Watch Billy Idol Rock American Music Awards And Receive Lifetime Achievement Award

By Michael Angulia | Published: May 27, 2026 10:07 AM EDT

Billy Idol received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 52nd American Music Awards this past weekend and has shared video of his acceptance speech and performance online.

Sacks & Co sent over these details: Idol celebrated the honor with his first ever AMAs performance with longtime collaborator/guitarist Steve Stevens, playing a medley of his biggest hits including "Eyes Wityout A Face" and "Dancing With Myself."

"When I started out in punk rock back in 1976, we didn't know if what we were doing would last six months, let alone 50 years. But we were doing it for the love," Idol notes, adding, "to any kid out there who loves rock & roll music-or any kind of music-as much as I do, and if you're inspired to chase that sense of freedom and pursue a life of art, all I can say is, 'pick up an instrument, find out who you are, and be it.'"

This summer, Idol returns to the road for the next leg of his highly successful world tour, It's A Nice Day To...Tour Again!, which saw him sell out venues across the U.S., Europe and Latin America throughout the past year. Devo, Susanna Hoffs, Villanelle and Grocery Bag will support Idol on select dates; produced by Live Nation, the run of arenas and amphitheatres kicks off at The Pavilion at Montage Mountain in Scranton, PA on August 7.

Watch/share the performance and Idol's acceptance speech, in which he urged anybody who is inspired to pursue a life of art to "pick an instrument, find out who you are, and be it," below: