From Jelly Roll to TWICE, top acts hit 'Amazon Music Live' to spotlight their upcoming projects

LOS ANGELES (AP) — If artists want to launch an album with a bang, “ Amazon Music Live” could be the end zone to score big.

Some of the biggest performers in music — including Jelly Roll, Megan Thee Stallion, Ed Sheeran, Kane Brown, Peso Pluma and Lil Baby — have graced the live stage during the weekly concert series in Los Angeles that airs after the NFL's “Thursday Night Football” game on Prime Video. Each show is a unique experience with artists debuting new music on bespoke sets created to bring their vision and style to life.

This season's highlights have included J Balvin 's Latin vibe, Halsey 's Halloween circus intro and Gunna's big money talk. Big Sean was joined onstage by North Carolina A&T State University’s marching band, and Jhene Aiko, YG and E-40 made guest appearances.

Now, it's Snoop Dogg 's turn to take the mic for “AML's” season finale this week, just ahead of his highly anticipated 20th album, “Missionary,” dropping next month. The performances are filmed live in front of more than a thousand audience members and streamed on Prime Video and Amazon's streaming platform, Twitch.

Jelly Roll, a Grammy-nominated country singer, was the “AML” season opener in October just days after the release of his 10th studio album, “Beautifully Broken.” His special guests included Keith Urban, Skylar Grey and Machine Gun Kelly.

“We could have planned our whole rollout around this,” Jelly Roll said. “I’m always excited to try to share what I do in front of new audiences or hope a new audience sees it or maybe the people at home who couldn’t see the tour or people who bought the album and see what it’s all about.”

Last week, TWICE expanded their brand beyond their usual K-pop fandom after the Cleveland Browns upset the Pittsburgh Steelers. The nine-member group made Amazon Music history. The concert livestream earned the most unique viewers of any production — including Kendrick Lamar's “Pop Out” concert in June, and the Ye and Drake “Free Larry Hoover” show in 2021.

“We’re normally used to performing just for our fans who are purposely coming to see us — especially in the U.S. where we are used to doing that,” said singer Nayeon, who was accompanied by group members Momo, Tzuyu, Mina, Minatozaki Sana, Dahyun, Jihyo, Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung.

TWICE has performed inside major stadiums like MetLife and SoFi Stadium. But “AML” helped introduce them to first-time listeners, while also promoting their upcoming 14th mini-album “Strategy,” releasing Dec. 6.

“For ‘Amazon Music Live,’ it’s not just about our fans, but it’s rather related to football,” Nayeon said. “It’s a lot of football fans to see us. To be invited here to perform is such an honor. We need to keep our game card for people to know who TWICE is.”

Here's a behind-the-scenes look at how the concert series comes to life and those who play a key role.

When Jelly Roll first entered the “AML” set, the singer thought it was just another rehearsal — until he found himself immersed in an unexpected interactive experience before stepping on the main stage.

“I was overwhelmed. Got nervous,” said Jelly Roll, who was floored after he initially walked through the Tailgate Experience at the East End Studios in Glendale, California, where “AML” films season three.

The experience offers a variety of attractions including flat-screen TVs above a massive circular bar, a spacious VIP section, photo booth, themed locker room, digital bonfire, featured vehicle, jersey patch station and a towering football toss game. All of this is set to the music of the week's concert series performer blasted through loudspeakers.

“I wanted a space that was intentional and inclusive to everybody,” said Jameka Pankey, the head of events and experiential for artists at Amazon Music. She and her team wanted to make a concerted effort to pay homage to performers and the fans who enjoy their work.

“We thought about all aspects of football and tailgating from fellowship, food and even how we were naming the drinks,” Pankey said. “When we were giving away gifts to fans. ... We had to do jerseys. I wanted this to be a fan experience that was out of mind.”

Mission accomplished.

At Amazon Music, collaboration has fueled success with departments joining forces to lock in the hottest talent of the week.

But predicting a year out? That's a tough play when album releases are anyone's guess. They use their label connections and instincts to keep them ahead of the game and ready to pivot and lockdown the artist with the next big release.

“We try to really be as genre agnostic and diverse as possible,” said Kirdis Postelle, global head of content and artist marketing at Amazon Music. She works with Andrew Sexton, who handles booking for “AML.”

“Our team, along with myself, are active in conversations about this program,” said Sexton, who is considered a label relations guru. Some of the selling points to attract artists have been to capitalize off the NFL's huge viewership, promote their project and perform with top-notch production.

“We're very active," he said. "We're always in communications with artist's teams and people are reaching out to us too. ... We're in constant conversations with the industry."

Following a high-stakes “Thursday Night Football” matchup is plenty of pressure. But pulling off a live major concert after a big NFL showdown? That’s next-level intensity.

“It’s the challenge which is fungible start time,” said Ed Walker, the head of video studios at Amazon Music. He played an integral role in the concert series moving from a shared studio lot in Hollywood to now filming at East End Studios — a complex with more than 96,000-square-feet of space, including two soundstages, a rooftop terrace, green rooms and three stories of office space.

After the game wraps, there’s an hour preshow on Twitch and a top-of-show segment that takes audiences into the artist’s world. The hope is to create a “closer connection” before their performance, introducing more insight into the artist’s project. There are sweepstakes and competitions to maintain intrigue.

“We immerse them into what they are about to see,” he said. “That is a moving target. You have a very large audience watching football, and then we have direct communications to the control room broadcasting that and they are giving us real time updates.”

