The Artist of the Year category at the American Music Awards was introduced in 1996.
The inaugural award was presented at the 23rd Annual American Music Awards. Garth Brooks won the first Artist of the Year trophy, beginning a category that would become the ceremony’s most prominent general award.
The category recognizes an artist’s overall popularity and impact during the eligibility period, rather than success in one genre or for one specific album. That makes it different from awards such as Favorite Pop/Rock Artist or Favorite Country Artist.
A common mix-up is confusing the award’s introduction with earlier special honors. The AMAs had presented major artist recognitions before 1996, but Artist of the Year became a recurring standard category from that ceremony onward. Taylor Swift later became the category’s most successful recipient, building a record number of wins.