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5 most memorable moments from MTV's Video Music Awards

5 most memorable moments from MTV's Video Music Awards
MTV VMAs: Best moments from the 2022 awards
MTV VMAs

It was an eventful time at MTV's Video Music Awards in Newark, New Jersey, last night.

The annual awards were presented by Nicki Minaj, Jack Harlow and LL Cool J and there was plenty of entertainment with performances from Mäneskin, BLACKPINK, Anitta, Bad Bunny, J Balvin, Kane Brown, Marshmello and Khalid, Lizzo, Panic! at the Disco, Jack Harlow, Fergie and Nicki Minaj.

Eminem and Snoop Dogg incorporated the metaverse into their performance, as they were in their Bored Ape NFT avatars for half the song.

Not to mention there was also a Johnny Depp cameo at the beginning of the show.

Taylor Swift took home the Video of the Year for a historic third time and also announced details of her album, while Nick Minaj delighted audiences with her greatest hits medley and received the Vanguard award and won the "Best Hip-Hop" video.

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Bad Bunny scooped the Artist of the Year Award, Billie Eilish's Happier Than Ever was crowned Song of the Year and Harry Styles won Album of the Year.

Other winners include Dove Cameron for Best New Artist, Mäneskin for Best Alternative, Lisa for Best K-pop, Lizzo for Video for Good, The Weeknd for Best R&B and Anitta for Best Latin (see the full list of winners here).

Here are some of the night's most memorable moments:


Taylor Swift announced her new album 'Midnights'

Taylor Swift made history to become the first artist to win three VMA awards for Video of the Year after she won the award this year for "All Too Well (10 Minute Version)" which she starred in and directed.

In her speech, Swift described being "so heartened by the fact for the first time in VMA history four of the directors nominated in the Video of the Year category are women."


Upon winning the coveted award, Swift also decided it was a "fun moment" to announce that her 10th studio album will be released on October 21.

"I will tell you more a midnight," she added, in what was a teaser for the album title "Midnights," which Swift has described as being "the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life."

... and we also saw she loves a dance and a rap.

If Taylor Swift is at an award show, then you can count on her to be a supportive audience member when other acts are performing as fans saw her bust out the dance moves when BLACKPINK performed Pink Venom and she also could be seen rapping along to Superbass during Nicki Minaj's Vanguard performance too.

And it certainly didn't get unnoticed on Twitter...





Nicki Minaj wins Vanguard award and speaks about mental health

This year, Nicki Minaj won the Vanguard award and delivered an iconic medley of her greatest hits including her verse from Kanye West's Monster, as well as All Things Go, Beez in the Trap, Chun-Li, Roman’s Revenge, Moment 4 Life, Super Bass, Anaconda and Super Freaky Girl.

In her speech, Minaj said she wished "Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson were here," and added: "I wish that people understood what they meant and what they were going through."

“I wrote people who gave me huge opportunities that I’ll never forget: Kanye West, Beyonce, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Eminem, Britney Spears, Rihanna. Thank you for everything," the rapper also mentioned.


Lizzo referenced an infamous VMA moment during her speech

When Lizzo won the Video For Good award last night, she decided to call out her haters by referencing the infamous beef Nicki Minaj had with Miley Cyrus at the 2015 VMA's in which Minaj said: And now, back to this b**** who had a lot to say about me the other day in the press: Miley, what’s good?"

"You know what, I ain’t gonna say nothing. They be like, ‘Lizzo, why don’t you clap back? Why don’t you clap back?’ 'Cause b****, I'm winning, ho," Lizzo added.

It's fair to say viewers loved the reference...



Mäneskin's racy performance got censored by MTV, viewers say

Italian glam rock band and Eurovision 2021 winners Mäneskin performed their latest song Supermodel and the band certainly turned heads with their attire.

Frontman Damiano David sported a G-string and leather chaps, while bassist Victoria De Angelis’ pastie appeared to fall off mid-performance.


This resulted in complaints about the performance being censored as viewers tweeted that there were more shots of the New Jersey venue than of the actual band.

Mäneskin fans expressed their disappointment on Twitter.



Johnny Depp appeared as a moon man

The rumours were in fact true, Johnny Depp made an appearance at the VMA's as he made a brief appearance as a moon man, the mascot that appears on the award trophies.

“I just want you guys to know I’m available for birthdays, bat mitzvahs, weddings, wakes – any old thing you need," the 59-year-old joked in the digital cameo.

"And you know what? I needed the work," he added, sporting a clean-cut face.

It comes after The Pirates of the Caribbean star won his libel case against ex-wife Amber Heard in June this year.

Viewers weren't so impressed and mocked Depp's "big comeback," while others expressed outrage.





For the full list of VMA 2022 winners click here.

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