Walker admits it’s a tough balancing act, keeping the football audience engaged while also entertaining “AML” viewers before the show kicks off.

“We got to meet in the middle, entertain them all, give them context and start the show,” he said. “While all that’s happening, we have to make sure the artist is on the stage and hits the cue on time.”

While artists are rehearsing, Postelle wants to make sure they’re comfortable and don't leave. That led to the idea of an artist experience with food, games, drinks and privacy.

“We do that to make artists feel good about spending so much time here,” Postelle said. “The last thing you want is for somebody to be like ‘I’m going back to the hotel to take a shower’ and they fall asleep. Then we’ll have a big problem.”

Each week, select customers in the Los Angeles area are invited to purchase $15 tickets for that week's performance during an exclusive superfan presale or general onsale. Live events company DICE tracks upcoming events and uses audience targeting based on fan interests to notify potential attendees.

Big Sean performs at the Amazon Music Live Concert Series 2024 at the East End Studios on Oct. 24, 2024 in Glendale, California. (Jerritt Clark via AP)

Twice performs at the Amazon Music Live Concert Series 2024 at East End Studios on Nov. 21, 2024 in Glendale, California. (Jerritt Clark via AP)

Gunna performs at Amazon Music Live Concert Series 2024 with Gunna at East End Studios on Nov. 14, 2024 in Glendale, California. (Jerritt Clark via AP)

J Balvin performs during the Amazon Music Live Concert Series 2024 at East End Studios on Nov. 7, 2024 in Glendale, California. (Jerritt Clark via AP)

This image provided by shows Jelly Roll performing at Amazon Music Live in Los Angeles on Oct. 3, 2024. (Jesse Lirola via AP)

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Transgender students from kindergarten through college at Ohio public and private schools will be banned from using multiperson bathrooms that fit their gender identities under a measure that Republican Gov. Mike DeWine said Wednesday that he has signed.

DeWine signed the law over the objections of Democrats, teachers' unions and civil rights groups, which had hoped that his objections to a ban on gender-affirming care for minors last year would carry through and prompt another veto. It takes effect in 90 days.

The governor issued no statement regarding the signing.

The Republican-backed measure — labeled the "Protect All Students Act” — requires public and private schools, colleges and universities to designate separate bathrooms, locker rooms and overnight accommodations “for the exclusive use” of either males and females, based on one’s gender assigned at or near birth, in school buildings and other facilities used for school-sponsored events. It contains no enforcement mechanism.

“It revolves around safety, security, and, I think, common sense. It protects our children and grandchildren in private spaces where they are most vulnerable,” said Republican Ohio state Sen. Jerry Cirino, the bill’s sponsor.

Aaron Baer, president of the Center for Christian Virtue, which backed the bill, said in a statement, “Common sense is on a winning streak in America today. No student should be forced to go into the bathroom or locker room with a student of the opposite sex, and Ohio’s kids are better protected now because of Governor DeWine’s decision to sign this bill."

The ACLU of Ohio was among the groups that had lobbied for a veto, condemning the measure as a violation of the right of privacy of LGBTQ+ Ohioans that will make them less safe.

School employees, emergency situations and people assisting young children or someone with a disability are exempted from the restrictions and schools can still offer single-use or family bathrooms.

With DeWine's signature, Ohio adds to the pushback that's cropped up nationally among many Republican politicians, including President-elect Donald Trump, as transgender people have gained more visibility and acceptance on some fronts in recent years.

Twenty-six states have now adopted laws restarting or banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments Dec. 4 on whether Tennessee’s ban on such treatments can continue to be enforced; any ruling is likely to impact policies in other states, too.

At least 11 states have adopted laws, like Ohio’s, barring transgender girls and women from girls and women’s bathrooms at public schools – and in some cases, in other government facilities.

And at least 24 states have laws dictating which sports competitions transgender girls and women can join.

Ohio's bathroom bill was debated for 19 months before finally clearing the GOP-led Legislature on Nov. 13, during Transgender Awareness Week. It was tacked onto a separate piece of legislation by the Ohio House that related to the state's College Credit Plus program, which allows high-schoolers to earn college credit.

Trump's campaign leaned heavily into opposing transgender rights in the last weeks of his race against Vice President Kamala Harris, including Trump's vow at a Madison Square Garden rally that “we will keep men out of women’s sports” and campaign ads saying, “Kamala's for they/them. President Trump is for you.”

It’s not clear what policies Trump might adopt once he takes office in January. But bills relating to gender issues are already being queued up in state legislatures that come into session early in 2025.

In Texas, for instance, there are proposed measures to bar using state money to pay for "gender reassignment,” to use state money to pay to reverse gender transitions, and to give people who receive gender-affirming care before they turn 15 until they turn 25 to sue their doctors for malpractice, among others. Democrats in the Republican-dominated legislature there have also introduced some bills intended to protect people from discrimination on the basis of “gender identity or expression.”

In Ohio, a law that both bars gender-affirming care for minors and blocks transgender girls and women from participating in girls and women’s sports competitions took effect in August. It took a rocky path, though. The measure became law only after the legislature overrode DeWine’s veto. And after that, a judge put enforcement on hold for about four months before allowing it.

FILE - Mike DeWine speaks, Jan. 14, 2019, in Cedarville, Ohio. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, Pool, File)