Carrie Underwood performs at the American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sunday, Nov 22, in Los Angeles. (AP)

LOS ANGELES, Nov 23, (Agencies): British boy band One Direction swept the top honors at Sunday’s American Music Awards, while a sorrowful tribute to the victims of the attacks in Paris lent a somber note to a night of otherwise vibrant performances.

One Direction was named artist of the year for a second consecutive year, and also won the best pop/rock album for a third consecutive year, with the album “Made In The A.M.”

“It’s absolutely incredible to receive this award two years in a row. It’s a testament to how incredible our fans are,” band member Louis Tomlinson said.

Actor-musician Jared Leto made a moving tribute to the 130 victims of the deadly Nov 13 attacks across Paris, specifically the 89 who died at the Bataclan concert hall, where he said he and his band, 30 Seconds to Mars, had performed “a beautiful, peaceful” show earlier this year.

“Tonight we honor victims of the unimaginable violence that took place in Paris and around the world,” he said. “France matters, Russia matters, Syria matters, Mali matters, the Middle East matters, the United States matters, the entire world matters and peace is possible.”

French-Canadian singer Celine Dion sang Edith Piaf’s classic French ode “Hymne a l’amour” in memory of those lost.

Key winners on the night included Taylor Swift, who went into the night with a leading six nominations and won three awards but did not attend the event.

Nicki Minaj won two awards in the rap/hip hop categories, The Weeknd won two soul/R&B awards, Florida Georgia Line won two country music awards and country artist Sam Hunt was named best new artist.

Popular

Unlike the irreverent antics of MTV’s Video Music Awards and the industry prestige of the Grammy Awards, the fan-voted AMAs offer up the year’s most popular music acts, with a spotlight on performances.

“Star Wars” veteran Harrison Ford introduced five-piece a cappella group Pentatonix, who put their vocals to John Williams’ iconic “Star Wars” score, along with a full orchestra on stage. The performance comes ahead of next month’s highly-anticipated new “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” film.

Show host Jennifer Lopez danced through a high-octane medley of this year’s top pop songs, saying: “Tonight is about the music, and this year’s music makes me want to dance.”

One of the biggest talking points came courtesy of Meghan Trainor and Charlie Puth, who took audiences by surprise with a kiss after their duet “Marvin Gaye.”

Selena Gomez performed a sultry rendition of her latest hit “Same Old Love,” country star Carrie Underwood belted her romantic ballad “Heartbeat” and Ariana Grande got the crowd dancing with her upbeat hit “Focus.” Justin Bieber sang and danced through a medley of his hits, ending with a shower of rain on stage.

The Weeknd set the stage on real fire for his performance of “The Hills,” while Coldplay brought out dancing monkeys on a psychedelic stage for “Adventure of a Lifetime,” and Walk The Moon started a dance party with their hit “Shut Up And Dance.”

Beamed

Bieber, who won best collaboration with Diplo and Skrillex, closed the night with a medley of his hits, including “Sorry,” “Where Are U Now” and “What Do You Mean.” Purple laser lights beamed from the stage as the singer danced and sang for the loud audience. He ended it drenched after standing under a waterfall.

Billboard announced Sunday his new album, “Purpose,” will debut at No. 1 on its charts Monday after selling 649,000 equivalent albums. It beat out One Direction’s “Made In the A.M.,” which sold 459,000 equivalent albums.

Bieber’s performance wasn’t the only well-received one: Celine Dion paid tribute to the victims of the recent Paris attacks by singing Edith Piaf’s “Hymne a L’Amour” in French as some audience members cried.

Dion earned a rousing applause after her performance, which started with the Eiffel Tower projected behind her.

The Weeknd’s performance was also a favorite, and he walked away with two awards, and presented the first one from Prince.

“Make some noise for Prince, ladies and gentlemen,” the singer said after picking up favorite album — soul/R&B for “Beauty Behind the Madness.”

