As I had stated on Friday, I was looking forward to the VMA's. Usually feeling too old to watch or care, this year it was heavy with Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars, so I sat down at 9pm to watch the extravaganza. For the first time, they were live from the Barclay Center in Brooklyn. Made the event very interesting on the red carpet outside with Brooklyn brownstones lining the walkway on all sides. New York kids lining the barriers screaming for their favorites. At 9pm the show went live beginning with Lady Gaga singing one of her new songs, her "comeback" so to speak. I couldn't really concentrate on the song. All I could watch was her 4 costume changes during the song and her dancing. She looks fantastic and showed almost all of herself by the end of the song.
I know that I'm too old when One Direction and Selena Gomez win a VMA award, but I still had so much hope because Justin Timberlake was going to be honored with the Michael Jackson Vanguard award. Bruno Mars was still to come, but to get there....
Miley Cyrus. My, oh my, seriously. She was classless, disgusting, and made it uncomfortable to watch. She performed her new hit song, We Can't Stop. She bumped, grinded her butt, her genitalia every which way. She simulated sex with another and alone. Shocking, distasteful. Will Smith and his family were agape with their jaws dropped open. Miley, you are trying too too hard. I know you want to distance yourself from Hannah Montana and Disney, but Miley, really? Do you really think you have to explode onto the stage with your tongue hanging out in a very disconcerting way? You aren't Gene Simmons (for the record, that tongue situation also made me feel uncomfortable). After she sang her song, she ripped off what was left of her clothes and was wearing a gold-ish bra and panty and sang Blurred Lines with Robin Thicke. It was worse than her first performance. Far too sexual. A young person in my midst said how did Mrs. Thicke feel about that? Too much. All of it. Miley, there has to be a more subtle way for you to find your new path to adulthood. Justin Timberlake came from Disney. He never had to be shocking to be a hit. Taylor Swift went from teenager to adult without simulating sex on the stage. Miley, you're not Madonna. You're not Lady Gaga. Find your own true path. I don't think this is it. This feels like your are shoving your tongue down our throats to accept you as an adult. Not working. Not authentic. And if I'm wrong and this is your true path, your career won't last long. Yuck!
So, after showering from that, at 10pm the star and highlight of the night, Justin Timberlake was introduced by Jimmy Fallon. He performed for almost 20 minutes with a much anticipated reunion with 'NSync. He was outstanding. His performance was stellar and he didn't disappoint after all the hype. He received the Michael Jackson Vanguard Award for his career. He's won a lot of VMA's over the years as both a boy band member and a solo artist. Justin Timberlake is the real deal. A true talent. They seem few and far between but wow! What a thrill. Almost made sitting through Miley and Robin worth it.
Other performances were Kanye West singing/rapping in the dark. Seriously, silhouette all the way. Macklemore and Ryan Lewis singing their VMA award winning Same Love. A very important anthem to human rights and love equality. Fantastic. Katy Perry closed the VMA's outside with the Brooklyn Bridge as her backdrop. I didn't connect with the song, but visually it was artful. Kevin Hart was on twice to entertain the audience. He reminded us a lot that he wasn't the host. Awkward that they shut him down unceremoniously on his second stage appearance. Had to rewind to see if it was as bad as it seemed. No one is talking about it so far, but he was censored/cut off. The other stand out performance was Bruno Mars. Always flawless and gives you 100%. He won two VMA's!
So all in all, I think that I'd watch again next year, but...Miley ugh!
Sidebars: Very sad to learn over the weekend that the once incredibly great Linda Ronstadt is fighting Parkinson's and can't sing anymore (though I thought she hadn't been able to sing her glorious self long ago). The magnificent Julie Harris died over the weekend. A remarkable talent that if she were a young actor today probably wouldn't stand a chance in the superficial world of entertainment. A five time Tony Award winner. The blowhole is spewing again...D****d Tr**p is getting airtime on NBC, no self promotion there. He is being sued for $40Million for fraud by the New York State Attorney General for promising and not delivering at Tr**p University. It's not a university; it is a seminar and lecture series. Hubris at its worst.
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