American Music Awards of 1980
Encyclopedia
The 7th Annual American Music Awards
were held on January 18, 1980.
American Music Awards
-Conception:The AMAs were created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammys after the move of that year's show to Nashville, Tennessee led to CBS picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC...
were held on January 18, 1980.
Pop/Rock Category
| Subcategory | Winner | Nominees |
|---|---|---|
| Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist | Barry Manilow Barry Manilow Barry Manilow is an American singer-songwriter, musician, arranger, producer, conductor, and performer, best known for such recordings as "Could It Be Magic", "Mandy", "Can't Smile Without You", and "Copacabana ."... |
Billy Joel Billy Joel William Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to... Kenny Rogers Kenny Rogers Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur... |
| Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist | Donna Summer Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach... |
Olivia Newton-John Olivia Newton-John Olivia Newton-John AO, OBE is a singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who has amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles and 14 of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA... Barbra Streisand Barbra Streisand Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,... |
| Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo, or Group | Bee Gees Bee Gees The Bee Gees are a musical group that originally comprised three brothers: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio was successful for most of their 40-plus years of recording music, but they had two distinct periods of exceptional success: as a pop act in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and as a... |
Cheap Trick Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band from Rockford, Illinois, formed in 1973. The band consists of members Robin Zander , Rick Nielsen , Tom Petersson , and Bun E... Supertramp Supertramp Supertramp are a British rock band formed in 1969 under the name Daddy before renaming to Supertramp in early 1970. Though their music was initially categorised as progressive rock, they have since incorporated a combination of traditional rock and art rock into their music... |
| Favorite Pop/Rock Album | Spirits Having Flown Spirits Having Flown Spirits Having Flown is the Bee Gees' fifteenth original album, released in 1979. It was the group's first album after their collaboration on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The album's first three tracks were released as singles which all went to no.1 in the US... - Bee Gees |
In Through the Out Door In Through the Out Door In Through the Out Door is the eighth studio album by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was recorded over a three week period in November and December 1978 at ABBA's Polar Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, and released by Swan Song Records on 15 August 1979... - Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham... Bad Girls Bad Girls (album) Bad Girls is the seventh studio album by American pop singer Donna Summer, released April 25, 1979 on Casablanca Records. Originally issued as a double album, it incorporates such musical styles as disco, soul, and rock... - Donna Summer Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach... |
| Favorite Pop/Rock Single | Bad Girls (song) Bad Girls (song) "Bad Girls" is a 1979 single released by American singer Donna Summer, co-written by Summer and the Brooklyn Dreams. The inspiration for her to write the song came after one of her assistants was offended by a police officer who thought she was a street prostitute.A rough version of the song had... - Donna Summer Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach... |
"My Sharona" - The Knack The Knack The Knack was an American New Wave rock quartet based in Los Angeles that rose to fame with their first single, "My Sharona", an international number one hit in 1979.-Founding :... "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" - Rod Stewart Rod Stewart Roderick David "Rod" Stewart, CBE is a British singer-songwriter and musician, born and raised in North London, England and currently residing in Epping. He is of Scottish and English ancestry.... |
Soul/R&B Category
| Subcategory | Winner | Nominees |
|---|---|---|
| Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist | Michael Jackson Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records... |
Rick James Rick James James Ambrose Johnson, Jr. , better known by his stage name Rick James, was an American singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. James was a popular performer in the late 1970s and 1980s, scoring four number-one hits on the U.S. R&B charts performing in the genres of funk and R&B... Teddy Pendergrass Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese "Teddy" Pendergrass was an American R&B/soul singer and songwriter. Pendergrass first rose to fame as lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes in the 1970s before a successful solo career at the end of the decade... |
| Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist | Donna Summer Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach... |
Gloria Gaynor Gloria Gaynor Gloria Gaynor is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits; "I Will Survive" , "Never Can Say Goodbye" , "Let Me Know " and "I Am What I Am" .-Early career:Gaynor was a singer with the Soul... Stephanie Mills Stephanie Mills Stephanie Dorthea Mills is an American R&B and soul singer, and a former Broadway star.-Career:Mills began her career appearing in her first play at the age of nine. Two years later, Mills won Amateur Night at the Apollo Theater a record six times... |
| Favorite Soul/R&B Band, Duo, or Group | The Commodores | Chic Chic (band) Chic was an African American disco and R&B band that was organized during 1976 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. It is known best for its commercially successful disco songs, including "Dance, Dance, Dance " , "Everybody Dance" , "Le Freak" , "I Want Your Love" , "Good Times"... Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire is an American soul and R&B band formed in Chicago, Illinois, in 1969 by Verdine and Maurice White. Also known as EWF, the band has won six Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards. They have been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of... |
| Favorite Soul/R&B Album | Off The Wall - Michael Jackson | Midnight Magic - The Commodores Teddy - Teddy Pendergrass |
| Favorite Soul/R&B Single | "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" is a single by American recording artist Michael Jackson. Released under Epic Records on July 28, 1979, the song is the first single from Jackson's fifth studio album, entitled Off the Wall. Written by Jackson, it is in the key of B major and in common time... " - Michael Jackson |
"Ladies Night" - Kool & The Gang Kool & the Gang Kool & the Gang are an American jazz, R&B, soul, and funk group, originally formed as the Jazziacs in Jersey City, New Jersey in 1964.They went through several musical phases during the course of their recording career, starting out with a purist jazz sound, then becoming practitioners of R&B and... "Reunited" - Peaches & Herb Peaches & Herb Peaches & Herb was an American vocalist duo, once comprising Herb Fame and Francine "Peaches" Hurd Barker... |
Country Category
| Subcategory | Winner | Nominees |
|---|---|---|
| Favorite Country Male Artist | Kenny Rogers | Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings Waylon Arnold Jennings was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Jennings began playing at eight. He began performing at twelve, on KVOW radio. Jennings formed a band The Texas Longhorns. Jennings worked as a D.J on KVOW, KDAV and KLLL... Willie Nelson Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized... |
| Favorite Country Female Artist | Crystal Gayle Crystal Gayle Crystal Gayle is an American country music singer best known for her 1977 country-pop hit, "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue". An award-winning singer, she accumulated 18 number one country hits during the 1970s and 1980s... |
Barbara Mandrell Dolly Parton Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk... |
| Favorite Country Band, Duo, or Group | The Statler Brothers | The Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet.The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in southern gospel during the 1950s... Kenny Rogers & Dottie West Dottie West Dottie West was an American country music singer and songwriter. Along with her friends and co-recording artists Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn, she is considered one of the genre's most influential and groundbreaking female artists... |
| Favorite Country Album | The Gambler The Gambler (album) The Gambler is the sixth studio album by Kenny Rogers', released by United Artists in 1978. One of his most popular, it has established Rogers' status as one of the most successful artists of the 1970s and 1980s... - Kenny Rogers |
Miss The Mississippi - Crystal Gayle Greatest Hits - Waylon Jennings |
| Favorite Country Single | "Sleeping Single in a Double Bed" - Barbara Mandrell | "Amanda" - Waylon Jennings "Suspicions Suspicions (Eddie Rabbitt song) "Suspicions" is a country music song. It was originally recorded and released as a single in 1979 by Eddie Rabbitt from his album Loveline; his version was a Number One hit on the Billboard country music charts and a Top 20 hit on the Billboard Hot 100... " - Eddie Rabbitt Eddie Rabbitt Edward Thomas "Eddie" Rabbitt was an American singer-songwriter and musician. His career began as a songwriter in the late 1960s, springboarding to a recording career after composing hits such as "Kentucky Rain" for Elvis Presley in 1970 and "Pure Love" for Ronnie Milsap in 1974... |