These Awkward MTV VMAs Moments Are Truly So Uncomfortable
Buckle up, Swifties, Arianators, Beliebers, and Beyhivers. It’s that time of year again!! The Video Music Awards—or as I like to call them, the Very Mortifying Awards. No awards show brings more shaken-to-your-core discomfort than this annual cringefest. It’s led to celeb feuds that have continued on for yeeeears (please see: Kanye West), viral clips that I still watch regularly (tell me you haven’t rewatched that “Miley, what’s good?” moment!!), and Halloween costume ideas that will never go out of style (ahem, Meat Dress©).
In celebration of this year’s VMAs, here are the worst interviews, performances, and clashes from past shows that will leave you googling to find out if it’s possible to die from secondhand embarrassment. Don’t worry, you can’t—I already checked. 🙃
Fifth Harmony’s Fake Camila Cabello (2017)
After Camila Cabello left Fifth Harmony, the band responded like anyone else would: throwing a fake, decoy version of her off the stage during their VMAs performance. Ya know, typical girl group stuff.
Drake Gets Rejected on Live TV (2016)
Who could forget when Drake tried—and epically failed—to kiss Rihanna?? Oh, and this was after giving a four-minute speech basically declaring his love for her. She dodged his move faster than you can say the word “Umbrella.” RIP to Drake’s heart. 💔
Lil‘ Mama Crashes the Stage (2009)
Look closely, and you can see the moment Jay-Z (probably) whispers to Alicia: “Hey, so ummm...is this part of the show?” Lil’ Mama got so pumped during their performance, she climbed onstage and aimlessly walked around as the song wrapped up. Casual!
Courtney Love Throws Her Makeup Compact at Madonna (1995)
Tbh, I don’t know how this isn’t talked about more. A very (I cannot stress this enough: VERY) drunk Courtney Love halted the Queen of Pop’s interview by throwing a compact at her. “Courtney Love is in dire need of attention right now,” Madge said before walking off.
Miley Cyrus’s Twerk-a-Thon (2013)
The tongue. The space buns. The foam finger. The dancing on a man nearly two decades older who was wearing a Beetlejuice suit. It was uncomfortable...it happened...moving on.
Nicki Minaj’s “Miley, what’s good??” (2015)
How to feud like a celeb in three easy steps!
Step 1: Miley calls Nicki “not too kind” in an interview leading up to the VMAs.
Step 2: Nicki accepts an award and calls Miley a “bitch,” asking her: “What’s good??”
Step 3: Miley comes back with “Nicki, congratu-f--king-lations.”
See? Easy!
Nirvana Bassist Knocks Himself Out (1992)
*record scratch* “Yep, that’s me. You’re probably wondering how I got here.” —Krist Novoselic on the floor of the VMAs stage, probably
Spoiler alert: He got there by throwing his bass in the air, failing to catch it, and it landing on his head. Ouch.
Kanye’s Infamous Interruption (2009)
Imma let you finish, Kanye, but Taylor had one of the best revenge albums of all time with Reputation. Specifically with “Look What You Made Me Do.” And get ready to relive it alllll again with Reputation (Taylor’s Version). *starts applying dark-red lipstick*
Taylor Swift Thanks Harry Styles, Allegedly (2013)
That is the face of a man who never saw it coming. After Taylor won for “I Knew You Were Trouble,” she said: “I also want to thank the person who inspired this song because he knows exactly who he is, because now I’ve got one of these,” before strutting past him on the way to her seat. Boom—roasted. 🔥
Tim Commerford Goes on Strike (2000)
When Rage Against the Machine lost to Limp Bizkit, the bassist, well, raged against MTV. He climbed up the set’s scaffolding and refused to come down until security got him.
A Reporter Rips on Lil‘ Nas X‘s Outfit (2021)
Imagine having the guts to tell someone you hate their look right to their face. When Lil’ Nas X asked the reporter what she thought, she went scorched earth on the singer: “Listen, I’m not gonna say I’m hating on the ’fit...but let’s move on.” The cringe level is officially set on maximum.
*NSYNC‘s Quick Reunion (2013)
If you remember going, “That's it???” after Justin Timberlake got the band back together for the night he received his Video Vanguard Award, you’re not alone. An insider told Us Weekly that Joey, Lance, Chris, and JC were left “upset” when JT shortened their performance to make room for his 15-minute solo act. That’s after he allegedly told them it was going to include more than one of their boy band hits and to “trust him.”
Camila Cabello and Shawn Mendes’s PDA-Filled Performance (2019)
The number of times these two awkwardly stood nose-to-nose before continuing to sing during their performance? The limit does not exist. And whenever you thought they leaned in for the last time, it happened AGAIN. You can watch it here, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Keke Palmer Hits on Keke Palmer (2020)
Being single during the year of lockdown might not have been easy...but hey, at least you didn't resort to this! While hosting the show, Keke Palmer dressed up as “Lil’ Thad” and hit on herself. And yes, it’s as painful to watch as you’d think it would be.
