Taylor Swift has walked away with four prizes at MTV’s Europe Music Awards, including best video for her 10-minute All Too Well.
Double-award winners included Nicki Minaj for best song and best hip-hop and French DJ and record producer David Guetta for best electronic release and best collaboration.
The event, broadcast on MTV from Duesseldorf in western Germany, honoured musicians from Brazil to South Korea.
It featured an appearance by Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra, winners of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest, who performed Stefania in an arena glowing with Ukraine’s national colours of blue and yellow.
US pop singer Swift won best artist, best pop, best video and best long-form video.
“I felt like I learned so much about how making film can be a natural extension of my storytelling,” Swift said as she accepted the long-form video award.
In All Too Well, Swift draws inspiration from 1970s Hollywood and recounts a fraying romantic relationship that disintegrates, leaving behind only a scarf and memories.
British pop star Harry Styles won in the best live category and Thailand-born Lalisa ‘Lisa’ Manoban won best K-pop.
South Korea’s BTS, the global K-pop sensation, won the biggest fans category.
The show was hosted by British pop star Rita Ora and New Zealand film director Taika Waititi, who married earlier this year.
Ora herself won for best look.
Duesseldorf has a musical heritage as home to the pioneering German electronic band Kraftwerk, which influenced generations of pop and dance musicians with mesmerising tracks such as Autobahn.
The city also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011.
The rock band Muse, which won the best rock award, said it was dedicating its victory to the people of Ukraine and Iran.
Kalush Orchestra’s frontman Oleh Psiuk said before the performance he hoped more Ukrainian bands would be present next year.
– with AAP
