitas” by Sebastián Yatra

Rock Artist: Machine Gun Kelly

Rock Song: “Beggin’” by Måneskin

Rock Album: “Impera” by Ghost

Inspirational Artist: For King & Country

Gospel Artist: Tamela Mann

Dance/Electronic Artist: Marshmello

Soundtrack: “Elvis”

Afrobeats Artist: Wizkid

K-Pop Artist: BTS

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