Controversial rapper Eminem hit the top of the 2002 MTV Video Music
Awards chart Thursday night in New York.
'Without Me' -- during which Eminem plays a superhero battling the forces of
human foibles and global issues in a single rap -- won four awards, led by
'Video of the Year' and 'Best Male Video.' Joseph Park, the video's director,
got the nod in that category.
The White Stripes -- a band whose 'Fell in Love with a Girl'video was
Lego-gone-computer-animated -- picked up three awards: 'Breakthrough Video,'
'Editing' and, naturally, 'Special Effects.'
Coming in the show position: Pink and No Doubt (assisted by Bounty Killer)
for their 'Get This Party Started'and 'Hey Baby' videos, respectively.
Pink's clip earned 'Best Female Video,' while No Doubt's routine landed 'Best
Group Video.'
Other key winners included Avril Lavigne for 'New Artist' ('Complicated'),
Michelle Branch as the 'Viewer's Choice' ('Everywhere'), Linkin Park for 'Rock
Video' ('In the End'), Mary J. Blige for 'R&B Video' ('No More Drama') and
Dashboard Confessional with the 'MTV2 Award' ('Screaming Infidelities').
As for the show itself, there were plenty of highlights to go around. In the
first 10 minutes alone, Bruce Springsteen gave a stirring performance of 'The
Rising,' the title cut from his acclaimed new album, from the American Museum of
Natural History; host Jimmy Fallon did a hilarious melody of video hits, with
soul 'godfather' James Brown putting in a surprise appearance at the finish; and
Michael Jackson received both a 44th birthday cake and a 'Artist of the
Millennium' award.
P. Diddy's 'Jump' routine stopped the show with its
gymnastics/dance/break-dancing free-for-all fireworks, while Sheryl Crow let the
vocals fly with a New York City tribute song, introduced by former Mayor Rudolph
Giuliani.
The grand finale: Guns N' Roses, fronted by Axl Rose -- yet another unbilled
attraction -- performing a trio of hits and blasting pink confetti all over
Radio City Music Hall.
Midway through the show, MTV: Music Television announced the launch of an
annual scholarship, with $25,000 going to a crusader in the AIDS arena.
The scholarship was formed in honor of Lisa 'Left Eye' Lopes, the member of
pop group TLC who died in April from a car accident in Honduras. Surviving TLC
members Tionne 'T-Boz' Watkins and Rozonda 'Chilli' Thomas were on hand for the
announcement.
'This is so hard ... It's a reality check because there's only two of us up
here, and [Lopes is] so missed,' Thomas cried. 'We know that Lisa's smiling, and
we just hope she can be part of us right now.'
