Michael Jackson Wins Four American Music Awards

Michael Jackson won four posthumous American Music Awards during the annual show on Sunday (Nov. 22) night.

Jackson received trophies for favourite male pop/rock artist and favourite male soul/rhythm & blues artist, while his Number Ones album won the favourite pop/rock album and favourite soul/rhythm & blues album awards. Jackson's brother Jermaine Jackson accepted the awards on his behalf.

That means Jackson has more American Music Awards than any other artist, having won 23 of the trophies throughout his career.

Taylor Swift also took home four awards, including the trophy for artist of the year.

Jackson's sister, Janet Jackson, was one of the performers at the event. Jay-Z, Rihanna and Jennifer Lopez also took the stage to play their hits. Unfortunately, a rather awkward moment was had when J-Lo slipped and fell over midway through her performance:

 

Elsewhere, Lady GaGa was her usual insane self, playing "Bad Romance" in a nude body suit covered in tin foil and doing "Speechless" while her piano was on fire:

But American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert's performance had everyone talking. Lambert did "For Your Entertainment," from his upcoming album of the same name, while wearing a studded leather outfit. He shocked the audience by simulating oral sex with one of his male dancers and making out with his (also male) keyboard player. He even had a mirror set up so the audience could see how shocked they were.

Lambert, who is openly gay, faced criticism last week over a recent issue of Out magazine. Lambert appeared on the cover of the magazine, which says he tried to "control" the interview and would reportedly only appear on the cover if straight people were included with him.

Lambert told Rollingstone.com he thinks criticism of his performance on Sunday night shows a double standard.

"Female performers have been doing this for years — pushing the envelope about sexuality — and the minute a man does it, everybody freaks out.

"We're in 2009; it's time to take risks, be a little more brave, time to open people's eyes and if it offends them, then maybe I'm not for them. My goal was not to piss people off, it was to promote freedom of expression and artistic freedom."

Here's Lambert's performance:

Here are the winners of this year's American Music Awards:

Artist Of The Year: Taylor Swift

Pop/Rock
Favorite Male Artist: Michael Jackson
Favorite Female Artist: Taylor Swift
Favorite Band, Duo Or Group: The Black Eyed Peas
Favorite Album: Michael Jackson — Number Ones

Country
Favorite Male Artist: Keith Urban
Favorite Female Artist: Taylor Swift
Favorite Band, Duo Or Group: Rascal Flatts
Favorite Album: Taylor Swift — Fearless

Soul/Rhythm & Blues
Favorite Male Artist: Michael Jackson
Favorite Female Artist: Beyonce
Favorite Band, Duo Or Group: The Black Eyed Peas
Favorite Album: Michael Jackson — Number Ones

Rap/Hip-Hop
Favorite Male Artist: Jay-Z
Favorite Album: Jay-Z — The Blueprint 3

Adult Contemporary
Favorite Artist: Taylor Swift

Latin Music
Favorite Artist: Aventura

Alternative Rock Music
Favorite Artist: Green Day

Contemporary Inspirational
Favorite Artist: Mary Mary

Soundtracks
Favorite Album: Twilight Soundtrack

T-Mobile Breakthrough Artist (All Genres): Gloriana

International Artist Of The Year: Whitney Houston