2006 MTV Video Music Awards Redux

I watched only about 6 minutes of last night’s MTV Video Music Awards before I had to run screaming from my TV. I just couldn’t stomach it. I remember back in the day when the VMAs and the MTV Movie Awards were something to look forward to. Now they seem so boring and trite.

Just because I didn’t watch it, doesn’t mean that you can’t read about it here. Our friends over at TV with MeeVee filled me in on what went down in NYC last night. And remember my friend Kelly? She was the one who got to meet McDreamy and Wentworth Miller at the TV upfronts…well, she was at the VMAs last night, so if I can get any scoop from her, I’ll be sure to pass it along.

On to the recap….

Viewers of this year’s MTV Video Music Awards may still be scraping their jaws up off their respective floors. This year’s event was a mishmash of oddities, outbursts, and underdogs. Almost every Moonman landed in the hands of an unexpected winner, and all of the performances were a little, well, strange. Let’s try and break it down, shall we?

eveeJustin Timberlake kicked-off this year’s wild ride, and I can’t believe I’m about to write this, but he was the highlight. Home boy can dance, yo! From there, things just got weirder. Jack Black was the host, and pushed his usual over-the-top, awkward caveats and filler. Nothing about his performance felt funny or natural. Beyonce’s performance absolutely blew, full of breathlessness, gyrations, and oddities. OK Go! performed their hit on a myriad of treadmills. I think I lost five pounds just watching them bounce and run around. Many of the introductions by great acts like LL Cool J and Jared Leto from 30 Seconds To Mars were forced and painful to watch. This year’s show suffered from a lack of rhythm, over-production (there ought to be a law against that many screens displaying the SAME cheesy graphics), and bad writing. Yet the VMA’s certainly weren’t a total loss–the winners can attest to that. So who took home the Moonmen?

Panic at the Disco! landed top honors with the video of the year award, and they also had the dubious honor of being the best band of the eve. Not only were they fully clothed, so were their dancing female companions–it was rather shocking to watch. Well played, boys, and congrats on the win.

Other highlights included:
Best Male Video – James Blunt, “Beautiful”
Best Hip Hop Video – The Black Eyed Peas, “My Humps”
Best Female Video – Kelly Clarkson, “Because of You”
Dance Video – The Pussycat Dolls, “Buttons”
Best Pop Video – Pink, “Stupid Girls”
Best Rap Video – Chamillionaire, “Ridin’”
Best Group Video – All American Rejects, “Move Along”
Best New Artist – Avenged Sevenfold, “Bat Country”

Beyonce managed to score an R&B honor, and AFI took the rock category. The legendary Hype Williams was also highlighted with an achievement award for his videos, termed films by a very passionate (surprise, surprise) Kanye West. All in all, the event just felt forced, over-produced, and super-strange. While it’s cool to see so many newcomers landing coveted awards, it’s clear this year was all about the flash and bling, and not in the least bit about substance. Just the very notion of MTV handing out awards is a strange concept these days, as the majority of their programming has nothing to do with music or videos, but still, the Moonmen must live on. That said, it’d be nice to see more attention to music and less attention to flashy props and silly banter next year.

OK, that’s clearly crazy talk. If they can just give Jared Leto a tad more air time, I’ll be happy.

GMMR thanks our good friends over at TV with MeeVee.com for sharing this article with us. Feed your inner couch potato at TV with MeeVee.com