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\n\tQueen Latifah<\/a> is getting ready to host the American Music Awards<\/a> on Monday night. The last and only time she hosted was back in 1995 as part of a trio that included Tom Jones and country singer Lorrie Morgan.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt\u2019s been a long time, but it was exciting then and It\u2019s exciting now,\u201d Latifah tells me. \u201cI\u2019m just a little bit different person, but you know, we still gotta make get it popping like we did then.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tTaylor Swift leads the night with eight nominations.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI don\u2019t know if I call myself a Swiftie, but I\u2019m a fan of Taylor Swift, for sure,\u201d Latifah says. \u201cI always have been. I think she makes great songs. She makes really great, catchy songs that we love.\u201d \n\t\u201cShe was able to get those records played on the radio. That\u2019s step one. Can you get your record played? Latifah explains. \u201cWhen she got her records played, there were a bunch of girls who looked like her who connected to those songs. She wrote to what a lot of young girls were feeling, and young people, for that matter. And then, as you got to hear her talk, she seemed to be like someone who wanted to stick up for people rather than talk down to people.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAre you going to perform during the show?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tThis isn\u2019t the Queen Latifah show. It is the American Music Awards, and there are lovely people that are nominated, and they deserve to have the stage and really rock the stage. I\u2019m here to facilitate their greatness, that\u2019s all I\u2019m here to do.<\/p>\n \n\tBut you are American music royalty.<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tThank you, but I\u2019m always prepared for whatever. Roll up with a piano and if a guitar appears from nowhere, I\u2019m sure I can figure something out.<\/p>\n \n\tHow do you prepare for a night like this? Do you do a deep dive on every nominee?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tI can\u2019t say I\u2019m such a musicologist that I\u2019m familiar with everyone\u2019s everything but, of course, I\u2019ll play their music to get familiar with whomever I might not be familiar with. With some people, I realize I know their music, I just didn\u2019t know their names. I\u2019ll definitely get more familiar with everybody\u2019s songs, and maybe some of their stories \u2014 where they come from, what they\u2019re about because that can be very engaging as well.<\/p>\n \n\tHow many outfit changes will you have?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tA girl doesn\u2019t tell her outfit change, but let\u2019s say no less than three.<\/p>\n
Latifah isn\u2019t surprised at all by Swift\u2019s stardom.<\/p>\n