Halsey brought the weirdness to the VMAs last night in a Dundas Couture gown that was just a ruffley sheer overlay over a bra, granny panties and a studded corset. She always dresses like this but I think she took it up a notch with the styling. Her roots were painted to look like a rainbow and she had some kind of orange stuff on her cheeks. It wasn’t in the typical highlighting or contouring areas either, it was on the sides, which was weird, and on camera it didn’t look even on both sides! Come on with that. The rainbow roots should have been longer, in my opinion. I’ll say something nice, she’s so pretty even with all this weirdness.

This is what she wore during the show. Normani did it better
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Alison Brie was in Elie Saab. This is just OK for the VMAs but wouldn’t fly most other places. She presented with French Montana and I swear he was staring at her boobs.
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Presenter Hailee Steinfeld was working this red Aadnevik dress. Love the detailing on this and how it falls. This looks like it should be sheer, but it’s not. She can really sing and her tracks are surprisingly good, but she only has a handful of songs out. I’d like to see a full album from her.

Keke Palmer was in a gorgeous yellow Yousef Aljasmi column dress with Swarovski crystals. I’m including her because her old school bedazzled cell phone purse is the best. I want it! This reminds me of Lady Gaga’s purse at the Met Gala, remember that?

photos credit: WENN, Backgrid and Getty. Thanks to RedCarpet-FashionAwards for finding the designers!

I have been obsessed with Miley’s “Slide Away” since she first released it a week and a half ago. It’s catchy as hell, I’ve been listening to it on the drive to and from work, which is partly a depressing way to start your day, but it’s also liberating and freeing at the same time. Because that’s wh…

I really love that Lizzo and Lil Nas X are now big deals, respectively. Lizzo’s “Truth Hurts” became the slow-burning jam of the past year (and it’s still at the top of the charts) and Lil Nas X basically broke the conventional, old-school music-industry charting standards with “Old Town Road,” his brilliant rap-country mash-up. Both artists were on hand to perform at the VMAs and both killed it. Lil Nas X looked like Nu Prince and Lizzo looked like Divine (she did big hair and a Moschino gown for the carpet).

Here’s Lizzo performing “Truth Hurts” and “Good As Hell.” The set, you guys. The giant butt which changed colors. It was… amazing. And it jiggled!

Here’s Lil Nas X performing “Panini.” I really enjoy that he’s doing his own thing and the performance doesn’t really have a connection to the song and it’s fine, he just wanted the sh-t to look like TRON.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

This is Normani looking like the sexiest mermaid in Nicolas Jebran at the VMAs. Look at how perfectly her hair is blowing back! If you have not seen the video for Motivation yet, do yourself a favor, watch it and come back. If you don’t have four minutes, watch from about 1:55 until 2:30. She does an actual backflip, so not only can can dance, she can do amazing gymnastics moves. Maybe that was achieved through editing, but it looks real enough. Plus the song is so good. Combined with the choreography, it gives me goosebumps. This is Normani’s debut single after breaking away from Fifth Harmony and she delivers. (The other breakaway artist from that group underwhelms. I said it.) Normani performed “Motivation” at the VMAs last night and she did a floor routine too!! That part is at 2:30. She wasn’t doing flips but she did a split and a bunch of floor moves, it was impressive. Here’s that video:

This is similar to the music video except they switched the routine up enough so it’s still fresh for people like me who have watched it over ten times. I can’t find any solid details about when her solo album is coming out, but I will definitely listen to it the day it does.

I’m including a couple of other performers in this post as we’re trying to cover the major fashion and acts from the VMAs. Here’s H.E.R. in Valentino. She had on an actual snake on the red carpet! It was a nod to Britney’s Slave 4 U snake in 2001, and Cosmo points out that Tana Mongeau, who is a YouTuber I haven’t heard of before, wore one this year too. OK, those are live creatures. I’m not about to defend snakes’ rights but this feels wrong. Plus a lot of people, like my aunt, have a phobia of them. (She could not watch Temple of Doom.) H.E.R. performed “Anti” and you can see that here. I really liked the visuals and the feel of it. There were a lot of good performances last night.

Here’s Spanish singer Rosalia, she did “A Ningun Hombre,” “Yo x Ti, Tu x Mi” & “Aute Cuture” and you can see that performance here. I’m not familiar with her but she has pipes. I also like what she said when she was presenting, that she sings in Spanish and is from Spain. There were a lot of pointed and necessary references last night to the artists being immigrants.

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“Dear Maddy,

Happy 30th Birthday from your Boast Bitches! We are lucky to be included in your narrative and hope you continue to question the official story! Here’s a picture of your youthful inspiration Shakira. Her and your hips don’t lie.

