Bark + Bite

The 2011 AMAs: If the dress doesn't fit, don't wear it

The 2011 American Music Awards is usually a good time. Next to the Grammys, it's the music event of the year. The show's also good for cramming an ungodly amount of performances into three hours. And cramming and forcing stuff in is precisely what went on a lot during the show.

For starters, there was Christina Aguilera squeezing herself into her Forever 21 best with a wild, teased out mane and dramatic eye shadow. Xtina is known for the drag queen look, but somebody on her team should've advised her that her figure wasn't exactly in fighting form for skintight numbers, no matter how many spanx her stylist squeezed her into before she hit the stage.

Then there was Nicki Minaj trying to force herself on us as a singer, once again. Nicki is beloved for her punchlines and her dynamic flows as a rapper. Her singing is cute for nyeh, nyeh stuff on record, but it's almost always off when she does it live. This holds true for her performance of "Turn Me On," with David Guetta, which was as awkward as her VMAs performance with will.i.am in 2010. Nicki would've been better off opening with Drake on "I'm So Proud" or Big Sean for that juicy "Ass" remix.

2011 AMAs: The Performances

The extended concert known as the American Music Awards took place on Sunday night and there were very few bright spots during the whole affair. Nicki Minaj opened the show with David Guetta, performing her collaboration with him "Turn Me On," which segued into her smash hit, "Super Bass."

Chris Brown, who seems to be making the awards show rounds, turned out one of his more subpar performances. He decided to highlight some of the tracks from his latest album, The F.A.M.E., starting off with the ballad "All Back." It was a mess, vocally, but he smartly transitioned into yet another Michael Jacksonesque routine for his MJ-sounding "Say It With Me." Chris has seen better performances.

One of the real big stinkers was Kelly Clarkson's big band rendition of her latest single "Mr. Know It All." She tried to turn the bitter pop/rock anthem into a screed against the press and the media, but she hardly garners enough attention to even make the point compelling. And Kelly Clarkson stuffed in a ballgown looked about as comfortable as a linebacker in stilettos. All around very strange.

By far, Jennifer Lopez won the night with her on-fire dance routine. Tacky product placement aside, Jennifer Lopez pulled out all the stops for an awards show performance worth watching. It had hints of Beyonce and Britney Spears in there, but hey, if you're gonna steal, steal from the best.

Watch the performances from the American Music Awards below

2010 AMAs: Backed up, bloated and full of hot air

Photo: Wireimage

As usual with these awards shows, there was way too much filler at the 2010 American Music Awards. It started out promising, with Rihanna shutting the house down with a drum-filled Afro-Caribbean jam fest, but things went downhill with Enrique Iglesias and his botched haircut from Hair Cuttery infecting the stage shortly thereafter. Then again, with 18 performances crammed into a three hour show, there are bound to be a few misses in there anyway.

The 2010 American Music Awards performances

Rihanna promised something different for her performance at the 2010 American Music Awards and she delivered in her sizzler of an opener. Performing a medley of "Love the Way You Lie Part II," "What's My Name?" and "Only Girl," Rihanna finally got loose and broke out some choreography. She showed off her long, sexy stems and by the end, the audience was on its feet in a standing ovation. Well done, RiRi.

Watch Rihanna's and others performances from the AMAs below

The 2009 AMAs: J.Lo went splat, Rihanna is the Fifth Element and Lady Gaga's sex is on fire

Photo credit: ABC.com

Oops! She did it again. No, not Britney Spears. It's Taylor Swift, the wounded little white rabbit that Kanye West turned into a martyr at the VMAs in September. She ran away with the whole kit and kaboodle last night at the American Music Awards scooping up five awards. The "Teardrops On My Guitar" singer even walked away with Artist of the Year, beating out Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga. Where's Kanye West when you need him?

But like many award shows, the AMAs is less about who won what, and much more about who performed what. And the AMAs aimed to give the viewers as much bang for their buck as they possibly could, squeezing in a whopping 17 performances in three hours. Why doesn't Dick Clark Productions just put on a massive concert and spare us all the pitter patter of announcing awards next year?

Here's the breakdown of what went right and what went wrong at the 2009 AMAs.

ROUND-UP: American Music Awards performances

Photo credit: ABC

There'll be a longer review of the show later today, but here are the standout performances you need to watch, absorb and digest. Overall, the show was entertaining, but couldn't match up to the spectacular product that was this year's VMAs.

Videos courtesy of MrWorldPremiere.net