The Oscar goes to: Your guide to this year's award season
Award season is amping up for music and television lovers, and will soon be in full swing for movie buffs, as well. Almost every month from September to June, award ceremonies are held to celebrate the world of pop culture.
This isn’t the full list of every award show coming up for the 2024-25 season, but these are the main ones to look out for, according to Deadline. Dates and times are subject to change.
MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs)
This show celebrates categories including Best (Video) Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography, Best Choreography and Best Editing. This year, Katy Perry will be the main performance of the night. The show features 29 first-time nominees, which include Morgan Wallen, Sabrina Carpenter and Benson Boone. Camila Cabello, Sabrina Carpenter, Halsey, Chappell Roan and more are also expected to perform.
Date: Sept. 11, 6 p.m. MDT
Host: Rapper Megan Thee Stallion
How to watch: MTV/Paramount+
Who can vote: Although it’s unclear how nominees are selected, fans can vote for a number of categories. There’s a specialized voting committee for what the VMAs consider “professional” categories like Best (Video) Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography, Best Choreography and Best Editing. All other categories are voted on by fans at mtv.com/vma/vote.
Primetime Emmy Awards
The Emmy Awards recognize excellence within various areas of television and emerging media. Categories include Outstanding Series, Outstanding Writing, Outstanding Directing and Outstanding Acting across multiple genres. The first Emmy ceremony took place on Jan. 25, 1949.
Date: Sept. 15 at 6 p.m. MST
Host(s): Eugene and Dan Levy
How to watch: ABC
Who can vote: Only national active members of the Television Academy are eligible to vote for the Emmy Awards. To be a member of the Television Academy, you have to be currently working in either the production or distribution of television programming.
Billboard Music Awards
The BBMAs has been held almost annually since 1990 (with the exception of 2007-2010) to highlight the year’s top radio tracks, artists, songs and albums with most streaming success. Categories include top artists for every genre, artist of the decade, best duo/group and best new artist, to name a few.
Date: Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. MST
Host: The BBMAs announced last year that they are straying away from traditional award show hosts.
Nominations come out: Likely in October.
How to watch: Likely NBC, but can be streamed on billboard.com.
Who can vote and how: The BBMAs base finalists off of fan interactions with music, radio play, touring, streaming, album sales and social media interaction. Billboard, however, opens voting to fans for both the “Social Media Award” and “Chart Achievement Award.” Fans can vote at billboardmusicawards.com.
Golden Globe Awards
The Golden Globes are accolades bestowed for excellence in both American and international film and television. The ceremony has been annually held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. Categories includes Best Actor/Actress in Motion Picture, Best Original Score, Best Original Song, Best Supporting Actor/Actress, Best (GENRE) Picture, etc.
Date: Jan. 5 at 6 p.m. MST
Host: Comedian and actress Nikki Glaser
Nominations come out: Dec. 9
How to watch: CBS/Paramount+
Who can vote: There’s a designated voting body for the Golden Globes of around 300 people, made up of experienced entertainment journalists representing 75 countries.
Critics Choice Awards
The CCAs is presented annually by the American-Canadian Choice Association to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. The first CCAs was in 1996. Categories include Best Actors/Actress, Best Director, Original Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography and more.
Date: Jan. 12
Nominations come out: Dec. 10
Host: TBA ... the last two years, comedian Chelsea Handler hosted the CCAs.
How to watch: The CW
Who can vote: A group of more than 600 broadcast, print and digital journalists who are members of the CCA are eligible to vote.
Grammy Awards
The Grammys are put on by The Recording Academy to celebrate artistic excellence. Artists themselves have to first submit their music to the Academy, then a committee organizes all the entries into categories. Some of the main categories include Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist.
Date: Feb. 2 at 6 p.m. MST
Host: TBA ... the host last year was comedian Trevor Noah.
Nominations come out: Nov. 8
How to watch: CBS/Paramount+
Who can vote: This show is a music peer-recognized voting process. The Recording Academy members submit their first-round votes on artists’ submissions. Voters are people with creative or technical credits on at least 12 released songs including songwriters, producers, label CEOs, etc. Their votes determine who will be top nominated. Once those votes are reviewed by the Nominations Review Committee, they send out the list of final nominees to the voters who then cast their final ballot.
People’s Choice Awards
Beginning in 1975, the PCAs has been held annually to recognize fan favorites in music, TV, movies and pop culture. They were first awarded in March 1975. Categories include Athlete of the Year, Best Female Artist, People’s Icon, Favorite Song, Movie of the Year, (GENRE) Show of the Year and more.
Date: Tentatively Feb. 16
Host: TBA ... this year’s host was Marvel’s Simu Liu (“Shang Chi”).
Nominations come out: Likely January
How to watch: Likely NBC/Peacock and E!
Who can vote and when: The general public and fans can vote.
Academy Awards (Oscars)
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, serve to recognize excellence in cinematic achievements internationally and nationally. Categories include Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Animated Feature and more. The Oscars started 95 years ago in 1929.
Date: March 2 at 5 p.m. MST
Host: TBA ... for the last two years, comedian and late night host Jimmy Kimmel hosted the Oscars.
Nominations come out: Dec. 17 (short lists), Jan. 17, 2025 (nominations)
How to watch: ABC
Who can vote: Nominations are largely determined by members of the corresponding branch (i.e. actors nominate actors, film editors nominate film editors, etc.), all active members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences can vote in all categories for the winner.
CMT Music Awards
This show recognizes country music videos and television performances. The ceremony launched in 1967 as the Music City News Awards. It’s the oldest award show currently airing on Paramount. Categories include Video of the Year, Duo/Group Video of the Year, Breakthrough Video of the Year and CMT Performance of the Year.
Date: Likely April/May
Host: TBA ... this year’s host was country music star Kelsea Ballerini.
How to watch: CBS/Paramount+
Who can vote: The show has been fan-voted since 1967. They open the voting to individuals that are 13 and older. Fans can vote at vote.cmt.com.
Tony Awards
As one of the big four awards (EGOT), we couldn’t forget to mention the Tonys. The Tony Awards annually recognize excellence in Broadway plays and musicals. The American Theatre Wing established the awards in 1947, and there are currently 26 categories. Categories include Best Musical, Best Play, Best Lead Actor/Actress in Play/Musical, Best Choreography and more.
Date: Tentatively June 14
Host: TBA ... this year’s host was actress and singer Ariana DeBose (“West Side Story”).
Nominations come out: Likely April
How to watch: CBS/stream with Hulu + Live TV/ESPN+ bundle
Who can vote: The Tony Awards are voted on by over 800 members of the New York theater community. Voters include actors, playwrights, agents, critics, publicists and other industry members. An independent committee of 44 theater professionals selects the nominees.
Other shows to look out for include: Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards (summer 2025), American Music Awards (May 2025) and iHeart Radio Music Awards (summer 2025).