{blackbabes} Rihanna, Urban, JLo and More to Perform at Billboard Music Awards

The 2011 Billboard Music Awards are shaping up to be one hot ticket: Rihanna, the Black Eyed Peas, Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum and Taio Cruz are the first performers announced for newly revived show, which will air live May 22 from the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

And more announcements are on the way. On Wednesday morning (Apr. 13), the full list of nominees will be unveiled at a press conference in Las Vegas, where the Billboard Music Awards will be broadcast live on ABC. More announcements will roll out as the date approaches, so stay tuned to Billboard.com in the coming weeks for the latest updates.

Tickets for the Billboard Music Awards start at $57.75 and are on sale now at Ticketmaster.com.

The Billboard Music Awards will reflect Billboard's chart rankings based on key fan interactions with music, including album, single and digital sales, radio play, touring, streaming and social interactions on MySpace, Facebook and other popular online destinations for music. These measurements are tracked year-round by Billboard and its data partners. The awards will be based on the reporting period of February 28, 2010 through March 1, 2011. Top artists will be recognized in a variety of genres, including R&B, Rap, Pop, Country, Rock, Latin and Alternative.

"This show marks the first of several broadcast platforms we plan to build around the Billboard franchise," said Richard D. Beckman, CEO of Prometheus Global Media, which owns Billboard. "We have an incredible network partner and with Don Mischer, one of the finest producers in the world. We look forward to entertaining music fans with Billboard's own rendition of a televised celebration of music."