2015 American Music Awards: By the numbers
Broadcast live from Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday at 5 p.m., the 2015 American Music Awards will fete the radio rainmakers that have ruled the pop charts this past year.
Hosted by Jennifer Lopez, the show will include performances by One Direction, Ariana Grande, the Weeknd and Coldplay, and, while not part of the lineup, Taylor Swift is the artist to beat with a leading six nominations.
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Now in their 43rd year, the AMAs -- like most pop awards shows -- have produced enough telecasts to seemingly operate on autopilot. Pop & Hiss wanted to go beyond the spectacle and see what it took to pull off Sunday’s show.
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Here’s a breakdown of this year’s AMAs, by the numbers:
22,000
square feet of red carpet for celebrity arrivals
1,550
LED panels for this year’s set
1,400
meals for the production crew
650
walkie talkies to be used during production
500
reporters approved to cover the event
405
fans allowed to pack the red carpet
300
crew members in production
225
microphones will be used
197
territories that will broadcast the AMAs, reaching 93% of the world
110
instruments to be used during performances
100
show tickets given away through contests
79
backup dancers
65
musicians in the orchestra that will perform a special “Star Wars” medley
54
nominees across 23 categories
50
dressing rooms will house talent
39
AMAs have been won collectively by this year’s performers
36
award presenters
35
singers providing backing vocals for the night’s performances
21
age of the youngest nominee, Justin Bieber
20
custom emojis created for Twitter
19
performances during the night
16
production trailers set up around Microsoft Theater
13
cameras will capture Sunday’s show
7
show producers
6
days spent building the stage. It’s also the number of nominations for Taylor Swift, the most for a single artist this year
4.6 pounds
weight of one American Music Award
For more music news follow me on Twitter: @gerrickkennedy
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