14 DAY TRIAL // The long-expected Video Music Awards returned to New York but, unfortunately, it wasn't the big 'bang' that it was planned to be. Many people saw their expectations cheated, by being forced to watch (in the hope that a great break might come along any second) a poorly organized ceremony, lacking brilliance and 'spunk'.
The 2006 VMAs got very close to resembling a typical Grammy ceremony. Not that this one wouldn't be great, but it's much too serious, traditional, conservative (or however you want to call it) to appeal to the MTV audience. And this year's VMAs, as we were saying, lacked the outrageous (and funny) acceptance speeches, the wacky outfits and, most important, the glamour that characterized the previous editions.
It all began well, with celebrities strolling on the red carpet and having their pictures taken, all orderly and looking beautiful. Well, that last part was true only for some of the stars that clustered at the entrance. But the moment comedian/rocker Jack Black hit the stage, a sigh of annoyance was rather felt than heard through the entire Radio Music Hall.
He promised that he would be bringing 'thunder back', but the only thing that he brought was a bunch of lame jokes, out-of-place gestures and extravagant behavior. The crowd did not like him, and nor did the viewers at home. Black also promised that he would make Chris Tucker eat his words out, with his performance topping that of the (much better) comedian, in 2003.
The rest of the show was as dull as its beginning. Each winner came on stage and nicely thanked 'God and MTV' for such an extraordinary distinction, accompanying his/her words with the all-too-familiar phrase 'Gee, I didn't expect that!'. They all stuck to their speeches, written at home, while the same thing could be noticed at the presenters who limited their words to what the teleprompter was reading.
All in all, the show was by far the most boring thing that MTV ever did. Its spectacular parts (it had some too, and we all saw that) were the live performances, by such artists as Beyonce ('Ring the Alarm'), Justin Timberlake ('SexyBack'), Fergie ('London Bridge') and Christina Aguilera ('Hurt'). So we can safely say that the 'thunder' went down only for some brief moments. But they were definitely worth watching...
First, Beyonce's rendering of the 'Ring the Alarm' single was probably the most explosive bit at the 2006 VMAs. The woman was on fire, proving that she still has what it takes to make fans go out of their minds. The video for this second single, poorly received by critics, was re-enacted on stage, with the sexy Beyonce shaking her tailfeather and giving the audience the time of their lives.
The singer's bit was incendiary and put down almost to perfection, from the ringing alarms that marked the onset of the track, to the dancing routines. She sang, she danced, she played the unrestrainable woman, she took her clothes off and then danced some more. Even the part from the middle of the performance, although resembling and reminding us of the Michael Jackson routines, was great. And, to be more convincing (if such open praise wasn't enough), here is Beyonce ringing the alarm and doing her stuff.
Then, there was Justin's part (note: the performances are not enumerated chronologically, but according to their degree of 'hotness'). The former N'Sync-er brought 'sexy back'... literally. Unfortunately, his singing was lost somewhere on the way. Personally, we say that the 'FutureSex' album is not as great as we might have expected, except for the first single released from it, 'SexyBack'. But Justin's bit was fiery!
And that happened mainly because the man can dance like hell and has a more than nice rhythm to the tracks he played. Timbaland also made a special appearance and shook his tooshie in tandem with Timberlake. Useless to say the female admirers lucky enough to be seated in the mosh pit went head over heels when the male sensation(s) came on...
Just see for yourselves how it was like to be bringing all that sexiness to the VMAs.
As good as Beyonce's performance, but totally different, was that of Christina Aguilera. All dressed up like a diva, in a red gown, 'The Voice' gave a heart-breaking rendering of one of the tracks from 'Back to Basics', 'Hurt'. We just can't help from saying that Xtina does make some very weird faces when she sings but I guess we can always excuse her for that, considering the amazing sound that comes out of her throat.
Have a look and see how the next diva (take that, 'iconic blonde' Paris Hilton!) of the decade looks (and sounds) like.
According to our humble opinion, these three were the most memorable parts of the 2006 edition of the Video Music Awards. There were others, less accomplished, like Fergie's 'London Bridge' and the skit that Britney Spears and hubby Kevin Federline miserably enacted. If your patience can reach unknown limits, have a look at them, too.
This (highly subjective) article was written in the hope that, out of a surprisingly disappointing event, some things can still be salvaged and appreciated accordingly.
