The Host
Miley Cyrus has become a bit of a VMAs legend over the past couple years. In 2013 was the twerk heard around the world as she performed “We Can’t Stop” and “Blurred Lines” with Robin Thicke, a moment she would later spoof on SNL. In 2014, she won Video of the Year for “Wrecking Ball” but had a young homeless man speak on her behalf to bring awareness to the struggles of homeless and misunderstood teenagers. This year the VMAs invited her back to host. Miley pulled out all the stops: great skits, jabs at her family, jokes made about her attire, and, our personal favorite, her confession that she has taken the past year off of music “to focus on her true love – Instagram.” |
The Performances
Nicki Minaj kicked off the night with her brand new single, “Trini Dem Girls,” and then sent the crowd into a frenzy when she brought out Taylor Swift, an unannounced performer and a complete surprise, to sing “The Night is Still Young” and “Bad Blood.” You would think that would be the highlight of the night. How are you going to top that? Well, the VMAs decided to surprise fans again. Demi Lovato brought out Iggy Azalea for a “Cool for the Summer” remix premiere, A$AP Rocky joined Twenty-One Pilots, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis brought their “Downtown” music video to life outside, and The Weeknd lit the stage on fire, literally. But the biggest performance of the night was none other than Justin Bieber. |
The Triumphant Return of Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber has let us down a lot in the past couple of years, but the pop star has fallen hard only to rise again, even stronger. Justin Bieber started the performance of Jack U’s “Where Are U Now,” complete with live vocals and a crazy dance routine. He then transitioned into his brand new single, “What Do You Mean.” The performance was on point and took Justin to new heights (seriously, he flew for a minute). The best part, though, was not the amazing vocals or killer dance moves; the best part was at the end when, Justin, overcome with almost as much emotion as his fans, broke down in tears on the stage. Just like that, we are proud to say we Belieb again. |
Kanye West...Being Kanye West
When the VMAs announced that Kanye West would be receiving the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, we knew there was bound to be strangeness. This is Kanye, after all. And he didn’t disappoint. First off, he was introduced by none other than Taylor Swift, a point that she nor he missed the irony of. Kanye West took the stage to the line of “Imma let you finish, but Kanye West had one of the best careers of all time. All time!” It’s true, and the crowd went wild, and then Kanye went wild. His speech, lasting a solid fifteen minutes, was all over the place. At the end he stated “I guess you all know where this is going.” No, no, we don’t. “I’ll be running for President in 2020.” Imma let you finish, but Kanye had one of the best Presidential campaigns of all time. All time! |
The Surprises
The VMAs started off with the surprise of Taylor Swift joining Nicki Minaj, but that was far from the only surprise moment of the night. Iggy with Demi, Kanye’s crazy speech, and, oh yeah, Nicki Minaj openly calling out Miley Cyrus for her recent interview remarks about the rapper. The moment was tense and caught everyone off guard. Even the cameras weren’t sure whether to cut to Miley as she continued hosting (and completely handled the situation as if it was planned) or stay on the angry Nicki. Speaking of Miley Cyrus surprises, the biggest surprise of the night came at the very end. Miley performed a never-before-heard song and announced that her new album, Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz, was out, now, AND it’s free! |
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