Nicki Minaj was also a double winner, taking home favorite artist and album — rap/hip-hop. She encouraged her feverish fans to “find their voice.”

“I want to just thank you, the fans, for allowing me to change and have a different voice every time I come back out (with a new album),” Minaj said. “And please find your voice and find your purpose before it’s too late. Love you.”

Other girls at the awards show encouraged their peers: Zendaya and Hailee Steinfeld danced excited. Fifth Harmony and Rebel Wilson sang as Demi Lovato was in strong form with “Confident”; and Gomez sang as Grande performed “Focus” in a shimmery number.

Bryan beat out Jason Aldean and Sam Hunt, who won new artist of the year.

Host Lopez kicked off the AMAs in a dance routine that highlighted some of the year’s biggest hits like “Where Are U Now,” “Anaconda,” “Uptown Funk!” and “Hotline Bling.” She also impressively sang in almost a cappella form.

Swift lost favorite female artist — pop/rock to Grande, who was shocked when accepting the honor.

“I think I owe a lot of this to my nonna who made sure to remind me that she voted. She goes, ‘Ariana, I went on the computer, I voted, so I think you’ll win,’” Grande said in an Italian accent.

The three-hour show, which aired on ABC, also included a clip from the upcoming “Star Wars” film. Performers included Coldplay, Gwen Stefani, Alanis Morissette, 5 Seconds of Summer and Carrie Underwood, who won favorite female artist — country.

Leto also took aim at anti-foreigner sentiment that has emerged in the wake of the Paris attacks, which was claimed by the Islamic State group.

“Many of us here are the sons and the daughters of immigrants,” he said, pointing out that late Apple innovator Steve Jobs was of Syrian heritage.

The tribute was a rare somber note in the made-for-television gala, although the electronic producer Skrillex also referred to world turmoil as he accepted an award for his work with pop celebrity Justin Bieber.

“There is so much negative stuff going on in the world, so it’s up to us to be positive,” Skrillex said of musicians’ role.

The rap duo Macklemore and Ryan Lewis also took to the stage to debut a new song, “Kevin,” a politically charged tale of drug addiction’s toll in modern America that featured the soul singer Leon Bridges.

Glitzy

The American Music Awards are designed as a glitzy extravaganza and, unlike the more prestigious Grammy Awards which will take place in February, the winners are determined by voting from fans rather than the music industry.

In a sign of the burgeoning US market for country music, the award for favorite new artist went to Nashville crooner Sam Hunt, who outpaced emerging stars in other genres including The Weeknd who won in the two R&B categories.

Puth and Trainor, who has become a star in part due to her struggles with body image, had teamed up for his song “Marvin Gaye,” which uses the name of the legendary “Let’s Get It On” R&B singer.

Winners

* Artist of the year: One Direction

* New artist: Sam Hunt

* Song of the year: “Blank Space,” Taylor Swift

* Collaboration of the year: “Where Are U Now?” Skrillex & Diplo, feat. Justin Bieber

* Male artist, pop/rock: Ed Sheeran

* Female artist, pop/rock: Ariana Grande

* Duo or group, pop-rock: One Direction

* Album, pop/rock: “1989,” Taylor Swift

* Male artist, country: Luke Bryan

* Female artist, country: Carrie Underwood

* Duo or group, country: Florida Georgia Line

* Album, country: “Anything Goes,” Florida Georgia Line

* Artist, rap/hip-hop: Nicki Minaj

* Album, rap/hip-hop: “The Pinkprint,” Nicki Minaj

* Male artist, soul/R&B: The Weeknd

* Female artist, soul/R&B: Rihanna

* Album, soul/R&B: “Beauty Behind the Madness,” The Weeknd

* Artist, alternative rock: Fall Out Boy

* Artist, adult contemporary: Taylor Swift

* Artist, Latin: Enrique Iglesias

* Artist, contemporary inspirational: Casting Crowns

* Artist, electronic dance music: Calvin Harris

* Soundtrack: “Pitch Perfect 2”