14 DAY TRIAL // The people have spoken: outstanding accomplishments in music, music videos in particular, were honored hours ago at the MTV Video Music Awards 2014, held live at The Forum in Inglewood, California. Winners included Miley Cyrus, Beyonce and Ariana Grande.
Of course, seeing how Beyonce was leading the nominations pack with no less than 8 nods, it would have been surprising to hear she’d gone home empty-handed. She rounded up what was already an amazing night with a stunning performance and accepting the Michael Jackson Vanguard Award.
And, because Beyonce is not the kind of celebrity to address rumors directly by having a publicist issue a statement in her name, she used the opportunity of being on stage and watched by industry peers and fans alike to rubbish all those rumors about how she and Jay Z were one foot out of the marriage, heading for divorce.
She did that when Jay Z walked on stage at the end of her performance, and with some help from Blue Ivy, presented her with her Moonman for the Vanguard Award. Beyonce cried and hugged her family, before saying that she would have been nothing without their love.
She received other Moonmen as well, including one for Best Collaboration, for her duet with Jay, “Drunk in Love,” and two for her beautiful ballad on how beauty is only skin-deep, “Pretty Hurts,” which was recognized as Best Video with a Social Message and Best Cinematography.
Miley Cyrus received the biggest award of the night (save for the Vanguard Award, that is), the Moonman for Video of the Year, for “Wrecking Ball.” So, that video of her nearly nude, riding a wrecking ball and licking a hammer that everyone seemed to hate when it came out isn’t just very popular (it has over 698 million views on YouTube at the time of writing), it’s also a winner with the industry.
Though last year’s edition was all about Miley’s on-stage antics, this year she took a step back and used the spotlight to raise awareness on a social problem, by having a homeless man come up with her to accept the award in her stead.
Ariana Grande won Best Pop Video for “Problem” ft. Iggy Azalea, Ed Sheeran won Best Male Video for “Sing” ft. Pharrell, and Katy Perry won Best Female Video for “Dark Horse” ft. Juicy J.
The complete list of winners is included below, check it out to see if your favorite made the cut.
VIDEO OF THE YEAR: Miley Cyrus – “Wrecking Ball” BEST MALE VIDEO: Ed Sheeran ft. Pharrell – “Sing” BEST FEMALE VIDEO: Katy Perry ft. Juicy J – “Dark Horse” BEST POP VIDEO: Ariana Grande ft. Iggy Azalea – “Problem” BEST ROCK VIDEO: Lorde – “Royals” BEST HIP HOP VIDEO: Drake ft. Majid Jordan – “Hold On (We’re Going Home)” MTV ARTIST TO WATCH: Fifth Harmony – “Miss Movin On” BEST COLLABORATION: Beyonce ft. JAY Z – “Drunk in Love” MTV CLUBLAND AWARD: Zedd ft. Hayley Williams – “Stay the Night” BEST VIDEO WITH A SOCIAL MESSAGE: Beyonce – “Pretty Hurts” BEST LYRIC VIDEO: 5 Seconds of Summer – “Don’t Stop” BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY: Beyonce – “Pretty Hurts” BEST EDITING: Eminem – “Rap God” BEST CHOREOGRAPHY: Sia – “Chandelier” BEST DIRECTION: DJ Snake & Lil Jon – “Turn Down for What” BEST ART DIRECTION: Arcade Fire – “Reflektor” BEST VISUAL EFFECTS: OK Go – “The Writing’s on the Wall”