The annual pop culture shit show that is the MTV Video Music Awards aired last night (August 28), handing out Moonmen to honour this year's achievements in music video making.
As previously reported, Beyoncé took home eight awards, leaving a couple awards for other artists in categories like Drake's win for Best Hip-Hop Video and David Bowie's posthumous award for Best Art Direction for the "Lazarus" video. She also performed during the show, leaving jaws on the floor after a 15-minute medley of Lemonade tracks.
Britney Spears, who has had her own share of iconic VMA moments (like, more than a decade ago), had to perform after Bey's show-stealing set, making her duet with G-Eazy seem particularly lacklustre.
Another VMA vet returned to the stage last night, with Kanye West being given a segment of his own to talk about the "Famous" video and his artistic ambitions for the future. He also took the opportunity to drop a brand new video for "Fade."
Rihanna, meanwhile, was at the top of the VIP list last night as the recipient of the MTV Video Vanguard Award, with the network honouring her illustrious music video career. Riri opened the show with a live performance, then took the stage for a few more medleys throughout the evening, showcasing her hit-filled career.
But it's the presentation of the aforementioned award at the end of the night that everyone's talking about.
Number one Riri fan Drake was stuck in traffic when he won the Moonman for Best Hip-Hop Video, but he showed up in time to present the lifetime achievement award to his frequent collaborator and maybe (Probably? Hopefully?) offscreen love interest. After declaring "She's someone I've been in love with since I was 22 years old" and Rihanna responding with an eye roll, he went in for a kiss that was met with a whole lot of cheek.
Drake followed up the ceremony with an Instagram tribute to Riri, sharing a photo of the singer dodging the rapper's lips once again (but this time with the CN Tower in the background).
Check out some more highlights from the night in the video below, and see the winners list over here.
As previously reported, Beyoncé took home eight awards, leaving a couple awards for other artists in categories like Drake's win for Best Hip-Hop Video and David Bowie's posthumous award for Best Art Direction for the "Lazarus" video. She also performed during the show, leaving jaws on the floor after a 15-minute medley of Lemonade tracks.
Britney Spears, who has had her own share of iconic VMA moments (like, more than a decade ago), had to perform after Bey's show-stealing set, making her duet with G-Eazy seem particularly lacklustre.
Another VMA vet returned to the stage last night, with Kanye West being given a segment of his own to talk about the "Famous" video and his artistic ambitions for the future. He also took the opportunity to drop a brand new video for "Fade."
Rihanna, meanwhile, was at the top of the VIP list last night as the recipient of the MTV Video Vanguard Award, with the network honouring her illustrious music video career. Riri opened the show with a live performance, then took the stage for a few more medleys throughout the evening, showcasing her hit-filled career.
But it's the presentation of the aforementioned award at the end of the night that everyone's talking about.
Number one Riri fan Drake was stuck in traffic when he won the Moonman for Best Hip-Hop Video, but he showed up in time to present the lifetime achievement award to his frequent collaborator and maybe (Probably? Hopefully?) offscreen love interest. After declaring "She's someone I've been in love with since I was 22 years old" and Rihanna responding with an eye roll, he went in for a kiss that was met with a whole lot of cheek.
Drake followed up the ceremony with an Instagram tribute to Riri, sharing a photo of the singer dodging the rapper's lips once again (but this time with the CN Tower in the background).
Check out some more highlights from the night in the video below, and see the winners list over here.
