Music
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GloRilla may have been new to the VMAs, but the Memphis-bred MC made a splashy debut at MTV awards show Wednesday (Sept. 11) with a tough-as-nails medley that proved she’d earned her four nominations and primo performance spot near the end of the three-hour telecast. Dressed in a floor-length pinstriped black overcoat and matching baseball […]
Rap icon LL Cool J took the stage at the MTV Video Music Awards for the first time in nearly 30 years on Wednesday night (Sept. 11) to lead a tribute to the legendary Def Jam record label, which (like the VMAs themselves) celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
LL was introduced by fellow hip-hop great Busta Rhymes, who called him a “true trailblazer… also my hero. He’s not only a hip-hop innovator, he’s not only a godfather, big homie and a mentor — he was the first artist to release an album on Def Jam, and a force to be reckoned with.” (Busta also gave a shoutout to LL’s new album The Force, and shouted out, “I’m proud to say I’m on that album too, baby!!“)
Joined by DJ Z-Trip, LL begun his performance with the first verse and chorus to his 2004 hit “Headsprung,” as throngs of fans sporting his iconic red Kangol hat — some of whom held up pictures of a goat, in reference to LL’s having popularized the “G.O.A.T.” phrase (in reference to the “greatest of all time”) with his 2000 album of that name — flanked the stage.
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Then, Chuck D and Flavor Flav of Public Enemy briefly took over with a performance of their group’s 1988 classic “Bring the Noise,” before Z-Trip ran through a series of prime LL classics: “Mama Said Knock You Out,” “Rock the Bells,” “Around the Way Girl” and “Goin’ Back to Cali.”
From there, the rapper segued into “Passion,” from his new The Force album — pausing to shoutout someone in the crowd, “That’s a nice green shirt” — and the advance single “Proclivities,” which also features Saweetie, and interpolates LL’s 1990 hit “Jingling Baby.” Finally, LL transitioned from “Proclivities” to his R-rated Mr. Smith smash “Doin’ It,” which he performed during his last appearance on the VMAs stage back in 1996.
LL Cool J is a two-time winner at the MTV Video Music Awards: “Mama Said Knock You Out” took best rap video in 1991, and in 1997, he became the first rapper to take home the Video Vanguard award.
Chappell Roan is taking her first-ever MTV Video Music Award hot to go. Following a stand-out performance of “Good Luck, Babe!” at the 2024 awards ceremony, the 26-year-old pop star won best new artist Wednesday night (Sept. 11), a moment she dedicated to all of the people in the LGBTQ+ community who continuously propel her to new heights.
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“Can you believe it? We’re at the VMAs!” Roan cheered after accepting her Moon Person from Tinashe, covering her face with disbelief as fans at New York’s UBS Arena applauded.
“I dedicate this to all the drag artists who inspire me, and I dedicate this to queer and trans people who fuel pop,” she continued, reading from a small journal she took with her on stage. “To the gays, who dedicate my songs to someone they love or hate … for all the queer kids in the midwest watching right now, I see you. I understand you, because I am one of you.”
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After thanking her label, Island Records, Roan — wearing a medieval knight-inspired chainmail hood to match her Joan of Arc theme of the night — left the crowd with one last message. “Don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t be exactly who you want to be, b—h,” she said with a smirk.
The 2024 VMAs were held at UBS Arena and hosted by Megan Thee Stallion. Eminem opened the show, Vanguard honoree Katy Perry performed a career-spanning medley of her hits, and everyone from Lenny Kravitz to Halsey, Camila Cabello, Shawn Mendes and Rauw Alejandro delivered performances.
In addition to best new artist — for which Roan beat out Tyla and Gracie Abrams — the Missouri native was also up for MTV push performance of the year for The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess‘ fan-favorite track “Red Wine Supernova.” Taylor Swift led the nominations with a total of 12, while her “Fortnight” collaborator Post Malone followed with 11.
Prior to accepting her Moon Person, Roan brought the heat on stage with a fiery performance of her breakout single “Good Luck, Babe!” Dressed in a suit of armor, the vocalist lit a castle on fire with a flaming crossbow without missing a single note of the track, which reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August.
