Billboard Music Awards live stream: how to watch the 2019 ceremony from anywhere

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The BBMAs are almost here...who will take home the awards?

2019 Billboard Music Awards live stream
Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images (Image credit: Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

No judging panels. No telephone votes. The Billboard Music Awards are the prizes handed out based purely on who has topped the charts over the last year. Making a chart topping song or album isn't easy of course, but thankfully getting a 2019 Billboard Music Awards live stream is much, much easier...and you've come to the right place to discover how catch every minute of the BBMAs.

2019 Billboard Music Awards - when and where

The 2019 Billboard Music Awards will be held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Wednesday, May 1.

The award show will begin at 8pm ET/PT and usually runs for around three hours. You can also tune in to the two hour BBMA pre-show on the red carpet at the MGM Grand Garden Arena starting at 6pm ET / 3pm PT on Twitter via the award show’s official handle @BBMAs.

For the second year in a row, Kelly Clarkson will host the three-hour BBMA show which will be filled with performances from this year’s top acts including DJ Khalid, Panic! At the Disco, the Jonas Brothers, Normani, BTS and Halsey. Mariah Carey will also accept the Icon Award and play a mashup of some of her most celebrated hits and Paula Abdul will be performing a medley of her biggest songs to commemorate the 30-year anniversary of her debut album.

So how about the nominees? Cardi B leads the pack with 21 BBMA nominations followed by Drake and Post Malone with 17 and Travis Scott with 12.

Whether you listen to rock, hip hop, country, EDM or even gospel, there is something for you at the show and we’ll help you live stream the 2019 Billboard Music Awards show from anywhere in the world.

How to watch the 2019 Billboard Music Awards: live stream in the USA

While in previous years the Billboard Music Awards were broadcast by Fox and ABC, NBC took up the mantle last year and the network will be showing the award show again this year. 

This means that if you have a cable subscription, you can watch the 2019 Billboard Music Awards on NBC starting at 8pm ET/PT. If you’d rather stream the event on your computer or mobile devices, you can do so on NBC’s website but you will have to login using the credentials from your cable provider.

Don’t fancy overpaying for a premium cable subscription? Don’t worry as many streaming services give you access to NBC at a fraction of the cost of cable. For your convenience, we’ve listed all of our favorites that include NBC below.

  • Hulu with Live TV $44.99 per month - Hulu with Live TV gives you access to NBC, and the he service supports a wide variety of streaming devices and even includes its own Hulu Originals.
  • Playstation Vue starting at $44.99 per month - Playstation Vue offers four different bundles to choose from but luckily they all include NBC. The service also has a 5-day free trial available.
  • DirecTV Now $50 per month - All seven of DirecTV Now’s bundles include NBC so which one you choose will be up to you. New customers can take advantage of a 7-day trial but you'll have to purchase one of DirecTV Now's packages first.
  • Sling TV starting at $15 per month - Both Sling TV’s Blue and Orange bundles include NBC so you can pick either one or combine the two for $25 a month.
  • fuboTV $44.99 for the first month - fuboTV gives you access to NBC and the service even offers a free 7-day trial so you can test it out for yourself.
  • YouTube TV $49.99 per month - YouTube TV gives you access to NBC as well as other TV channels and a free 14-day trial available.

See how these compare in our guide to the best TV streaming services

How to watch the 2019 Billboard Music Awards live stream from outside your country

If you’re an American who happens to be out of the country this weekend and don’t want to miss the 2019 Billboard Music Awards, don’t worry as we can help you avoid any annoying geo-blocking. By using a VPN, you can change your IP address to one in the US which will allow you to stream the event on either NBC.com or on any of the streaming services listed above. Keep reading and we’ll show you how.

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A VPN is perfect for this as it allows you to change your IP address so you appear to be in a completely different location. We've tested hundreds of VPNs and can recommend these as the three best VPNs currently available: 

1. Express VPN (comes with a 30 day money back guarantee)
This is the #1 rated best VPN in the world right now. You can watch on many devices at once including Smart TVs, Fire TV Stick, PC, Mac, iPhone, Android phone, iPads, tablets etc. Check out Express VPN and get 3 months FREE with an annual plan
2. NordVPN SmartPlay tech makes NordVPN a great, affordable choice for streaming
3. IPVanish supports up to 10 devices, so great on the go  and with a focus on security

How to watch a Billboard Music Awards live stream in the UK

Unfortunately for UK music fans, the 2019 Billboard Music Awards will not be shown on TV as there is no official UK broadcaster for the awards show. But look on the bright side...at least that means you don't need to stay up through to 4am to watch anymore.

Anthony Spadafora
Anthony Spadafora

After working with the TechRadar Pro team for the last several years, Anthony is now the security and networking editor at Tom’s Guide where he covers everything from data breaches and ransomware gangs to the best way to cover your whole home or business with Wi-Fi. When not writing, you can find him tinkering with PCs and game consoles, managing cables and upgrading his smart home.