Predicting the winners of the 2020 iHeartRadio Music Awards

She’s up against some fierce competition in this category — Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” and Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” are also nominated — but expect Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” to take home the Song of the Year trophy at this year’s iHeartRadio Music Awards. There’s truly no song that’s resonated with more people — and inspired more singalongs — than this smash hit. 

She’s the patron saint of Gen Z, and Billie Eilish is a shoo-in for Female Artist of the Year in 2020. Bringing a truly distinctive sound and sensibility to popular music, expect Eilish to be a major presence at pretty much any awards show in the next few years. 

Sure, he’s got face tattoos, but there’s really no artist that’s been more compelling over the past year than Post Malone. His 2019 album Hollywood’s Bleeding, which includes “Circles” and “Wow,” is inarguably one of the year’s best records. 

Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney, better known as country juggernaut Dan + Shay, are the obvious choice for this year’s Best Duo/Group. They face tough competition in Imagine Dragons, the Jonas Brothers, Maroon 5, and Panic! At The Disco, but thanks to songs like “10,000 Hours,” their wildly popular collaboration with Justin Bieber, Dan + Shay are clearly the future of this category. 

Bringing together the two biggest names in pop music right now, “I Don’t Care” racked up more than 16 million streams in its first day on Spotify, and the numbers only grew from there. Expect Sheeran and Bieber to have the Best Collaboration category locked up. 

She’s been on the scene as an indie artist for a few years now, but 2019 was really the year that Lizzo cemented herself as one of the best new artists in any genre. Expect big things from the “Truth Hurts’ and “Juice” singer in these coming years. Even though she’s facing Lewis Capaldi, FLETCHER, Ava Max, and Lil Nas X, Lizzo will easily sew up the Best New Pop Artist category. 

The new queen of alt teens, Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” is probably the most recognizable song of 2019, and an obvious winner in the Alternative Rock Song of the Year category. That said, Lana Del Rey’s cover of Sublime’s “Doin’ Time” is also a strong contender. 

Even though her songs are supernova-level hits, Billie Eilish is still technically “alt-rock.” She’s the obvious choice in the Alternative Rock Artist of the Year category, nominated alongside Twenty One Pilots, Panic! At The Disco, Cage the Elephant, and Imagine Dragons. 

Rock music isn’t quite getting the same shine as it used to, but don’t count out Dirty Honey. In 2019, this Los Angeles-born trio became the first-ever unsigned act to top the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart with their song “When I’m Gone.” 

Indie rock titans The Black Keys are up for Rock Song of the Year at the 2020 iHeartRadio Music Awards with their much-anticipated song “Lo-Hi,” the lead single from 2019’s Let’s Rock. A #1 on three different Billboard charts, it’s definitely going to win in this category. 

Notching the band’s second nomination for Rock Artist of the Year in 2019, Five Finger Death Punch are up against Greta Van Fleet, Shinedown, Godsmack, and Disturbed in this category, which is exactly why it will be a coup when this head-banging five-piece takes home the win. 

It’s a tough call, but expect Morgan Wallen’s “Whiskey Glasses,” a massive hit for the TikTok crowd, to take home Country Song of the Year — even up against Luke Combs’s “Beautiful Crazy” and Maren Morris’s “GIRL.” 

Facing Carrie Underwood, Dan + Shay, Luke Bryan, and Thomas Rhett in the Country Artist of the Year category, breakout star Luke Combs will bring home the win. Thanks to hits like “Beautiful Crazy” and “Beer Never Broke My Heart,” Combs has cemented his place as the biggest new star in the genre.

Even though his personal life’s been as much in the news as his music has over the past year, Morgan Wallen is a seriously bright new country star. His song “Whiskey Glasses” is a bonafide smash hit, and has been certified Platinum three times over. 

Bringing back the iconic voice of R&B legend Whitney Houston covering a Steve Winwood classic, Norwegian DJ Kygo’s remix of “Higher Love” topped the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart in 2019. 

His distinctive headgear might be the most immediately recognizable thing about dance DJ Marshmello, but he’s also responsible for bringing dance music into the mainstream thanks to wildly popular collaborations with country artist Kane Brown, pop star Selena Gomez, and R&B artist Khalid.

In a truly tough category that also includes nominations for Cardi B, DaBaby, and Drake, Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” still stands on top. A viral hit with more than 72 million streams, the track that introduced the “yeehaw agenda” to the mainstream is an obvious winner for Hip-Hop Song of the Year.

A genre-crossing pop culture icon, Cardi B is the definition of a hip-hop success story. Thanks to hits like “Money,” and “Press,” Cardi B was a shoo-in for Hip-Hop Artist of the Year, long before her massive hit with Megan Thee Stallion, “WAP.”

Speaking of Megan Thee Stallion, expect her to take home the trophy for Best New Hip-Hop Artist at the 2020 iHeartRadio Music Awards. In addition to viral Instagram fame and her meme-worthy duet with Cardi B, she’s also recorded a chart-topping remix with Beyonce and introduced herself as one of the most compelling new rappers in the genre over the past year.

Even though it seems like a lifetime has passed since “Talk” was the song of the summer in 2019, there’s no denying the widespread appeal of Khalid’s major hit. Even up against Beyonce, Summer Walker, Chris Brown, and Ella Mai, “Talk” is the obvious winner in this category. 

Bringing a whole new energy to R&B music and her own unique vibe, Summer Walker’s “Playing Games” was a major hit in 2019. This year’s R&B Artist of the Year nominees are a little all over the place — newcomers like Ella Mai, Khalid, Walker, and H.E.R. are up against Chris Brown — but Walker’s 2019 album Over It has already established her as one of the genre’s top acts.

A truly massive collaboration between arguably the biggest Latin rapper of the moment and the biggest English language rapper of the moment, “MIA” helped Bad Bunny notch his first top-ten Billboard hit. It’s a tough category, though, and “Taki Taki,” the genre-smashing collab between DJ Snake, Selena Gomez, Ozuna, and Cardi B, could also take home the trophy. 

A Puerto Rico native with a style that’s definitely his own, Bad Bunny brings Latin rap to the mainstream with collaborations with Drake, Cardi B, and more American hitmakers. Unfortunately, that’s also true for his competitors in the category, including Ozuna, Maluma, J Balvin, and Daddy Yankee.