British boy band One Direction swept the top honours at Sunday’s American Music Awards, while a sorrowful tribute to the victims of the attacks in Paris lent a sombre note to a night of otherwise vibrant performances.

One Direction was named artist of the year for the second consecutive year, and also won the best pop/rock album for a third consecutive year, with the album Made in the A.M.

“It’s absolutely incredible to receive this award two years in a row. It’s a testament to how incredible our fans are,” band member Louis Tomlinson said.

Actor-musician Jared Leto made a moving tribute to the 130 victims of the deadly November 13 attacks across Paris, specifically the 89 who died at the Bataclan concert hall, where he said he and his band, 30 Seconds to Mars, had performed “a beautiful, peaceful” show earlier this year.

“Tonight we honour victims of the unimaginable violence that took place in Paris and around the world,” he said. “France matters, Russia matters, Syria matters, Mali matters, the Middle East matters, the United States matters, the entire world matters and peaceis possible.”

French-Canadian singer Celine Dion sang Edith Piaf’s classic French ode Hymne à l’ amour in memory of those lost.

Key winners on the night included Taylor Swift, who went into the night with a leading six nominations and won three awards but did not attend the event.

Nicki Minaj won two awards in the rap/hip hop categories, The Weeknd won two soul/R&B awards, Florida Georgia Line won two country music awards and country artist Sam Hunt was named best new artist.

Unlike the irreverent antics of MTV’s Video Music Awards and the industry prestige of the Grammy Awards, the fan-voted AMAs offer up the year’s most popular music acts, with a spotlight on performances.

Host Jennifer Lopez performing during the awards show.Host Jennifer Lopez performing during the awards show.

Star Wars veteran Harrison Ford introduced five-piece a cappella group Pentatonix, who put their vocals to John Williams’s iconic Star Wars score, along with a full orchestra on stage. The performance comes ahead of next month’s highly-anticipated new Star Wars: The Force Awakens film.

Celine Dion performing Hymne à l'amour in honour of the victims of the recent Paris attacks.Celine Dion performing Hymne à l'amour in honour of the victims of the recent Paris attacks.

Show host Jennifer Lopez danced through a high-octane medley of this year’s top pop songs, saying: “Tonight is about the music, and this year’s music makes me want to dance.”

One of the biggest talking points came courtesy of Meghan Trainor and Charlie Puth, who took audiences by surprise with a steamy kiss after their duet Marvin Gaye.Selena Gomez performed a sultry rendition of her latest hit Same Old Love, country star Carrie Underwood belted her romantic ballad Heartbeat and Ariana Grande got the crowd dancing with her upbeat hit Focus.

Justin Bieber sang and danced through a medley of his hits, ending with a shower of rain on stage.

The Weeknd set the stage on real fire for his performance of The Hills, while Coldplay brought out dancing monkeys on a psychedelic stage for Adventure of a Lifetime, and Walk The Moon started a dance party with their hit Shut Up and Dance.

Winners of the main categories

Artist of the year: One Direction
New artist of the year: Sam Hunt
Song of the year: Blank Space – Taylor Swift
Collaboration of the year: Where Are Ü Now – Skrillex & Diplo featuring Justin Bieber
Favourite male artist – pop/rock: Ed Sheeran
Favourite female artist – pop/rock: Ariana Grande
Favourite band, duo or group – pop/rock: One Direction
Favourite album – pop/rock: 1989, Taylor Swift
Favourite male artist – country: Luke Bryan
Favourite female artist – country: Carrie Underwood
Favourite band, duo or group – country: Florida Georgia Line
Favourite album – country: Anything Goes – Florida Georgia Line
Favourite artist – rap/hip-hop: Nicki Minaj
Favourite album – rap/hip-hop: The Pinkprint – Nicki Minaj
Favourite male artist – soul/R&B: The Weeknd
Favourite female artist – soul/R&B: Rihanna
Favourite album – soul/R&B: Beauty Behind the Madness – The Weeknd
Favourite artist – alternative rock: Fall Out Boy
Favourite artist – adult contemporary: Taylor Swift
Favourite artist – Latin: Enrique Iglesias
Favourite artist – contemporary inspirational: Casting Crowns
Favourite artist – electronic dance music: Calvin Harris
Top soundtrack: Pitch Perfect 2

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