The Billboard Music Awards are just a few days away, and like their fans, artists are teeming with excitement. For nominated artist Lindsey Stirling, this particular show holds a special place in her heart.
“They’re one of my favorite awards shows,” says Stirling. “They were the first award show to validate what I did and say that it was worthwhile and give me any sort of credibility in the industry. When I first started creating my career YouTube was sort of newer and very few platforms recognized YouTubers or creators as part of the artistic community so Billboard was the first to kind of recognize it.”
This year, Stirling has the chance to take home both Top Dance Artist, as well as Top Dance Album for her 2016 record Brave Enough, which peaked at No. 1 on Top Dance/Electronic Albums. The multifaceted artist previously took home the award for Top Dance Album for Shatter Me in 2015.
Yet, even prior to the award festivities, it’s a big week for Stirling. True to her roots, the nominated musician debuted a YouTube Red documentary on Wednesday, Lindsey Stirling: Brave Enough.
“I had done a book, toured a ton, done albums, so I thought, ‘Why not?’” Stirling tells Billboard. “My art is very visual and I had a tour coming up that I was excited about, so it all seemed to make sense.”
While the 30-year-old had a set vision for the film, life ended up having other plans.
“I was pitching it as, ‘I want to showcase the tour, the show, but I also want to showcase how life on the road can be really healthy and fun.’ We’re all really good friends,” explains Stirling. “And I had no idea that I was about to go through about the biggest emotional rollercoaster of my life, and that it would be the hardest year of my life. So it turned into an extremely different project than what I had pitched, but that’s life and that’s kind of the beauty of it.”
For now, as Stirling prepares to hit the red carpet Sunday (May 21), she’s most excited to show off her date.
“My mom is coming with me this year as my date!” she says. “I’ve never gotten to bring her — I’ve brought my sister — but I’ve never got to bring my mom to an awards show. Already it’s really fun; we’re texting back-and-forth pictures like, ‘I’m gonna wear this,’ and, ‘Hey mom, look at this outfit!’ So I’m really excited to go and let her experience it!”
The Billboard Music Awards air Sunday, May 21 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
