Star-Studded 40th Anniversary American Music Awards Air Sunday on ABC

Facebook.com/AMAsMusic's biggest names will gather this Sunday night in Los Angeles to celebrate the 40th Anniversary American Music Awards, airing live from the NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE on ABC at 8 p.m. ET/PT. 

The evening will include a tribute by Stevie Wonder and Ryan Seacrest to the late Dick Clark, who created the AMAs four decades ago, as well as performances by more than a dozen stars.  Among them: Usher, Nicki Minaj, Swizz Beatz, Chris Brown and Ludacris.

Rihanna and Nicki Minaj are the leading nominees for the AMAs: each have four nominations individually.  Usher scored three nods.  The nominees for the most prestigious category -- Artist of the Year -- are Rihanna, Drake, Justin Bieber, Katy Perry and Maroon 5 .

Other nominees include Chris Brown, Beyonce, J. Cole, Trey Songz, Tyga and Mary J. Blige.

Here are the AMA nominees:

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Justin Bieber
Drake
Maroon 5
Katy Perry
Rihanna

NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR
J. Cole
fun.
Gotye
Carly Rae Jepsen
One Direction

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – POP/ROCK
Justin Bieber
Flo Rida
Pitbull
Usher

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – POP/ROCK
Kelly Clarkson
Nicki Minaj
Katy Perry
Rihanna
 
FAVORITE BAND, DUO OR GROUP – POP/ROCK
fun.
Maroon 5
One Direction
The Wanted

FAVORITE ALBUM – POP/ROCK
Justin Bieber /Believe
Maroon 5/Overexposed
Nicki Minaj/Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded
One Direction/Up All Night

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – COUNTRY
Jason Aldean
Luke Bryan
Eric Church

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – COUNTRY
Miranda Lambert
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

FAVORITE BAND, DUO or GROUP - COUNTRY               
Zac Brown Band
Lady Antebellum
Rascal Flatts

FAVORITE ALBUM - COUNTRY
Luke Bryan/tailgates & tanlines
Lionel Richie/Tuskegee
Carrie Underwood/Blown Away

FAVORITE ARTIST – RAP/HIP-HOP
Drake
Nicki Minaj
Tyga

FAVORITE ALBUM – RAP/HIP-HOP
J. Cole/Cole World: The Sideline Story
Drake/Take Care
Nicki Minaj/Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded

FAVORITE MALE ARTIST – SOUL/R&B
Chris Brown
Trey Songz
Usher

FAVORITE FEMALE ARTIST – SOUL/R&B
Beyoncé
Mary J. Blige
Rihanna

FAVORITE ALBUM – SOUL/R&B
Chris Brown/Fortune
Rihanna/Talk That Talk
Usher/Looking 4 Myself

FAVORITE ARTIST - ALTERNATIVE ROCK
The Black Keys
Gotye
Linkin Park

FAVORITE ARTIST - ADULT CONTEMPORARY
Adele
Kelly Clarkson
Train

FAVORITE ARTIST - LATIN
Don Omar
Pitbull
Shakira

FAVORITE ARTIST - CONTEMPORARY INSPIRATIONAL
Jeremy Camp
Newsboys
tobyMac                

FAVORITE ARTIST - ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC (EDM)
David Guetta
Calvin Harris
Skrillex

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio