Brand Implications

The Billboard Music Awards offered brands a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the globally-recognized charts that the entire music industry uses as its standard. The ceremony highlighted both the top performing and most promising emerging artists that brands may want to partner with.

The main brand-related question arising from this year’s show was the return of previously cancelled artists. How long should brands avoid artists for after an incident, or should those artists be avoided for life? While it often depends on the severity of an incident and the time that has elapsed, running brand safety checks can empower brands to make informed decisions when looking at potential partnerships. While there’s much to consider in these cases, supporting an artist during a troubled period in their career often leads to additional goodwill including brand love & loyalty from that artist’s fanbase.                

BEN Takeaways

“Cancelled” or Just Paused?

Travis Scott took the stage for his first televised performance since the Astroworld tragedy at the end of last year, and Morgan Wallen was awarded Top Country Male Artist at this year’s ceremony after being ”canceled” earlier this year for using the N-Word on social media. Neither artist addressed either situation. Both Artists were supposedly “cancelled permanently” before host and executive producer P-Diddy personally demanded that both be included in this year’s lineup, leading many to question whether or not the current ”cancel culture” movement will last. And if so… how long? Diddy has faced some backlash online following the event (particularly for Wallen), but Wallen’s album sales continue to skyrocket, and the award nominations continue to flood in. Additionally, Travis Scott is back with a partnership with Nike for a variety of footwear drops.

Superstars Rise Overnight

Olivia Rodrigo had one of the strongest showings by a new artist in Billboard Music Awards history, winning seven awards — including Top New Artist, Top Female Artist, Top Hot 100 Artist, Top Streaming Songs Artist, Top Radio Songs Artist, and Top Billboard 200 Album. Some winners of Top New Artist over the years include Billie Eilish, Lorde, Sam Smith, Justin Bieber, Wiz Khalifa, and Kanye, among many other global superstars. This is the third year in a row that a debut album has won this Top Billboard 200 Album Award, showcasing how quickly an artist can rise to international stardom, especially when aided by the power of TikTok.

34

Drake added five titles to his resume and is now the most decorated winner in the history of this awards show with 34 wins, capturing Top Artist, Top Male Artist, Rap Artist, Rap Male Artist, and Rap Album for “Certified Lover Boy” at this year’s awards.

Olivia Rodrigo won 7 awards. Kanye West (Ye) took home 6, Justin Bieber and The Kid LAROI each won 5, Doja Cat and Taylor Swift both won 4, and BTS won 3. The full list of 2022 Billboard Music Award winners can be viewed: HERE