By: Katherine Kerr
Each year, you can bet almost every person with a TV set is watching the VMAs. Whether it’s to catch something as outrageous as Britney Spears making out with Madonna, or Kanye West ruining his career, the Video Music Awards never fail to disappoint as far as entertainment is concerned.
This year’s VMAs were no different. In fact, the most shocking thing to happen in this year’s VMAs was me actually liking something Lady Gaga did. She (or should I say he?) opened the show as her alter ego, “Jo Calderone.” Jo’s character was created in 2010 and has popped up in random spurts and appeared in Vogue Japan, Gaga’s single “You and I” and the music video for the song. The monologue done by Jo, or Gaga, whichever one you prefer, just shows how versatile she can be, and just how great of a performer she really is, underneath all of the meat and glitter. That being said, I’ve never thought it to be respectable for an artist to use gimmicks to gain followers, but Sunday’s performance shows that Gaga actually does have talent, and
she should show it more often.
Although Lady Gaga was enough of an opening, MTV decided to add on Kevin Hart to open with a rant about how he’s NOT the host, along with some outdated jokes. By the looks on everyone’s faces, it should have been a rant about how he’s NOT funny. After Hart’s rambling was over, the awards show awkwardly resumed (almost as awkward as Gaga not changing out of her suit) and featured acts like Odd Future vs. Beastie Boys, Jay-Z and Kanye’s mash-up, and Chris Brown dancing to Wu Tang and Nirvana. Which very well may have been the highlight of the show for me, if the idea of the “dancing to each decade” would have been executed at all. You forgot about 18 years, MTV.
As far as performances go, though, Adele had the best one with a classy performance of her single, “Someone Like You.” Talk about not having to use gimmicks – Adele was only accompanied by a mic and a piano, the only two things an artist should need. Another not-so-bad performance came from Beyonce, when she sang her song, “Love On Top” wearing a bedazzled-looking purple-blue sport coat that reminded me of the awful Dolce & Gabanna one. What’s even worse is that all of her dancers were dressed in the same outfit…none of which helped disguise her baby bump.
When it came time to present the most prestigious awards, the show got a little less weird and a little more serious. As for Best New Artist, Tyler the Creator and Wiz Khalifa do not fall under that category, but as usual, MTV is a couple steps behind. So the Best New Artist award ended up in the hands of Tyler the Creator, as it should have, and while I’m sure the other nominees were shocked, anyone who’s listened to a song OTHER than Yonkers saw this one coming. Other awards included Best Rock Video, which surprisingly went to the Foo Fighters, and Video of the Year, that earned Katy Perry, one of the best dressed artists of the night, one of three moon men.
All jokes aside, MTV did do something right this VMA season. They strayed away from the conventional pop music and artists that have taken over the awards show for so long. With artists like Tyler the Creator, Foster the People and that random girl singing bad 90’s hits between every act, MTV showed a more informed side that hopefully will stay.
