Queen Latifah shares true feelings about Taylor Swift ahead of AMAs

Queen Latifah is excited to host the 2026 American Music Awards, which Taylor Swift leads with 8 nominations.

Ahead of the ceremony on Monday Night (May 25), the hip-hop icon and actress opened up to Variety about returning to the AMAs stage nearly three decades after first hosting in 1995. And while Swift won’t be attending this year’s show, Queen Latifah made it clear she’s still firmly in the superstar’s corner.

“I don’t know if I call myself a Swiftie, but I’m a fan of Taylor Swift, for sure,” Latifah said. “I always have been. I think she makes great songs. She makes really great, catchy songs that we love.”

The Emmy-winning actress said the pop star’s rise never surprised her, pointing to Swift’s ability to connect with audiences from the very beginning of her career.

“She was able to get those records played on the radio. That’s step one. Can you get your record played?” Latifah explained. “When she got her records played, there were a bunch of girls who looked like her who connected to those songs.”

Latifah, 56, also praised Swift, 36, for coming across as someone “who wanted to stick up for people rather than talk down to people.”

As for whether fans can expect her to perform during the ceremony, Latifah quickly shut the idea down. “This isn’t the Queen Latifah show,” she said. “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.”