Rauw Alejandro made a memorable debut at the 40th MTV VMAs on Wednesday (Sept. 11), dazzling with a performance rich in cultural homage and electric energy, channeling the vintage Broadway glitz and grit of West Side Story. Dressed in an outfit reminiscent of late ’60s New York with a hint of pachuco style, the Puerto […]
Taylor Swift isn’t the only famous cat lady throwing her support behind Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and VP candidate Tim Walz. In a missive posted to Instagram on Wednesday night (Sept. 11), Linda Ronstadt gave the two her endorsement, but not before writing a scathing screed directed at former president and Republican presidential nominee […]
Benson Boone has lit up the charts — and the fashion blogs — all year with his breakthrough hit, “Beautiful Things,” and his unique sartorial taste. Which is why it was no surprise that the mustachioed crooner from Washington whose penchant for sleeveless denim vests and gauzy shirts have inspired robust “What to Wear to […]
Rock and roll icon Lenny Kravitz performed a ripping three-song medley at the MTV Video Music Awards on Wednesday (Sept. 11). Introduced by British singer-songwriter Suki Waterhouse — who called him a “rock God with a sound completely his own” — Kravitz started his set with his signature 1993 classic “Are You Gonna Go My […]
And for her next trick, the Great Impersonator — aka Halsey — somehow made the MTV Video Music Awards stage into a cozy driveway as the pop star belted out new single “Ego” from the inside of a suburban garage. The star began their performance by riding across the UBS Arena stage on a bicycle, […]
Megan Thee Stallion is working overtime at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards. In addition to playing host for the night, the Houston Hottie also performed an energetic medley of fiery tracks from her Megan album on Wednesday (Sept. 11). Hot Girl Meg hit the stage in a pair of strappy boots that made it […]
LE SSERAFIM celebrates its first No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart, as CRAZY crowns the Sept. 14-dated chart. The set debuts atop the list with 37,500 copies sold in the U.S. in the week ending Sept. 5, according to Luminate. It’s the fourth top three-charting effort the Korean pop group, the entirety of their charting efforts.
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Also in the top 10 of the new Top Album Sales chart, Destroy Lonely scores his first top 10 with the No. 3 bow of Love Lasts Forever, while Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds notch their highest charting set yet as Wild God starts at No. 4.
Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart ranks the top-selling albums of the week based only on traditional album sales. The chart’s history dates back to May 25, 1991, the first week Billboard began tabulating charts with electronically monitored piece count information from SoundScan, now Luminate. Pure album sales were the sole measurement utilized by the Billboard 200 albums chart through the list dated Dec. 6, 2014, after which that chart switched to a methodology that blends album sales with track equivalent album units and streaming equivalent album units. For all chart news, follow @billboard and @billboardcharts on both X and Instagram.
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Of CRAZY’s first-week sales of 37,500 copies, CD sales comprise 36,500 and digital download album sales comprise 1,000. CRAZY’s first-week was bolstered by its availability across more than 20 CD variants, all containing collectible branded paper ephemera such as photocards, postcards, stickers, and posters.
Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet is a non-mover at No. 2 on Top Album Sales with 28,000 sold in its second week (down 85%).
Destroy Lonely logs his first top 10, and best sales week, as Love Lasts Forever arrives at No. 3 with 19,000 sold. The hip-hop album’s first week was bolstered by its availability in a signed CD edition and two digital download album variants – all exclusive to the artist’s webstore. The latter two were each sold for $5 and each included five additional bonus songs (five different songs per variant).
Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds’ new studio album, Wild God, debuts at No. 4, marking the highest charting effort for the group on Top Album Sales. It launches with 13,000 sold – the act’s best sales week since Skeleton Key sold 15,000 copies in its first week (a debut at No. 13 on the chart dated Oct. 1, 2016). The new album was available across five vinyl variants, which combined to sell 8,000 copies (it bows at No. 2 on the Vinyl Albums chart).
Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess dips 4-5 on Top Album Sales (13,000; down 29%), Stray Kids’ former No. 1 ATE rises 7-6 (11,000; down 7%), Post Malone’s chart-topping F-1 Trillion falls 6-7 (9,000; down 34%), ENHYPEN’s former leader Romance: Untold ascends 9-8 (8,000; down 3%), Lainey Wilson’s Whirlwind falls 3-9 in its second week (nearly 8,000; down 77%) and Travis Scott’s Days Before Rodeo falls 1-10 in its second week (nearly 8,000; down 98%).