MTV Video Music Awards History
The MTV Video Music Awards, a show created by the cable TV network to be a hipper alternative to the more traditional Grammys, eventually gained notoriety for a number of controversial moments, in addition to its share of groundbreaking live performances.
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Early Controversial Moments
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The controversy that would characterize the VMAs began on the first show: Madonna sang her hit "Like a Virgin" in a sexually charged performance that included her rolling on the floor in a white-lace bustier--a shocking display to an early-'80s audience. Despite this, Madonna made several more VMA appearances. Comedian Andrew Dice Clay was not as lucky, however. He was banned for life from the MTV network for his profanity-laced appropriation of nursery rhymes at the 1989 VMAs.
Controversy (and Conflict) in the '90s
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The bizarre moments continued into the 1990s, easily overshadowing everything else about the show. There was the tension between award presenters RuPaul and Milton Berle (1993), Michael Jackson force-kissing then-wife Lisa Marie Presley (1994) and Diana Ross jiggling Lil' Kim's exposed breast (1999).
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It's All About Spears
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By the 2000s, the VMA's reputation for triggering pop-culture firestorms was well in place. Arguably the celebrity with the largest share of it all--at least for the first decade of the 21st century--has been Britney Spears. Key moments: performing "I'm a Slave 4 U" with a tiger and a python (2001), taking part in a three-way kiss with Madonna and Christina Aguilera (2003), and a disastrous performance of "Gimme More" in what was supposed to be a comeback for the then-fallen star (2007).
Notable Performances
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Although overshadowed by celebrity antics, the VMAs has had its share of memorable musical performances. Some of them include Mariah Carey hitting impossibly high notes (1991), an emotional Alanis Morissette performing a hidden track from her breakthrough "Jagged Little Pill" album (1996), Puff Daddy's tribute to the Notorious B.I.G. (1997), and yes, perhaps the most memorable of them all: Madonna in 1984.
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References
- Photo Credit Trashwire Blog, MTV.com, ew.com