From The Boast Bitches aka Ais, Al, and Jess”

…

The turnout for last night’s MTV VMAs was okay. I mean, I’m old enough to remember a time when the VMAs were wall-to-wall A-list celebrities and musical acts, but I have to give MTV some credit: this year, they really did a lot with live music and special, one-of-a-kind performances. The guest list was just kind of meh though. A lot of the “audience” cut-aways were to Bella and Gigi Hadid, who were seated front row with Halsey. Gigi wore Tom Ford and Bella wore Charlotte Knowles. Both outfits were bad for different reasons, and it’s weird to see them so coordinated? Also: Bella got fresh face work, right? In some of the cutaways (not to mention these photos) her face looked jacked to hell.

Lil’ Kim killed a Muppet, and I kind of think Bella Hadid went to Lil Kim’s plastic surgeon.

Bebe Rexha looked cute as hell in this silver Christian Siriano.

FKA Twigs in Ed Marler. Such a mess and what is going on with her?

Diplo is still doing the country thing (and yes I would still hit it, please don’t @ me).

Lenny Kravitz is still going to be showing up to the VMAs shirtless when he’s 70 and we’ll still be into it.

Cardi B wore Déviant La Vie. Is it just me or was Cardi kind of *scattered* at the VMAs? Was she on something?

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Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Getty, WENN.

Dear Gossips,

If you’ve watched Missy Elliott’s performance from last night’s MTV VMAs more than once, that is correct. Here’s me sounding like a bitter old aunt, quoting Kathleen who, by contrast (in her mind), is forever young: these kids don’t deserve.

She was actually saying that about Q…

I tweeted this last night but it’s really true: Missy Elliott is truly the most unproblematic fave. No one has a beef with her. She doesn’t have a beef with anyone. She’s one of the most creative and interesting people in music and she’s been a pioneer and icon for decades. She seems like a genuinely nice and low-key person in real life too. So everyone – every single person – was happy that MTV decided to give Missy the Vanguard Award. That meant that Missy got to organize a medley performance and it was… incredible. TRY NOT TO JAM OUT TO THIS. YOU CANNOT.

I almost cried when “The Rain” started. “Work It” and “Get Your Freak On” and everything else. Plus a UFO. Incredible dancing and a dozen costume changes too. This is perfect.

Missy was very emotional for the Vanguard Award presentation. Here’s her speech:

The only “controversy” here is that originally, MTV named this award the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. MTV never officially renamed the award – even given the resurgence of awareness around MJ’s pedophilia – but MTV seemed to drop MJ’s name in all of their promotional stuff around the VMAs. Missy still called the award by its name, saying: “This Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award means everything to me. I have worked diligently for over two decades, and I never thought I’d be standing up here receiving this award. It means so much to me.” I’m… fine with it. Michael Jackson committed those crimes, not Missy Elliott. And she’s obviously the kind of person who can separate the art from the man/predator.

Photos courtesy of WENN.

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Miley Cyrus has a difficult history with the VMAs. She was perhaps one of the last “MTV artists,” one of the last pop artists who really benefited from MTV, and whose career was shaped by her MTV appearances. But she’s also the woman who twerked on Robin Thicke, couldn’t keep her tongue in her mouth and became a national talking point. Oh, and let’s not forget the time Nicki Minaj called her out at the VMAs (the “WHAT’S GOOD” heard ‘round the world). All in all, Miley needs MTV and MTV needs Miley.

So Miley decided to make her first public appearance, following Liam Hemsworth’s divorce filing, at the VMAs. She didn’t walk the carpet, but she performed. She performed her new song “Slide Away,” which she released as a “it’s all Liam’s fault” argument, something about whiskey and pills. MTV agreed to show the performance in black & white, for artsy reasons. Something nice: her body looks great these days. Something not nice: her hair is a complete tragedy, made worse by the “wet look.”

An okay performance. The set design and the pared-down performance reminded me of some of Rihanna’s Grammy/VMA/AMA performances. After the VMAs, Miley was seen leaving with Kaitlynn Carter. Kaitlynn was apparently there, at the VMAs, backstage during the show.

Miley Cyrus and Kaitlynn Carter coupled up for some post-#VMAs fun! https://t.co/V2cqdrGXM3

— JustJared.com (@JustJared) August 27, 2019

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Photos courtesy of Getty.

YOU GUYS. I love Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes and their love is real and they will be together forever and I don’t want to hear one more word against them. THEY ARE REAL. And they are adorable. While Shawn and Camila didn’t walk the carpet together at the arrival, they did happily pose together backstage after they won a VMA. Camila’s white dress is Balmain – it’s not what I would have chosen for her, but it’s fine.

Shawn Mendes actually got to perform twice – he did a solo performance early in the show, then late into the show, he and Camila did “Senorita.” And it was sexy, damn it! Is it just me or was Shawn Mendes kind of off-key at the beginning of “Senorita”? But it doesn’t matter because they are HOT. I’m not even joking. I love watching their awkward AF chemistry. So performative, so sweet.

Camila and Shawn also picked up VMAs for Best Collaboration and Best Cinematography. I wish MTV gave out VMAs for Best Stunt Couple. I love them.

Photos courtesy of WENN.