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This year’s MTV VMAs took place on the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks – a scheduling shift caused by last night’s debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. To mark the solemn anniversary, the red carpet at New York’s UBS Arena was switched to jet black and the stars that graced it opted for a respectfully gothic style.
Nonetheless, the ceremony itself was a spirited affair, celebrating one of the most triumphant periods for female pop artists in history.
TikTok comedian and Therapuss podcast host Jake Shane took over from Chicken Shop Date’s Amelia Dimoldenberg as host of the black carpet. The 24-year-old held his nerve, but complained between interviews of profuse sweating and extreme anxiety. A final interview with the night’s Vanguard Award winner Katy Perry tipped him over the edge – literally. Shane tripped backwards off the stage while interviewing the “Roar” singer, saying: “I was actually so starstruck I fell.”
Elsewhere, DJ Khaled waxed lyrical to reporters about channelling God through his music, an overwhelmed Iain Stirling told The Independent American awards shows are “just bigger and more mad,” and Chappell Roan tussled with a photographer. By the time the night’s biggest star, Taylor Swift, rocked up fashionably late, the live broadcast was already getting under way.
Eminem kicked off proceedings with an army of Slim Shady lookalikes, launching into a medley of his hits “Houdini” and “Somebody Save Me.” Fellow rapper Megan Thee Stallion then welcomed the crowd as a first-time host, joking that the VMAs now stood for the “voluptuous Megan awards.”
Arriving just in time, Swift and Post Malone took home the first televised award of the night for Best Collaboration, for “Fortnight,” handed to them by Flavor Flav and Olympian Jordan Chiles. Swift began her speech by paying tribute to the nearly-3,000 victims of 9/11. “Waking up this morning in New York on September 11th, I’ve just been thinking about what happened 23 years ago,” she said to applause. “Everyone who lost a loved one and everyone that we lost. That is the most important thing today.”
Shawn Mendes made his long-awaited return to the ceremony after a two-year hiatus from music. He debuted a new, John Mayer-esque track, “Nobody Knows,” which whipped the crowd into a rocked-out frenzy. Later on the night, his ex-girlfriend Camilla Cabello fared much worse. The Cuba-born singer performed her songs “Godspeed” and “June Gloom” in a panopticon, singing into a camera on a tripod that beamed the closeup on to a screen with a confusing two second delay, making everything seem out of sync. Lacklustre applause followed.
Dangling from the ceiling was Sabrina Carpenter who descended on a giant diamond to deliver some of the biggest songs of 2024: “Please Please Please,” “Taste” and “Espresso.” She went on to win Song of the Year for the inescapable “Espresso,” thanking fans and “that me-espresso.”
Roan, fresh off her battle on the black carpet, appeared in shining armor in front of a colossal castle set. Behind her, backing dancers dressed as knights did battle as she led from the front with her queer pop anthem, “Good Luck, Babe.” Roan predictably and deservedly went on to win Best New Artist, which she dedicated to the numerous drag queens in the audience.
Throughout the ceremony, MTV flashed back to iconic moments in it’s 40-year history, including Britney Spears’ albino python and Miley Cyrus’s infamous collaboration with Robin Thicke. Also celebrating an anniversary was Busta Rhymes, who introduced LL COOL J to ring in 40 years of Def Jam Records with Public Enemy’s Flavor Flav and Chuck D. The crowd bopped along to a medley of “Headsprung,” “Going Back To Cali,” and “Bring The Noise.”
Another legend, Katy Perry, was celebrated with the Vanguard trophy – a merit given for lifetime achievement in the industry. First, she ripped through an eight-song medley spanning her career from “Teenage Dream” to “Lifetimes.” Swift was seen cheering as Perry locked lips with Doechii during a performance of their new song “I’m His, He’s Mine” – perhaps a nod to her 2008 hit, “I Kissed A Girl.” After the breathless performance, Perry’s partner Orlando Bloom took the stage to present her with the award. “I did that all on the first day of my period, can you believe it?” she joked after accepting the honor.
The night ended as it began: with Taylor Swift. The megastar won the coveted Video of the Year award, again for “Fortnight,” taking her VMA tally to a record 30 wins, equalling Beyoncé’s total. This time, she thanked her “boyfriend” (cue wild cheering) NFL player Travis Kelce: “Everything this man touches turns to happiness, fun, and magic.”
The day after formally endorsing Kamala Harris for president, she also urged the audience: “If you’re over 18 please register to vote for something else that is important – the Presidential election.” On a night where women dominated, Trump may be ruing the day he crossed the biggest pop artist of our time.
You can find the full list of winners from the 2024 MTV VMAs here.
