Las Vegas headliner names from Celine Dion and Cher to The Chainsmokers and Imagine Dragons dominated Sunday’s 2017 Billboard Music Awards hosted by rapper-actor Ludacris and actress-singer Vanessa Hudgens at our T-Mobile Arena.
Robin Leach
The Bellagio Fountains might become Las Vegas history now that award-winning rapper Drake has performed his hit song “Gyalchester” at the landmark during the 2017 Billboard Music Awards on Sunday night at T-Mobile Arena, where he won a record 13 mic statues, surpassing Adele’s previous record of 12 awards.
They’re coming back. After two successful mini-residency runs at The Joint at The Hard Rock Hotel, country hit-makers Rascal Flatts is moving on up to the Strip for their third time’s a charm return to Las Vegas.
Take four schoolmates from nearly 8,000 miles away in Australia and set them down on the Las Vegas Strip as relative unknowns, and the odds are stacked against them in their bid of hoped-for showbiz stardom. Add the fact that they are Down Under exports who sing Motown-style music.
While many Americans are thrilled to reach age 21 so that they can legally imbibe, DJ Julian Jordan of The Netherlands, at 21, is a resident DJ at Omnia at Caesars Palace. (Incidentally, the legal drinking age in The Netherlands is 18 — and 16 for fermented drinks such as beer and wine.)
Piff the Magic Dragon, who proudly boasts that he lost “America’s Got Talent,” starts a new 40-night run at The Flamingo through July 4. More than 80 Las Vegas restaurants and nightclubs team up with The Venetian chef Timon Balloo of Sugarcane for The Epicurean Affair poolside at neighboring The Palazzo.
It’s one of the biggest music parties of the year, and Las Vegas lays claim to center stage with our Caesars Palace headliner Celine Dion marking the 20th anniversary of the “Titanic” tearjerker “My Heart Will Go On” at Sunday’s Billboard Music Awards at T-Mobile Arena and live on ABC starting at 5 p.m.
For the third time, Melody Sweets is returning to Myron’s Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts with “The Sweets Spot” after two sizzling, sold-out shows. The curtain goes up Monday night.
Jewel at Aria celebrates its first anniversary this weekend with parties led by resident DJs Kaskade on Saturday and Zedd on Monday, plus a 2017 Billboard Music Awards pre-party with Party Next Door that kicks off the revelry Friday. We caught up with Robert Gamch, executive director of VIP marketing at Hakkasan Group.
Cher and Celine Dion are doing record box office sales at their respective Monte Carlo and Caesars Palace theaters. “Just stunning sales,” one insider told me of The Colosseum and Park Theater headliners. “Record box office numbers.
With just hours before Invidia began its “Screaming Black Curse Tour” in Los Angeles on Wednesday night, vocalist Travis Johnson upped and left to go full time as bass player for In This Moment.
The opening for ABC’s live telecast Sunday of The 2017 Billboard Music Awards from T-Mobile Arena will be a 9-minute show unto itself with Nicki Minaj. In making her fourth appearance on The BBMAs, she has lined up Lil Wayne, David Guetta and Jason Derulo for the first segment.
“X Burlesque” at Flamingo celebrates 15 years on the Strip. The three-day Crapshoot Comedy Festival begins at El Cortez and nearby Downtown locations. Details: CrapshootComedyFestival.com. Argentina’s Enanitos Verdes headlines House of Blues at Mandalay Bay.
35 Miss Teen USA contestants went onstage with Human Nature after they attended the show “Jukebox” at The Venetian. The girls, who danced at their seats during the performance, helped the four Australian Motown singers celebrate 1,500 shows as Las Vegas headliners.