Ah, the good old MTV Video Music Awards.
Right off the bat, I'll state that it has been years since I took any real interest in this kind of stuff. I will usually watch the MTV Movie Awards, because I'm certainly more up on movies and actors than I am on current "music".
But this time around, they planned this tribute to Michael Jackson, and Janet Jackson was the performer. I've been a fan of both Jacksons since the 80s, so I chose to watch.
I was slightly let down by the tribute. All that time that Madonna spent rambling on about going out to dinner with Mike and what a great guy he was could have been better spent on a more elaborate musical number, specifically a dance routine. One thing about Michael's videos and stage performances that I've always loved were the dance sequences. More MJ style dancing, less Madonna. That's how I roll.
No details were given in advance about the tribute or about Janet's performance, but I somehow assumed that Janet would be performing a few of Michael's songs and that the involvement of the dancers from what would have been the "This Is It" tour meant that the dance numbers from said songs would be recreated.
I was partly right. The dance numbers included the original music with the videos playing on a giant screen behind the dancers.
The musical number, of course, began with the famous "Thriller" sequence, and they did this thing that I thought came out looking really cool where a 2nd sort of 'ghost' image of Michael would flash (I didn't want to use that word, but... well... ya know)... behold:
Right off the bat, I'll state that it has been years since I took any real interest in this kind of stuff. I will usually watch the MTV Movie Awards, because I'm certainly more up on movies and actors than I am on current "music".
But this time around, they planned this tribute to Michael Jackson, and Janet Jackson was the performer. I've been a fan of both Jacksons since the 80s, so I chose to watch.
I was slightly let down by the tribute. All that time that Madonna spent rambling on about going out to dinner with Mike and what a great guy he was could have been better spent on a more elaborate musical number, specifically a dance routine. One thing about Michael's videos and stage performances that I've always loved were the dance sequences. More MJ style dancing, less Madonna. That's how I roll.
No details were given in advance about the tribute or about Janet's performance, but I somehow assumed that Janet would be performing a few of Michael's songs and that the involvement of the dancers from what would have been the "This Is It" tour meant that the dance numbers from said songs would be recreated.
I was partly right. The dance numbers included the original music with the videos playing on a giant screen behind the dancers.
The musical number, of course, began with the famous "Thriller" sequence, and they did this thing that I thought came out looking really cool where a 2nd sort of 'ghost' image of Michael would flash (I didn't want to use that word, but... well... ya know)... behold:
The dancers were spot on in time with the dance sequences playing behind them, so it ended up looking really cool.
Well... except for the dancer who experienced a fail...
Hey, Smooth Criminal Dancer... you're doing it wrong. You're supposed to be doing one of Michael's most famous moves, theeeee signature move in the "Smooth Criminal" dance sequence. It's the anti-gravity lean, not the pretending-I'm-at-the-proctologist lean.
How did he earn a front-spot?
For Janet's (Ms. Jackson if you're nasty) part, the video for Janet and Michael's song "Scream" played behind her and the dancers. Janet had been removed from the video so that it would appear that only Michael was on the screen, doing the exact moves as Janet did live. Well, really it's the other way around, but you get my general drift.
Neat trick though. It came off really well, but I'm concered about the end, when the music ended and applause commenced. Why did Janet look like this:
Personally, I think she was scowling at those two maniacs, Jermaine and Papa Joe, who were sitting in front. What were they even doing there? Oh right, there were TV cameras.
The only other possibility I can think of is that maybe Jimmy Fallon yelled "Janet! Show us the other tit!"
Speaking of unexpected boobs showing up, almost right away, chaos broke out at the 2009 VMAs. I'm referrring, of course, to the much talked about douchebaggery of Kanye West, who interrupted Taylor Swift's acceptance of her very first VMA award (and the first award of the night) for Best Female Video to announce that he would have much preferred that Beyonce had won.
I'm no kind of Kanye fan to start with and this incident further demonstrates why. This piece of shit marched onto the stage while this girl was talking, took the microphone out of her hand, told her "I'mma let'choo finish", and proceeded to say that Beyonce was the one who had the best video. He gave Taylor the mic back, but because of Kanye's ridiculous and unexpected display of assholeness, the mic had been cut off. Taylor tried to finish, could not be heard, and finally gave up, strolling sadly off of the stage.
There is a really special place in hell for people like Kanye West. In fact, after last night, they have renamed this special place "Kanye's Korner".
Moving on.
Lady Gaga... what the hell?
Seriously?
The first "outfit" that Gaga showed up in, with the mask and matching neck brace (neck brace? WHAT for?) was just stupid.
She arrived to the red carpet that way. She couldn't move her neck, so she kept turning her whole upper body every time she wanted to make out with Kermit the Frog. Yeah. That's right. That sentence is supposed to say that.
Kermit, for real, you can do better.
I wanted to include a picture of Gaga and the handsomely tuxedoed Frog but I can't seem to find one. What I did find was an explanation of a joke I didn't originally understand. Kermit told Gaga that he was glad to see that she wasn't wearing a dress made out of his friends.
He was referring to this:
Alright, let's pause for review.
I thought it was weird that time that Bjork wore this:
...or the time that Jennifer Ho-pez presented her (w)hole business plan at the Grammys...
... but I gotta give Gaga the win on this one. A Kermit the Frog suit is hard to top.
About halfway through the VMAs, Lady Gaga was, apparently, put into the Witness Protection Program...
Unfortunately, she accepted an award dressed this way and her cover was blown when she spoke, so she needed to be quickly redisguised as a bird's nest...
So, Madonna, Janet Jackson, Beyonce... yep, that's about it as far as people I've heard of at this shindig. I don't watch MTV and I don't really listen to top 40 radio anymore, so I felt like an old person watching this program. At nearly every name they announced I said, "Who?" Not only that, but they're all about 19 years old and they suck.
I was pleased when Beyonce recovered some of the lost dignity that Kanye created by inviting Taylor Swift to finish her speech during what would have been Beyonce's acceptance of the Video of the Year award. I sort made that call just before it happened... I said something like it would be very cool if Beyonce won and invited Taylor Swift to have some of her stolen moment back, and it turns out that Beyonce is just as smart and classy as me *snerk* because she had the same idea. Very well played, Be-ouncy.
Overall, a ho-hum VMA show. A few highlights, most kind of boring to those of us who don't know who Muse is, and of course, token controversy, this time in the form of Kuntye West.
Maybe next year, when they find Michael hanging around with Elvis, they'll get him to open the show and he can do the anti-gravity move the right way. Until then, I don't have to pay attention to MTV for another year.
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