7 Questions for the [VMA’s] Culture
Questions For The Culture
There were some viewers that dared to say that the MTV staple award show returned back to its best form, but there was still plenty of debauchery from both the commitee and some A-listers that needed to be further examined.
BY HARPSICHORD
SEPTEMBER 20, 2023
Digital illustration of Taylor Swift with her nine MTV VMA awards at the Prudential Center on September 12, 2023.
“Questions For The Culture” is a column series that appears on the Hot Takes page for Harpsichord Zine. It asks about and tries to dissect curiosities about the hottest topics being discussed during a significant music event.
The MTV Video Music Awards is known for being the messiest award show of them all: Where anything can happen. This year’s 40th telecast took place at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. Held September 12, on a Tuesday night– the first time in the award show’s history— the event had the highest viewership since 2020. Was it because of Nicki Minaj being a host that could say anything at any moment to stir up more rap drama? Or had the explosion of both the Latin music and Korean pop market been the contributing factor? Whatever it was, the VMAs delivered at some moments and fell flat at others. Its embrace of the newer generation remained true to form, but there were moments (or lack thereof) from the current A-list of music that found it lacking the essential essence of the awards. Here are seven pertinent questions that lingered well after the final award was presented.
Question 1
Does Miley Cyrus Even Care About Her Endless Summer Era?
One notable aspect is the snub of Miley Cyrus, who is an integral part of VMA history. Think about the infamous tongue out, twerking on Robin Thicke moment at the 2013 award show… Or better yet: “Miley, what’s good?!”...
Once it became apparent that the popstar would not be performing— nor attending the telecast— viewers who seriously engage in the VMAs had an inkling that she wouldn’t be collecting any major trophies for her hit single “Flowers.” Cyrus was nominated for six trophies, including Album of the Year for ‘Endless Summer Vacations.’ Although the album dropped in March, there has been very little mainstream promotion for it. The VMA’s could have been one of those moments. But does the popstar, who wants the human to fall first when promoting the art— rather than her controversial character— really care?
Question 2
Why didn’t “Calm Down” win Song of the Year?
When thinking of a song of the year, you really have to consider just about everyone else outside of yourself. Sure there are songs that dominate certain scenes, but when there is a song that has longevity and crosses over multiple demographics, maybe it’s bigger than your opinion.
Released in 2022, the remix of “Calm Down” is significant for 2023. What was once an afrobeats song from Nigeria’s Rema turned into a pop force to be reckoned with after Selena Gomez got added to the official remix. “Calm Down” has managed to last over a year in terms of its single longevity. It borderlines afrobeats, pop, some hip hop, and most importantly has a rock quality to it. “Calm Down” is easy, breezy. It discusses a romantic argument where Rema has to tell his love interest to “Calm Down,” before smooth talking. Selena Gomez adds a response that makes her an ultimate seductress. Universal in its message, the song provides a subtle groove that makes one want to dance. “Calm Down” has dominated overall American radio play, while also transcending globally.
So why would they give the Song of the Year award to Taylor Swift’s “Anti-Hero,” which only made a profound statement amongst pop listeners? Why would the song only be relegated to the Afrobeats trophy? A missed opportunity by MTV to show how global reach can in fact translate to an actual “Song of the Year.”
Question 3
Is Peso Pluma Latin Music’s Hottest Newbie?
Mexico’s Peso Pluma quickly ros[éd] to the top of the Latin music charts with his incorporation of the country’s regional sounds. “Lady Gaga” is a namedrop ode to a champagne collaboration between the mega-pop star and the liquor brand, Dom Pérignon. Sung completely in Spanish, Pluma with the assistance of Gabito Ballesteros and Junior H, discuss a seductress who only wants the money he earned from a luxurious trap lifestyle. The incorporation of Mariachi music produced by Ballesteros– including its instrumentation of Requinto and Vihuela Mexicano guitars, trumpets, and Tamborita Calentana percussions– has helped the song reach No. 1 in Mexico, and the Top 20 of Billboard’s Global 200. Peso Pluma is credited with bringing an edge and resurgence to corrido music– which are ballads revolving around the Tejano criminal lifestyle.
If there had been a fitting introduction to American audiences for Peso Pluma that happened to be a performance at the MTV VMAs. His spark amongst audiences exists with the tension of combining trap lyrics and mystique over a traditional sound. For a while, the man ruling the Latin scene globally has been Bad Bunny– who himself has never won in the Latin categories at the award show. Peso Pluma has since dethroned Bad Bunny in some Latin regions, including his native Mexico. In one week this year, he placed 25 tracks on Billboard’s Hot Latin Songs chart– surpassing Bad Bunny’s record of 24 in 2022. However, Pluma may not be able to return to certain parts of Mexico, as his global exposure and lyrics about El Chapo has been seen as a threat to cartels such as Sinaloa. As a result, he had to cancel an October concert in Tijuana.
Question 4
Does the Music Television network have an R&B problem?
When the R&B Song category was presented, the winner, SZA, was not present to accept her Moonman. Her absence was notable as her sophomore album, ‘SOS,’ has dominated mainstream culture chartwise and in the public. Ranging from her winning song, “Shirt” to the number one smash, “Kill Bill,” onto “Snooze,” SZA’s name has been a mainstay in music discussions taking place in 2023. When nominations for the telecast were first revealed in August, MTV immediately received backlash for snubbing SZA from the Artist of the Year category. As a result, her manager, and the president of her label, Top Dawg Entertainment, Terrence "Punch" Henderson, decided to pull her out of attending and possibly performing at the award show. He claimed the move from the nomination committee had been “disrespectful.” Many fans of SZA and the genre of R&B agreed with his decision, while others felt it added to a litany of ill-fated career decisions from Punch, and a missed moment for R&B.
Over the past few years, R&B listeners have felt that the genre is dead. That is due to the lack of those songs dominating the mainstream, as well as changes of the sonic guard. One artist who many have hoped to save the genre is Victoria Monét. Esteemed as a songwriter for the likes of Ariana Grande, Fifth Harmony, and Chris Brown, Monét has broken into performance acclaim thanks to her Jaguar EP and its debut successor album, Jaguar II.
On X, formerly known as the social media site Twitter, Monét announced to the world why she attended but didn’t get a chance to perform. MTV told her management team during their bid that it was “too early in her story” to perform on the big stage. Monét has been releasing solo music since 2010, with her debut LP dropping in 2014. To much uproar, people started zeroing in on how R&B representation lacked during the overall night. While Latin music, k-pop, country, hip hop, and rock got a chance to shine alongside pop, R&B only had a moment during Diddy’s Global Icon Award tribute— with Keyshia Cole performing “Last Night,” a hit from 2006 and 2007.
This felt eerily similar to how fans had to trend #LetNormaniPerform and #BookNormani just two years prior. As a result of the backlash, Normani finally got to perform her song, “Wild Side”— arguably having one of the most memorable performances of the night, alongside Chlöe Bailey. When it comes to female R&B singers– particularly Black ones– MTV has snubbed them in recent years. Keyshia Cole’s inclusion this year is ironic, because she revealed in 2010 that the network told her she is “not an MTV artist.” All this recent history is troublesome, because when the network first launched in 1981, it was accused of being racist for not playing videos from mainstream Black artists. It had to take for Michael Jackson to break that barrier with “Billie Jean” in 1983.
Question 5
Do we watch award shows now to see the drama amongst female rappers?
Nicki Minaj hosting. Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion set to perform. Ice Spice seen sitting next to Taylor Swift and winning Best New Artist. Doja Cat also performing. The night promised to be full of drama. Or so we thought.
Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion left right after premiering “Bongos.” A clip starts surfacing of Megan Thee Stallion seeming to be arguing with Justin Timberlake backstage. It’s quickly refuted as a misunderstanding that was not the actual case. The actual drama happened to brew between Nicki Minaj and her husband, Kenneth Petty, and Cardi B and her husband, Offset. That lead to social media subliminals and blind threats. Nicki Minaj premieres a diss record entitled “Big Difference.” Minaj gloats, “You bitches look up to me. You said you look up to her, but really you look up to me,” on the stage while her foes are not sitting in the audience. Still we salivated, because of all the drama.
And oh yeah… Doja upstages all of them with her impressive melody where she’s rapping without a vocal track. How could we forget that moment?
Question 6
Does Taylor Swift spoil the fun of who wins?
From the moment paparazzi captured Taylor Swift out and about in NYC the night before the VMAs, we knew the award show night was hers. But then during the red carpet, MTV made a point to play her sleeper hit “Cruel Summer” before commercial breaks, and air the trailer for her upcoming movie, ‘Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,’ not once, but twice.
For the record, most of the categories are fan-voted. Taylor Swift danced and sang along to various performances. Next to Selena Gomez (and her many controversial expressions), Taylor Swift instantly became the “it-girl” of the crowd. Then the award show truly commenced, as she won Best Pop and Song of the Year back to back. She pretended to be shocked, but were the rest of the audience? The answer: No…
As the night progressed, Taylor Swift remained the only pop A-lister to stay in the audience of the VMA’s. Others like Selena Gomez left after collecting their trophy or presenting. And why is that? Well, Taylor Swift would go on to collect more trophies, including Best Direction, Artist of the Year, and the coveted Video of the Year. “Anti-Hero” became her third victory in the Video of the Year category, making her the first artist to win back to back Moonmen for the category. In total, she collected nine awards that night.
But what has become noticeable for most award shows in the past few years, is, if Swift is heavily nominated, she will more than likely be the biggest winner of the night. Right now Swift dominates in album sales, as well as streaming numbers. She’s almost untouchable in the arena of mainstream pop. We’re living in an era of Swiftmania. Or so, that’s what most media would like for us to think. And as a result–through all her feigned shocked faces– we miss out on other big names attending. Those individuals know to have something booked in advance such as a tour date or a limo to the afterparties. Because who would want to sit through Taylor Swift practically shutting everyone else out?
Question 7
Why Did That Hip Hop 50 Tribute Suck?
One would think that a network with the history of ‘Yo! MTV Raps,’ would throw one of the best tributes for the 50th anniversary of the genre. But that was far from the case. Where was Fab 5 Freddy? La La of the TRL days? All the A-list rappers who brought hip hop to MTV?
It was nice to see legends like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five bring us “The Message,” while LL Cool J, DMC (who was missing Rev Run), and the Beatbox King, Doug E. Fresh, remind us of ‘80s hip hop glory. But the transition from Slick Rick to Nicki Minaj felt choppy– despite her “slicker than the guy with a thing on his eye” “Super Bass” reference, which she didn’t even perform. Nicki gave us a highlight with “Itty Bitty Piggy,” and the crowd shouting along to “Red Ruby Da Sleeze.” Taylor also had her moment reciting Lil Wayne’s “A Milli.”
However, at the end of the day, MTV’s tribute felt rushed. Almost like an afterthought that could have been better curated. In fact, this portion of writing was rushed itself. That’s how disappointing the moment was overall.