Lady Gaga’s Meat Dress (2010)
Now that it’s been more than a decade (and Gaga is still the GOAT), can we all agree that these 50 pounds of Argentinian beef belonged on a barbecue grill and not the VMAs stage?
Billie Eilish Literally Cannot Be Bothered by J.Lo (2021)
Billie pulled a Mariah Carey. And by that, I mean she totally embodied the phrase “Jennifer Lopez? I don’t know her.” As J.Lo walked onstage, the camera cut to Billie’s less-than-thrilled face. Did she stand up? Nope. Did she clap? Nope. Did she make me squirm in my seat?? Yes, obviously.
Nicki Minaj Almost Bares It All (2014)
After a costume change went wrong, Nicki had to hold her dress together the entire time she performed. It almost brought a whole new meaning to the lyrics: “Oh my gosh, look at her butt.” 🤷♀️
Justin Bieber’s Cry Sesh (2015)
The singer began straight-up sobbing after performing his hit “What Do You Mean?” Perhaps the most awkward part of this entire thing was host Miley Cyrus repeating “Wow! Well...” in a moment of pure confusion.
RuPaul and Milton Berle’s Not-So-Nice Improv (1993)
These two decided to drop the pre-written banter and go for the jugular. Things quickly turned tense, with RuPaul ad-libbing: “So you used to wear gowns, but now you’re wearing diapers” and Milton replying with, “Oh, we’re going to ad-lib? I’ll check my brain and we’ll start even.” Major yikes.
Tinashe Interviews Jack Harlow (2021)
I don’t know if the tension here is because they find each other hot or annoying, but you can judge for yourself. Everything from their monotone compliments to Jack announcing it was the first time they ever met was kinda off and even caught the attention of fans at home.
Macy Gray’s Dress (2001)
Before there was social media, kids, stars would have to print their album release dates on an ’80s prom gown and wear it over a blouse with lace sleeves. I’m not even going to pretend like I understand what’s going on here.
Weird Al Is...Well...Weird (1989)
In 1989, the performer had a legit scream-off with the crowd. With every “Woo!!” he heard, he yelled back twice as loud. Into a microphone. Just do yourself a favor and lower the volume before watching this.
Nobody Knows Who Tammy Hembrow Is (2019)
Clearly none of Tammy’s 15 million Insta followers include these photogs. Someone on the carpet literally had to hold up a sign with her name on it to show them who she was. Lol.
Eminem vs. Moby (2002)
Why yes, that is a photo of three grown men getting upset at something a dog puppet said. When Triumph the Insult Comic Dog joked about Eminem’s ongoing feud with Moby, the rapper got out of his seat and walked right on over. Luckily, he was distracted with an award but continued his rant onstage. “Keep booing, little girl. I will hit a man with glasses,” he yelled at Moby.
Katy Perry and Taylor Swift Take Shots at Each Other (2017)
Katy Perry performed “Swish Swish Bish”—a song rumored to be about Taylor Swift. She then was noticeably absent when Taylor’s new music video for “Look What You Made Me Do” was announced live on air...despite being that year’s host. It didn’t help that the video had references to Katy scattered throughout.
Conor McGregor Tries to Fight Machine Gun Kelly (2021)
If there’s anyone you don’t want to get into a fight with, it’s Conor McGregor. Nevertheless, the athlete and pop punker had to be held back as they traded insults on the red carpet. At one point, it looked like the UFC star threw a cocktail at MGK. Guess they aren’t twin flames...
Fiona Apple Throws Shade at Hollywood (1997)
The singer accepted her award by letting everyone know that showbiz is pretty much the worst. “Everybody that’s watching this world, this world is bullsh-t. It’s stupid that I’m in this world,” she said. I can practically hear the panic of MTV’s producers behind the scenes.
Van Halen Reunites...Then Breaks Up Again (1996)
Things quickly hit the fan after the iconic band reunited for the first time in more than a decade. Eddie Van Halen and David Lee Roth nearly got into a fistfight over a joke made about Van Halen’s hip-replacement surgery. Members later called David’s behavior both onstage and off that night “embarrassing” and decided against a reunion after all.
Diana Ross Feels Up Lil’ Kim (1999)
She’s Queen Diana Ross, so she literally can do anything she wants. But everyone can agree that it’s still a *bit* awk watching her jokingly grab Lil’ Kim’s breast onstage without asking first.
The Fake Audience (2020)
The 2020 VMAs were held without an audience (hence the green screen) for obvious reasons, but that isn’t the awkward part. The awkward part is that they pretended (and didn’t pretend well) that there was a crowd. Throughout the show, performers would act like they were addressing real people, and tracks of cheering and applause were played in the background. Here’s hoping those days are behind us!
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