Taylor Swift arrives at the iHeartRadio Music Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on Sunday, March 29, 2015, in Los Angeles. AP
The iHeartRadio Music Awards should be called the iHeartTaylorSwift Awards.
The pop singer cleaned house at the show Sunday, winning artist of the year and song of the year for “Shake It Off,” and even assisted Madonna by strumming her guitar onstage while the pop icon sang a new song.
“More than anything in the world, I just hope that any of the fans watching know how much I adore you … we’ve gotten closer and closer with each year, not further apart,” a glossy-eyed Swift said at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. “Like, you make me so happy.”
The pop star also won best lyrics for her other hit song, “Blank Space.”
Madonna, whose recent awards show performances were energetic and upbeat, toned it down when singing “Rebel Heart” while Swift played guitar next to her.
“My favorite guitar player, yeah!” Madonna said as she presented Swift with song of the year.
The second annual iHeartRadio Music Awards also featured Rihanna, Justin Timberlake, Chris Brown and Iggy Azalea. Guests sat at traditional tables — in the vein of the Golden Globes — instead of typical awards show seats. Chris Brown sat with Ludacris, while Swift’s table included Snoop Dogg, Ryan Seacrest and Timberlake.
The former boy band member, who earned the iHeartRadio Innovator Award for his accomplishments as an entertainer, told the audience that he was called “weird” as a teenager, and offered encouraging words to teens experiencing teasing and bullying.
“Growing up in school, no one ever called me anything close to an innovator, they called me different, they called me weird, they called me a couple of other words I can’t say on TV,” Timberlake said. “So thankfully my mother taught me that being different was a good thing, that being different meant you could actually make a difference, so tonight I want to thank my mom.”
Timberlake, who recently had his first child with Jessica Biel, also thanked his wife, who didn’t attend the awards show, which aired on NBC.
“Finally, I want to thank my best friend, my favorite collaborator, my wife Jessica,” he said.
Rihanna performed her new single, “B—- Better Have My Money,” for the first time. The b-word wasn’t bleeped throughout the performance, where Rihanna sported a bright green mink with matching knee high boots and sunglasses.
Azalea and Jennifer Hudson kicked off the show with a jail-themed performance: Azalea was dressed as an inmate and Hudson as a police officer as they performed “Trouble” with a set design that included bathroom stalls and a jail cell with laser light bars.
Nick Jonas followed the theme with his arms and neck tied in thick chains, while he sang his latest hit, “Chains,” as dancers wearing black and white stripes danced around him.
Jamie Foxx hosted the fan-voted show and performed a new song with Brown. Foxx also told jokes about celebrities, including Bruce Jenner, Suge Knight and Marvin Gaye.
“Marvin Gaye had an incredible year. Marvin Gaye had the No. 1 song featuring Pharrell and Robin Thicke,” he said. “He’s making beats in heaven. He might be dead, but he ain’t dead broke.”
Meghan Trainor, Florida Georgia Line, Snoop Dogg, Jason Derulo and Kelly Clarkson also performed during the three-hour event.
Jason Aldean, who also hit the stage, won country song of the year for “Burnin’ It Down.”
“I want to thank my new wife Brittany over there,” said Aldean, who got married last week.
Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and Jessie J won best collaboration for “Bang Bang,” Hozier’s “Take Me to Church” won alternative rock song of the year and Calvin Harris’ “Summer” won dance song of the year.
Jeremih and YG won hip-hop/R&B song of the year for “Don’t Tell ‘Em,” beating out Beyonce and Jay Z’s “Drunk In Love.”
“Since I didn’t get my Grammy nomination for best rap album … I’ll roll with this,” rapper YG said.
Azalea and Smith — who won best new artist and accepted in a video message — were the top nominees with five apiece. They — along with Grande and Luke Bryan — lost artist of the year to Swift.
The awards show also featured numerous video packages with musicians talking about their careers, from Minaj to Imagine Dragons.