One Direction could not be there. Beyoncé, too, was absent. Katy Perry and Justin Biber also missed the party. But Her Minajesty, hip-hop queen Nicki Minaj more than made up for what would have been diminished star power. With improved hosting skills, she sparkled mightily as she deftly presided over the MTV European Music Awards (EMAs), certainly now one of music’s most important events.
Nicki won the trophy for Best Hip-Hop and rocked the house with a medley of her big hits Super Bass, Anaconda and the ballad Bed of Lies. She also showed off her new style flair with a truly sensational wardrobe that everybody loved. I counted eight costume changes and she looked great in all of them.
Now on its 20th year, the MTV EMAs was held last Nov. 9 at the SSE Hydro Arena in Scotland, for the second time in a decade. Time travel was the theme and the show kicked off with a young Nicki watching the first telecast of the EMAs from her bedroom. From there, she took viewers back and forth through the years. Like to those times when dinosaurs, the reptile, ruled the earth and to the more recent past when guitar-toting dinosaurs, the rocking kind, made music.
That surprised because I have always thought that MTV was partial to hip-hop and pop. Not rock. But at various times during the high-energy evening, the stage filled up with rockers, young like the Brit band Royal Blood and old like dinosaurs, a soulful U2. Foremost among them though was ex-Black Sabbath frontman and reality TV star Ozzy Osbourne who is this year’s recipient of the Global Icon Award.
The impeccably-dressed Ozzy came with his lovely TV star wife, Sharon. He received his trophy from a shy mumbling guitarist named Slash of the dinosaur band Guns N’ Roses. Slash also led the tribute to Ozzy’s music and was joined by Simon Neil of the Scottish band Biffy Clyro and Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators. They did Crazy Train.
And the rest of the winners are…
Best Song: Problem by Ariana Grande feat. Iggy Azalea
Best Pop: One Direction
Best Female: Ariana Grande
Best Male: Justin Bieber
Best Live: One Direction
Best New: 5 Seconds of Summer
Best Video: Dark Horse by Katy Perry feat. Juicy J
Best Rock: Linkin Park
Best Alternative: Thirty Seconds to Mars
Best Hip-Hop: Nicki Minaj
Best Electronic: Calvin Harris
Biggest Fans: One Direction
Best Look: Katy Perry
Best Push: 5 Seconds of Summer
Best World Stage: Enrique Iglesias/MTV World
Best Song with a Message: Pretty Hurts by Beyoncé
Stage Isle of MTV — Malta
Worldwide Act: Bibi Zhou from Southeast Asia
Ariana ditched her ponytail but kept her sexy onesies as she floated over the audience in a bubble chair when she performed her winning song Problem and her hit Break Free. Alicia Keys did her We Are Here from the O2 Academy of Glasgow, while Kiesza sang Hideaway in a red phone booth from the RoyaI Exchange Square. And Charli XCX turned her Boom Clap and Break The Rules into punk.
I must say though that although the girls did very well, they proved no match to the guys. Maybe, it is because females do scream loudest for boy idols. Enrique Iglesias literally lit up the arena with his medley of Freak and Bailando. The swoons were almost audible for Ed Sheeran’s Thinking Out Loud. And Royal Blood, which I saw for the first time, had the music to turn fans wild.
Note though that only the music and the fans went wild this time. This year’s European Music Awards was sedate compared to others from the past. MTV must be growing up. Maybe maturing. Maybe soon a dinosaur. Which given what we saw in the show is not so bad after all.
Speaking of dinosaurs, take a look at this week’s hit list from Billboard magazine. Given the names of several artists present, these could have come from the ’70s.
The Top 20 albums are 1989 by Taylor Swift; Now 52 by Various Artists; Montevallo by Sam Hunt; My Dream Duets by Barry Manilow; Old Boots New Dirt by Jason Aldean; Anything Goes by the Florida Georgia Line; Led Zeppelin IV by Led Zeppelin; Love Ran Red by Chris Tomlin; 5: The Gray Chapter by Slipknot; Black Veil Brides by the Black Veil Brides.
Partners by Barbra Streisand and partners; Houses Of The Holy by Led Zeppelin; Paperwork by T.I.; In The Lonely Hour by Sam Smith; Melody Road by Neil Diamond; Rise by Trip Lee; Cheek To Cheek by Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga; Hozier by Hozier; Frozen, the motion picture soundtrack by Various Artists; ...Honor Is All We Know by Rancid.
And the Top 20 singles are Shake It Off by Taylor Swift; All About That Bass by Meghan Trainor; Habits (Stay High) by Tove Lo; Animals by Maroon 5; Bang Bang by Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj; Black Widow by Iggy Azalea feat. Rita Ora; Don’t Tell ‘Em by Jeremih feat. YG; Hot Boy by Bobby Shimuda; Don’t by Ed Sheeran; Take Me To Church by Hozer.
Stay With Me by Sam Smith; I’m Not The Only One also by Sam Smith; Chandelier by Sia; Trumpets by Jason Derulo; Rather Be by Clean Bandit feat. Jess Glynne; Lifestyle by Rich Gang feat. Young Thug and Rich Homme Quan; Cool Kids by Echosmith; Blank Space by Taylor Swift; Blame by Calvin Harris; and Tuesday by I Love McKonnen feat. Drake.