The 2019 MTV VMAs took place at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. on Monday, and it was certainly a star-studded event.
Taylor Swift opened up the show with epic performances of “You Need to Calm Down” and “Lover.” However, she wasn’t the only one to take the stage. Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello also sang their steamy hit “Señorita,” and Miley Cyrus belted out her raw breakup ballad “Slide Away.”
There were also plenty of celebrity presenters—including Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, Jonathan Van Ness and Lenny Kravitz—as well as the honorees. Swift took home the trophy for Video of the Year, and Cardi B won Best Hip Hop. In addition, Joe Jonas, Kevin Jonas and Nick Jonas won the Moon Person for Best Pop, and Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus won Song of the Year.
Ariana Grand even though the “Thank U, Next” star was tied with Swift for most nominations of the night—and ended up winning Artist of the Year—she wasn’t able to attend the big award show. The 26-year-old singer is currently on tour. Over the weekend, she made an emotional return to Manchester for Pride. She’s also set to perform in Paris today. Drake: The 32-year-old rapper was nominated in several categories, including Song of the Year for “In My Feelings.” However, he was M.I.A. during the show. Drake didn’t reveal why he missed the ceremony—although, he seemed to be a little busy. The artist dropped his music video for “Money in the Grave” on Monday. He also shared a picture of himself standing in front of a score board with the numbers nine and six in the background. Billie Eilish, the “Bad Guy” artist was another major winner of the night. Not only did she win in the Best New Artist category, but she was also named Push Artist of the Year. However, like Grande, the 17-year-old star was unable to attend due to her tour schedule. In fact, the celeb is scheduled to perform in Russia for the next few days.
