Boy bands top American Music Awards, ladies lead performances

The Chopstick Brothers pose backstage with their award for favorite international song for "Little Apple" during the 42nd American Music Awards in Los Angeles, California November 23, 2014. [Photo/Agencies]

A sultry Taylor Swift performed "Blank Space" on stage and was awarded the first-ever Dick Clark Award for Excellence, in memory of the founder of the American Music Awards who died in 2012. She received the award from R&B diva Diana Ross.

"I'm so blown away to have just received an award from Diana Ross, who over the course of her career stood up for herself so many times in a period when it wasn't popular for women to stand up for themselves," Swift said.

Much of the three-hour awards show, aired on ABC, was dedicated to performances dominated by the ladies of pop music, including a raunchy rendition of "Booty" by Azalea and Lopez, with lots of rump-shaking.

Pop stars Grande, Selena Gomez and Nicki Minaj opted for less audacious performances showcasing their vocal talents.

Grande sang "One Less Problem" and "Break Free" with a jazz twist while an emotional Gomez sang "The Heart Want What It Wants," rumored to be about her on-off relationship with Justin Bieber. Minaj and Skylar Grey performed their duet "Bed of Lies."

Grande and Minaj later spiced up the stage with Jessie J with their upbeat "Bang Bang."

China's Internet singing sensation Chopsticks Brother took home the award for international song of the year.

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