To Take an Exclusive Behind-the-Scene Look into Troye’s Journey to the BBMA Stage, Visit Billboard.com/kia Today Through May 23, with Additional Content Added Daily

Ludacris & Ciara to Host the Award Show Live from

T-Mobile Arena on SUNDAY, MAY 22^nd at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT on ABC

Click HERE for digital assets for the “2016 Billboard Music Awards”

SANTA MONICA, CA (May 9, 2016) – Billboard, dick clark productions and Kia Motors announced today that new music sensation, Troye Sivan, will perform as “Kia’s One to Watch” on the “2016 Billboard Music Awards.”  The “2016 Billboard Music Awards” will broadcast LIVE from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 22 at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT on ABC. For the first time in Billboard Music Awards history, viewers on the West Coast will watch the show live with fellow fans on the East Coast. This year’s show, which will be hosted by hip-hop artist Ludacris and international music sensation Ciara, will showcase big performances, unexpected collaborations and much-discussed pop culture moments. Sivan joins previously announced performers Justin Bieber, Celine Dion, DNCE, Fifth Harmony, The Go-Go’s, Demi Lovato, Shawn Mendes, P!nk, Britney Spears and a collaboration with Nick Jonas and Tove Lo.

Kia, the Official Automotive Partner of the Billboard Music Awards, is bringing back “Kia’s One to Watch” program – now in its second year – to support and highlight emerging musical artists.  In addition to the “Kia One to Watch” series the all-new Kia Sportage CUV and Optima midsize sedan will be featured both on the red carpet and in commercials throughout the broadcast.

Troye Sivan’s 20 million combined online followers and nearly 1 billion streams to date have deemed him a “prototype for tomorrow’s global pop star” by the New York Times. What began as a teenager making a connection with fans using a laptop from his bedroom has evolved into a global phenomenon. Troye’s debut full-length album Blue Neighbourhood topped 50+ iTunes charts around the world, debuted in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 chart, and has earned more than 700,000 equivalent albums globally in five months. Together, Kia and Billboard will tell Troye’s journey to the Billboard Music Awards big stage through a rare behind-the-scenes look into his life leading up to and following his first (and likely not last) BBMA performance. To follow Troye’s story, visit Billboard.com/kia starting today, with additional content to follow each day through May 23.

“With its universal appeal, music plays an integral role in our lives and has been a driving force behind some of the most memorable marketing campaigns in Kia’s history,” said Tim Chaney, vice president, marketing communications, Kia Motors America. “The Billboard Music Awards is an amazing showcase of talent and we are proud to present ‘Kia’s One to Watch’ for the second consecutive year and help young artists gain the recognition and exposure they deserve.”

"Last year, we launched a magnificent partnership with Kia in conjunction with the Billboard Music Awards and together, were able to achieve extraordinary results with the ‘Kia's One to Watch’ initiative, featuring Tori Kelly,” said Greg Economou, Executive Vice President & Chief Revenue Officer of dick clark productions. “In 2016, we are pleased to not only be continuing, but growing this great alliance by introducing another budding superstar in Troye Sivan, helping Kia enjoy another dynamic, powerful, and successful platform."

Billboard Music Awards finalists are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital songs sales, radio airplay, streaming, touring and social interactions on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Spotify and other popular online destinations for music. These measurements are tracked year-round by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound. The awards are based on the reporting period of tracking dates March 23, 2015 through March 17, 2016 and Billboard chart dates April 11, 2015 through April 2, 2016.  Since 1940, the Billboard charts have been the go-to guide for ranking the popularity of songs and albums, and are the ultimate measure of a musician’s success.

The “2016 Billboard Music Awards” sponsors and partners include Comcast, Las Vegas, Kia Motors, Music Choice and WestwoodOne.

Tickets are now on sale for the “2016 Billboard Music Awards.” To purchase tickets online, fans should go to www.axs.com or www.t-mobilearena.com.

For additional information on the “2016 Billboard Music Awards” visit us at www.billboardmusicawards.com or the Billboard hub at www.billboard.com/bbma. 

For the latest Billboard Music Awards (BBMAs) news, exclusive content and more, be sure to follow the BBMAs on social and join the conversation by using the official hashtag for the show, #BBMAs.

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Twitter: @BBMAs

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Snapchat: thebbmas

Vine: vine.co/Billboard.Music.Awards

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Facebook: FB.com/kia

Twitter: Twitter.com/kia

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The “2016 Billboard Music Awards” will live stream in the WATCH ABC app for verified viewers in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, Fresno, Raleigh-Durham and Philadelphia. Once aired, the full show will be available on demand via WATCH ABC.

About Billboard
Billboard is the world’s most influential music brand, built on the most complete and well- respected database of charts across all music genres. The Billboard charts define success in music. From the iconic Billboard magazine to Billboard.com, the ultimate consumer-facing destination for millions of passionate music fans, to the industry’s most elite conference series and influencer events including the Power 100 and Women in Music – the Billboard brand has unmatched authority among fans, artists and the industry alike. Billboard was named the leading U.S. brand on Twitter, surpassing the NFL, ESPN, BuzzFeed and MTV, with 7.5 million engaged actions in Q4 2015, and named an overall Top 10 U.S. Media Publisher in December 2015 with 11.8 million social actions. Billboard topped Shareablee’s list of U.S. publishers by engagement on Twitter in Q4, ahead of brands including Bleacher Report, BuzzFeed and The New York Times. Billboard magazine has scored major news-generating covers recently including Nicki Minaj, Lana Del Rey, Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber.

About “2016 Billboard Music Awards”
The “2016 Billboard Music Awards” are set to return to ABC and will be broadcast live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 22 at 8:00pm ET/ 5:00pm PT. The show will showcase this year’s hottest and biggest music stars.  Billboard Music Awards finalists are based on key fan interactions with music, including album and digital songs sales, radio airplay, streaming, touring and social engagement. These measurements are tracked year-round by Billboard and its data partners, including Nielsen Music and Next Big Sound. The awards are based on the reporting period of March 23, 2015 through March 17, 2016. The “2016 Billboard Music Awards” is produced by dick clark productions. Allen Shapiro, Mike Mahan, Mark Bracco, Barry Adelman and Robert Deaton are Executive Producers.

About dick clark productions
dick clark productions (dcp) is the world’s largest producer and proprietor of televised live event entertainment programming, with the “Academy of Country Music Awards,” “American Country Countdown Awards,” “American Music Awards,” “Billboard Music Awards,” “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest,” “Golden Globe Awards,” “Hollywood Film Awards” and the “Streamy Awards.” Weekly television programming includes “So You Think You Can Dance,” from 19 Entertainment, a division of CORE Media Group and dcp. dcp also owns one of the world’s most unique and extensive entertainment archive libraries, with more than 55 years of award-winning shows, historic programs, specials, performances and legendary programming. For additional information, visit www.dickclark.com.