Vancouver-based band Nickelback took home the trophy for best pop/rock album at the 2006 American Music Awards on Tuesday, during an evening that saw three wins for the Black Eyed Peas.

Nickelback's All the Right Reasons won ahead of the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Stadium Arcadium and the album for High School Musical, but the Canadian band lost to the Chili Peppers for best rock/pop group.

Apl.de ap and Fergie of The Black Eyed Peas perform during their Monkey Business concert in San Jose, Costa Rica. The Black Eyed Peas were triple winners at the 2006 American Music Awards on Tuesday night.
(Kent Gilbert/Associated Press)

"This is extremely unexpected," said lead singer Chad Kroeger, as he accepted the award.

"We just kinda showed up because we were supposed to give one of these away tonight," Kroeger said of his band, originally from Hanna, Alta.

"We thought for sure the Chilies were gonna just like clean house tonight."

The Chili Peppers did clean up in two categories, taking the prizes for favourite alternative artist and favourite pop/rock group.

Black Eyed Peas dominate

But the Black Eyed Peas were the biggest winners, named favourite group in the rap/hip hop and soul/rhythm & blues categories, and winning the best album award for Monkey Business.

Kelly Clarkson captured trophies for pop/rock female and adult contemporary artist. Those two categories were among those presented before the televised portion of the performance-filled show.

Nelly Furtado performed Say It Right during the awards ceremony.
(Kevork Djansezian/Associated Press)

Among the performers was Canadian singer Nelly Furtado, wearing a skin-tight white dress and stick-straight hair, who debuted her new single Say It Right as smoke swirled around the stage.

Beyoncé began the show, belting out her single Irreplaceable while dancing in a sparkly sequined minidress. The Pussycat Dolls, Barry Manilow and Lionel Richie also performed.

New mom Gwen Stefani made a stylish return to the music scene, wearing a skimpy sequined shift to perform the single Wind It Up from her forthcoming album, The Sweet Escape.

Rapper Jay-Z also stepped out of his not-quite-retirement with a performance of Show Me What You Got from his new record, Kingdom Come.

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Rascal Flatts won favourite country group and the T-Mobile Text-In award, which is chosen by fans.

Mary J. Blige accepted the female soul/rhythm & blues artist award from surprise presenter Britney Spears.

The newly single Spears looked sleek in a knee-length cream-coloured frock and long blond hair.

The ceremony included a skit in which a Kevin Federline lookalike was put into a wooden crate and dumped into the ocean.

Host Jimmy Kimmel cracked that Federline was the world's first "no-hit wonder."

Oscar winner Jamie Foxx was named favourite male soul/rhythm and blues artist.

"I'm like a rookie in this music thing," he said. "This means a lot more than you think, man."

Foxx wore a white tuxedo and sat behind a grand piano to perform Wish U Were Here from his 2005 album, Unpredictable.

Dancehall singer Sean Paul was named favourite male artist in the category.

Peppers, Peas on satellite

The Red Hot Chili Peppers accepted their awards via satellite from London, with bass player Flea beat-boxing as lead singer Anthony Kiedis thanked "the American people."

The Black Eyed Peas also accepted their awards from abroad, thanking fans via satellite from Costa Rica.

Among country honours, favourite female artist went to Faith Hill and Tim McGraw's Greatest Hits Volume 2 was favourite album. Country singer and American Idol Carrie Underwood was named favourite new breakthrough artist.

Eminem was favourite male rap/hip-hop artist. Shakira won favourite Latin artist and Kirk Franklin captured the award for contemporary inspirational music.

"I know that a lot of people that say that they're Christians — you know, we don't always represent, and we don't always live it and we do sometimes some very stupid things, and you know we're not doing a good job," said Franklin, wearing blue jeans with a black velvet tuxedo jacket.

"I want to make sure that when you see my life that it's a life that I'm gonna be proud of."

The American Music Awards honour the best in pop/rock, country, soul/rhythm and blues, rap/hip hop, Latin, alternative, adult contemporary and contemporary inspirational music.

Nominees were chosen based on record sales and winners were selected by a survey of about 20,000 listeners.

With files from the Canadian Press