At 8:00 P.M. on September 12th, hundreds of thousands of people turned on their TVs to watch MTV’s Video Music Awards. From red carpet looks and fashion to singers and performances, every viewer had expectations, thoughts, and opinions on the night. History was made when Rema, known for his hit song Calm Down featuring Selena Gomez, was made the first African person in VMA history to win an award for an Afrobeats song. Also included in this monumental show was Taylor Swift, who claimed the record for the most awards in one night in VMAs history, totaling nine awards won. Some other fan favorites at the ceremony were Cardi B, Shakira, and Nicki Minaj, but everyone had their preferences:
“[My favorite performances] were Reneé Rapp or Shakira. [I loved] Taylor Swift. She deserved everything and she can’t be beat[en].”- Ms. Carbone, English
“My favorite performance was the hip hop medley, because most of those songs and artists were popular when I was a teenager. I don’t have an opinion on the winners, because I don’t think the awards themselves are really important, especially since MTV doesn’t even play music anymore. I wasn’t surprised to see Taylor Swift win so many, being that her tour was so popular this year.”– Ms. Chaiken, Geography; Government
“I liked it, I liked how they included the different ethnicities. I liked all the performances, [but] Shakira was one of the best ones this year.”- Isabella Romero, Freshman
“My favorite performance was Shakira. I thought the performers were great and I felt everyone was deserving of their awards.”- Ava Abello, Sophomore
“As a KPop fan, I liked Stray Kid’s and TXT’s performances, but I also really enjoyed Anitta’s, Olivia Rodrigo’s, Nicki Minaj’s, and Sabrina Carpenter’s! For some of the winners, I thought they deserved it, like SZA for best R&B, while for others, I thought they didn’t deserve it because there were better nominees. […] But, I’m still proud of the other winners!”- Divyyashree Sathiaseelan, Sophomore
“Olivia Rodrigo was my favorite [performer] because I love her [new] album, and Taylor Swift was my favorite winner.”- Ashley Riesgo, Junior
