Three years ago, Beyoncé announced to the world that she was pregnant! What she did do this time around? (Photo property of WENN’s FayesVision)
Beyoncé Knowles is gunning for Madonna’s “Queen of Pop” crown!
With 17 Grammy Awards and 15 MTV Video Music Awards, the Dreamgirls triple threat received one of the show’s most coveted awards: the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. She joined fellow Jackson acolytes and superstars Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake as the only three members of the Millennial Generation to receive this iconic award.
But before, the future Queen of Pop took the stage…several other Millennials performed on stage.
With a little intro from Lorde, Taylor Swift opened the show with her first fortified pop hit: “Shake It Off.” Ms. Swift (and two dozen dancers) transported viewers to a Gatsby-like world. She also mocked the dangers of the award show as she climbed down a giant 1989 set piece. The performance impressed both Jennifer Lopez and Gwen Stefani.
Former host Chelsea Handler presented (and praised Taylor Swift for being “so white”) presented the Best Male Video award to Ed Sheeran and his highly successful single: “Sing.” SNL’s Jay Pharoah did a short routine mocking Jay-Z, as Dumb & Dumber’s Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels delivered a highly amusing routine for Best Pop Video. Fans voted to give the Moonman to Ariana Grande and Iggy Azalea’s collaboration. A shaken Grande ran to the stage and accepted the award (and hugs from Miley Cyrus). She nervously thanked her collaborator, her fans and MTV, as she plugged her upcoming album: My Everything.
Introduced as Kim Kardashian-West, the Reality TV star introduced Sam Smith. Accompanied by only a piano, the London singer-songwriter gave the audience chills as he belted his signature tune. The only thing that was missing was Mary J. Blige, who would have helped Sam make MTV VMA history!
Rapper Common praised the town of Ferguson, Missouri for standing up for their rights. He also added, “Hip-hop has lead the revolution” and asked for a moment of silence for the town. Following that silence, he announced that Drake won the Best Hip-Hop Award.
Jay Pharoah continued to give his Hip-hop impressions as he made everyone laugh as Kanye West! His jokes got the attention of Kim, Kendall and Kylie Jenner. The stars of Orange Is The New Black introduced Usher as he brought the house down with his new single: “She Came to Give It to You.” While Usher showcased his smooth moves and vocals, Nicki Minaj dropped her signature beats as The Voice coach picked up an electric guitar halfway through the performance.
One of the show’s most odd parings of the night was Trey Songs and The Vampire Diaries’ Nina Dobrev! It was also interesting to see that there was no graphics for the Best Rock Video. Lorde gave an ecstatic Taylor Swift a hug as she collected her Moonman for “Royals.”
5 Seconds of Summer probably got one of the biggest screams of the night! The Australian rockers gave a moving performance of “Amnesia.” I think the guys made both Good Charlotte’s Joel and Benji Madden (who co-wrote this hit) very proud and they have a bright future ahead of them.
Jay Pharoah returned to the stage to introduce the Artist to Watch Moonman to X Factor USA alums Fifth Harmony for “Miss Movin’ On.” The girls praised their fans, the Harmonizers, and Simon Cowell for the opportunity. The show also took time to pay tribute to late Robin Williams.
Jennifer Lopez praised her fellow “Booty” collaborator, Iggy Azalea, as she took the stage to perform “Black Widow” with Rita Ora. The Australian MC and British songbird slayed their debut live performance!
Jason DeRulo and Demi Lovato shamelessly plugged their tours, while they introduced Maroon 5. The California Pop Rock band performed “Maps” live in front of 1,000 of their biggest fans. It was awesome to the sextet rock out and I bet V is going to be a great album!
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon host Jimmy Fallon introduced the Hug Cam (Katy Perry and Sam Smith) and High Five Cam (Taylor Swift & Lorde), before giving out the biggest award of the night…Video of the Year to Miley Cyrus! In a moving tribute, Jesse (a homeless youth) gave a touching tribute to the countless LA homeless youth.
Finally, we get to the performance of the evening! Surrounded by countless dancers, Beyoncé tackled an impeccable medley from her self-titled album. From the exciting choreography to the amazing visuals, Beyoncé gave one of the best performances that I ever seen!
The audience roared with pure delight as Jay-Z and Blue presented the award to cap off the night!
