The MTV Video Music Awards went down at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey September 12, and saw Taylor Swift rack up several awards, lively performances from Olivia Rodrigo, Diddy and Shakira, among many others, and a celebration of 50 years of hip-hop near the end that featured LL Cool J, Grandmaster Flash and Nicki Minaj, among other rap icons.
Swift picked up Video of the Year for “Anti-Hero”, Song of the Year for “Anti-Hero”, Best Direction for the same song, Artist of the Year, and a few other moon-person trophies.
Swift got her first award of the night, for best video, from the NSYNC guys, and was a bit awestruck by the men she shared the stage with. “I had your dolls!” she exclaimed.
It is quite a production at the Prudential Center, with the awards and speeches going down on the main moon-man stage, and two oval stages on either side of the moon-man one. Bruce Gillmer and Den of Thieves co-founder Jesse Ignjatovic exec produce the event.
Stagehands would scramble to set up the next act, often with dancers and performers taking their places and waiting patiently on a side stage, with all eyes on the main stage. In one instance, Karol G and two dozen dancers sat quietly on a tiered side stage as the Brazilian performer Anitta got an award on the main stage.
Nicki Minaj hosted the monster 3 1/2 hour-plus event. Besides airing on MTV, the VMAs were on BET, CMT, MTV 2, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, VH1, TV Land and other Paramount networks.
Getting the moon-person statuette for Song of the Year, Swift spoke about her love of songwriting, and feeling as if she was all alone in her “insecurity and self-loathing” as she wrote, then seeing the songs and lyrics connect with the masses onstage.
“Maybe we all have the same issues,” she said she came to realize.
Wyclef Jean then stepped out to introduce Shakira, who got the Video Vanguard award. Shakira was electric, using all three stages as she performed a medley. She even took a guitar solo, then finished things off with a dance involving a couple sharp knives.
Diddy then made his first VMAs appearance in almost two decades. Introduced by Mary J. Blige, he made it a family event, performing alongside son King and twin daughters D’Lila and Jessie.
Diddy got the Global Icon Award. “I gotta thank God — that’s my secret weapon,” he said.
Diddy shared about being a paperboy growing up, then thinking he’d play pro football until he broke his leg and getting more into music. “God made another choice for me,” he said.
Just before he stepped offstage, Diddy shared that he’s got a new album coming out. “I’m a hustler,” he conceded.
Just when I’d finally grasped the three-stage concept of the event, Peso Pluma set up on a fourth stage, a small, round one set up temporarily in the center of the floor. A full band, including strings and standup bass, backed him up.
After Peso Pluma was the K-Pop act Stray Kids, which sent the young women seated near us bonkers. They came equipped with the lollipop-style handheld lights that are apparently the norm at K-Pop shows.
The show finally had a bit of rock ‘n’ roll when Fall Out Boy played their update of Billy Joel’s history lesson “We Didn’t Start the Fire” — sample line “Unabomber, Bobbitt, John, bombing Boston Marathon” — from an outdoor stage. The Roman rockers Maneskin, winners of the Best Rock VMA, continued the rock vibe with an explosive performance, before country star Kelsea Ballerini played.
Speaking of history lessons, it was finally time for the 50 years of hip-hop finale, with DMC, Doug E. Fresh, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J and Minaj sharing the stage for a lively 10-minute performance that the crowd adored. It ended with all the performers onstage for “Walk This Way”, a salute to MTV’s earlier days.
