Rihanna will be performing on the American Music Awards later this month, but she'll also be receiving a special award that has never before been presented.

The singer will be the recipient of the first-ever AMA Icon Award at the ceremony, which will air live on ABC on November 24.  Why is Rihanna being tapped for this honor?  As the show's producer, Larry Klein, explains in a statement, "[It] was created to honor an artist whose body of work has made a profound influence over pop music on a global level.  Rihanna’s iconic and innovative sound has enabled her to become one of the most influential and best-selling artists of all time.”

In a career that's less than a decade old, Rihanna has sold 50 million albums and 180 million downloads worldwide; in fact, she's the best-selling digital artist of all time.  She's also scored 12 #1 hits and won six Grammys, is the most-viewed artist on Vevo, and is the most popular musical artist on Facebook, with 80 million likes.

As previously reported, other performers on this year's American Music Awards include Miley Cyrus,Florida Georgia Line, Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, Imagine Dragons, Kendrick Lamar, Jennifer Lopez, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, One Direction, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake, TLC, and Pitbull, who is also hosting.