Some of the most iconic moments in pop culture history happen at the VMAs. Although last night wasn’t exactly one of the biggest nights in MTV history, it’s still a night so many of us won’t forget (especially any Swifties reading this).
The MTV Video Music Awards went off with a bang at the Prudential Center last night. The show started with a performance of Song of the Summer, “First Class” by Jack Harlow, with a surprise guest appearance from Fergie, who joined him to sing her hit song “Glamorous.”
The energy was kept at an all-time high as the 2022 Video Vanguard recipient Nicki Minaj took the stage. She performed a medley of songs from her early bops like Superbass to her brand new single “Super Freaky Girl”. As Minaj accepted her awards, she made sure to give a speech to remember. The star from Jamaica, Queens, made sure to shout out her borough and all the celebrities who gave her a chance in music and put her name on the map like Lil Wayne, Lauryn Hill, and Rihanna to name a few. Minaj also discussed mental health awareness, stating, “I wish that Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson were here. I wish that people understood what they meant and what they were going through. I wish people took mental health seriously, even for the people that you think have the perfect lives”.
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One of the lower moments of the night was Johnny Depp being a surprise guest. The man in the news for a high-profile defamation lawsuit was projected onto a floating “Moon Person” statue and welcomed guests back after commercial breaks. He joked that he “needed the work” and was available for “birthdays, bar mitzvahs, weddings, wakes, any old thing you need.” This was a shock to everyone watching, and it didn’t seem like the time or place for Depp to show up.
The night moved onwards and upwards as Harry Styles and Bad Bunny, two of the night’s most anticipated winners, received awards via video as they both were performing at Madison Square Garden and Yankee Stadium, respectively. Styles won Album of the Year with his hit album Harry’s House, and Bad Bunny won Artist of the Year, making him the first non-English-language performer to win the Artist of the Year. Styles went on to also win Best Pop Video and Best Cinematography for his chart-topping song ‘As It Was.’ Meanwhile, Benito had a praiseworthy performance of his song “Tití Me Preguntó” at Yankee Stadium, which was one of my favorite parts of the night, and he challenged toxic masculinity everywhere with a kiss to one of his male dancers.
However, the part of the night everyone is talking about is the one and only Taylor Swift showing up for her masterful short film All Too Well (10-Minute Version). Swift brought the glitz and glamour in a gorgeous silver dress that rivaled the mirrorball she sings about in her album “Folklore.” Some people think the dress may have paid homage to one particular dress she wore 13 years prior during her run-in with Kanye at the same award show. As she accepted her award for her self-directed Video of the Year, she left the stage in style as she told the crowd, “I thought it would be fun to tell you that I have a brand new album coming out October 21”. At that moment, I swear time stopped as the room erupted into screams, and Twitter absolutely blew up as Swifties awaited midnight to hear more about this album which we now know is titled “Midnights.“
Check out our exclusive red carpet segment below:
