Looking Back At the VMAs for Video of the Year of the 2010s

 The MTV Video Music Awards are tomorrow, August 30th. I always like watching music award shows of this sort, not because I really care about the winners, but because I like seeing the performances. This year, the VMAs were supposed to be held at the Barclays Center in New York City with limited to no audience. However, due to COVID-19's determination to ruin absolutely everything for everyone, MTV decided to hold the VMAs in an outdoor format across New York. I'm excited to see how this works, and I'm excited for the performances. Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande are going to perform "Rain on Me" for the first time, which I'm pretty excited for. I’m a pop music lover who stans Ariana Grande and thinks Lady Gaga is one of the most important artists of our time. Of course I’ve had “Rain on Me” on repeat since the day it came out! I'm also excited for The Weeknd's performance of "Blinding Lights," because I'm still as obsessed with that song now as I was in February. One of the most hyped-up performances of the night will be BTS's debut performance of "Dynamite," their first all-English song. I’ve only heard the song a few times, but I’m already obsessed (I mean, it’s BTS doing their take on a Bruno Mars retro disco funk song and there’s a key change- how could I not love it?), and BTS are fantastic live performers, so it will be a treat. I'm going to do something similar to what I did for the Grammys in January and write a recap of the VMAs this coming Monday.

But for today, I'm going to look at the biggest VMA category, Video of the Year. I'm going to watch all the videos that were nominated in this category during the 2010s decade (as well as the 2020 nominees) and say if I agreed on the winners. Let's go!

2010
Nominees:

"Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga (Winner)

"Airplanes" by B.O.B. ft. Hayley Williams

"Not Afraid" by Eminem

"Dog Days Are Over" by Florence and the Machine

"Telephone" by Lady Gaga ft. Beyoncé

"Kings and Queens" by 30 Seconds To Mars

Pretty diverse bunch of songs and videos we have here. I definitely think "Bad Romance" deserved to win the most, although I personally preferred "Telephone." I loved the "Telephone" video for how batshit ridiculous it was in all the best ways. Between Gaga's ridiculous outfits (my personal favorite was the Coke can curlers), the gratuitous product placements, the many murders, and Gaga and Beyoncé's absolutely horrible acting, it brought me joy. However, "Bad Romance" is the more iconic video. I think there's supposed to be a plot about the Russian mafia and sex trafficking, but I mostly enjoyed it for the visuals. The choreography is iconic, the fashion is perfectly ridiculous, and the imagery of the clip is incredibly memorable. Also, Gaga invented the PokéStop in Pokémon Go in this video:

Another thing worth mentioning is that the "Bad Romance" video was directed by Francis Lawrence, who also directed three of the four Hunger Games movies. The more you know...

I also really liked the "Kings and Queens" video. I'm not sure what exactly the storyline was supposed to be, but the nightttime cinematography blew me away. I thought the "Dog Days Are Over" video was very eye-catching, featuring Florence Welch wearing a bunch of extravagant costumes and being joined by drummers, dancers, harpists, and a gospel choir. It had some interesting imagery, but I'd be more likely to return to it just because the song is really good. I had actually never listened to the song "Dog Days Are Over" in full, but it's very explosive and does a great job of showing off Welch's powerful, amazing voice. The final two videos in this category were "Airplanes" and "Not Afraid," both of which were mediocre to me. Despite B.O.B. being a conspiracy theorist, I love the song "Airplanes," mostly because it fills me with nostalgia. However, the video was boring. On the other hand, I'm not a huge fan of "Not Afraid" as a song, or most of Eminem's work, really. I thought the video was boring until he started flying. The CGI effects that made him fly were pretty amusing. 

2011

Nominees:

"Firework" by Katy Perry (Winner)

"Rolling in the Deep" by Adele

"Make Some Noise" by the Beastie Boys

"Grenade" by Bruno Mars

"Yonkers" by Tyler, the Creator

In 2011, they narrowed down the number of Video of the Year nominees to five, and it's definitely an interesting bunch. My favorite was definitely the Beastie Boys video, and I say that as somebody who doesn't know much about the Beastie Boys beyond "You Gotta Fight For Your Right To Party." I mostly enjoyed it because of all the celebrity cameos, with Seth Rogen, Danny McBride, and Elijah Wood playing the Beastie Boys and going on a party spree throughout the town. It was basically a game of "How Many Celebrities Can I Recognize?" which I very much enjoyed, with some of my favorite cameos being Will Ferrell (with a cowbell), Steve Buscemi, Amy Poehler, and Rainn Wilson. With that last one, I was just kind of minding my own business, jamming along to the song a little bit, and then I realized "OH MY GOD IT’S DWIGHT SCHRUTE!" 

The rest of the videos were a mixed bag. The "Firework" video is kind of ridiculous in how it has Katy Perry and a bunch of "underdogs" including a cancer patient, a gay guy, and an overweight wallflower girl exploding fireworks from their souls. It's memorable and I guess it deserved to win since Katy was at her peak in 2011, but other Teenage Dream-era videos, such as the candy-themed "California Gurls" and the ridiculous 80s house party "Last Friday Night" stick out to me more. "Rolling in the Deep" is an amazing song, but the video was just blandly good. The visuals are striking, especially with the dancing in the dust, but the color palette was kind of dull. "Grenade" was probably the most boring of the five videos, as it just features Bruno dragging a piano through a city. It's okay though, Bruno did get nominated for other videos in the future, which are better. On the other hand, "Yonkers" by Tyler, the Creator was definitely the dark horse, as all of the other nominees were big names and Tyler really wasn't. He also threatens to hurt one of the other nominees in the category, saying that he will "stab Bruno Mars in his goddamn esophagus." With the violent lyrics and provocative music video where Tyler hangs himself at the end, "Yonkers" is an incredibly dark and compelling piece of work. In a category against pop superstars like Katy Perry and Adele, it really didn't have a chance of winning, but it's a riveting art piece, albeit one I respect more than I like. There were some homophobic slurs in the song, which rub me the wrong way; many of Tyler’s other songs do allude to him being some form of queer, so I have less of a problem with him using the slurs than other people, but  it still feels icky. I did like the cartoon references, especially the line "But after bowling, I went home for some damn Adventure Time." 

2012

Nominees:

"We Found Love" by Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris (Winner)

"Take Care" by Drake ft. Rihanna

"Somebody That I Used To Know" by Gotye ft. Kimbra

"Bad Girls" by M.I.A.

"Wide Awake" by Katy Perry

I'm writing these segments in the order that they're listed, so this is only the third year I've covered. But briefly looking at the other years, I can say that 2012 definitely has the strongest selection of Video of the Year nominees. All five of these videos are amazing. Although I think "Somebody That I Used To Know" would also be a good winner, as its painting-inspired video is one of the most iconic of the past decade, I have no qualms about "We Found Love" taking the crown. It has a separate Wikipedia page specifically about its video, if that says anything. It's more like a short film and it's far artsier than you'd expect from a Rihanna club song. The "We Found Love" video was controversial for how it shows Rihanna having sex and doing drugs in a toxic relationship, and while I get the outrage, I like to believe that the events of "We Found Love" are just a story, one that is told really well. 

I think "Take Care" is probably my favorite of the five just as a song. It's a moody R&B masterpiece and a high point of both Drake and Rihanna's careers. The video is very abstract and minimalist, with a very grey color palette. I liked how it intercut scenes of Drake and Rihanna embracing with various animals, including a bull, a bird, and a tropical fish. I get why somebody would think this one was dull, but I think it matches the song perfectly. The "Bad Girls" video was also really good. It shows M.I.A. in a post-apocalyptic desert being a badass. I really liked the glow-in-the-dark car in particular, because it looked rad. I also hadn't ever heard the song in full, but it's definitely a song I'd play when I want to feel like a badass. But out of all the nominees for 2012, "Wide Awake" video was my favorite. It shows a darker side of Katy than we had previously seen, but still very whimsical and fantastical. It was very Alice in Wonderland-inspired and visually stunning- a great way to close the Teenage Dream era. I thought all of these videos were fantastic and I'd be happy with any of them winning. 

2013

Nominees

"Mirrors" by Justin Timberlake (Winner)

"Thrift Shop" by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Wanz

"Locked Out of Heaven" by Bruno Mars

"I Knew You Were Trouble" by Taylor Swift

"Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell

Um...is it bad that despite it being one of the most repulsive songs and videos I can think of, part of me thinks "Blurred Lines" should have won? I mean, it's a lazy, trashy video for a lazy, trashy song, but I was there in 2013. "Blurred Lines" garnered so much controversy and truly shocked people, and as much as it pains me to say, I do think it should have won because of that. Similarly, I think "We Can't Stop" by Miley Cyrus should have received a nomination for Video of the Year (it received four other nominations, however). It's a very trashy video, but it provoked people and got them talking. I don't think the title of Video of the Year necessarily has to mean the best music video of the year, but rather the one that had the most cultural impact. And as much as I don't like "Blurred Lines" or "We Can't Stop," they got people talking. However, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that Cyrus and Thicke were the ones making headlines after the VMAs, since 2013 was the year of the infamous twerking teddy bear performance. 

That being said, I think "Mirrors" is by far the best video of the nominees, and although it didn't have as much cultural impact as "Blurred Lines" or "We Can't Stop," it really is a stunning video. It almost reminds me of the first fifteen minutes of Up in how it shows stages of a couple's life. The video is dedicated to Timberlake's grandparents, and I think it shows their story beautifully. "Thrift Shop" is the funniest and most lighthearted of the five, and while it is extremely memorable (those Batman footie pajamas!), I think Macklemore & Ryan Lewis's "Can't Hold Us" video should have been nominated instead. The scope of that video takes my breath away and it's one of my favorite music videos ever. "Locked Out of Heaven" is my favorite song of the five, and while I love the grainy, 80s aesthetic of its video, it's not as interesting as future Bruno Mars videos. Finally, we have "I Knew You Were Trouble." I don't think this is a bad video, but it feels like a PG-rated version of "We Found Love," right down to the monologue at the beginning. Taylor has much better videos. 

2014

Nominees:

"Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus (Winner)

"Fancy" by Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX

"Drunk in Love" by Beyoncé ft. Jay-Z

"Chandelier" by Sia

"Happy" by Pharrell Williams

Going off of what I just said about "Blurred Lines" and "We Can't Stop," it shouldn't be a surprise to you that I think "Wrecking Ball" was a completely worthy winner. The way I see it, if something is parodied to death, then it has a true cultural impact, and the "Wrecking Ball" video certainly was. I mean, it had Miley Cyrus, who was the hottest celebrity in the world in 2013, swinging around naked on construction equipment. How could people not parody it? I actually really like the song "Wrecking Ball," but the video, despite its cultural impact, isn't great. Why is she licking a sledgehammer in the middle of her big, emotional number?

I think "Fancy" and "Chandelier" were the two best videos of the five. I don't like "Fancy" as a song, but I'm always a fan of a good homage, and the way the video homages Clueless is inspired. "Chandelier," on the other hand, is easily the best song of the five because it's so raw and embraces its imperfections. The video showcases Maddie Ziegler from Dance Moms performing an interpretive dance in a dirty apartment, and it's just stunning how Ziegler was only eleven when she did this, yet dances with such impressive maturity. No wonder that Sia has continued to work with Ziegler in countless other videos. As for the other two videos, I thought they were okay. "Drunk in Love" was kind of boring and too long, but Beyoncé looked fantastic and her chemistry with Jay-Z was great. "Happy" was kind of boring too, but I did like the celebrity cameos. As we saw with "Make Some Noise," featuring a cast member of The Office in your video is always a way to get in my good graces, and this video features Michael Scott himself, Steve Carell! It also features Miranda Cosgrove, Jimmy Kimmel, Magic Johnson, the minions (of course), and Tyler, the Creator! That last one completely shocked me, I had no idea. 

2015

Nominees:

"Bad Blood" by Taylor Swift ft. Kendrick Lamar (Winner)

"7/11" by Beyoncé

"Alright" by Kendrick Lamar

"Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars

"Thinking Out Loud" by Ed Sheeran

There are three videos that didn't win that I have less to say about, so I'll just get those out of the way. First, there's "7/11." I love and respect the hell out of Beyoncé, but the song "7/11" is, to put it bluntly, unlistenable garbage. (As any person who's ever tried to sing "Love on Top" can tell you, Beyoncé is a world-class vocalist; why does she sound like she's doing a bad Future impression here?) However, the video is cute- it's nice to see a powerful force like Beyoncé just have fun with her friends for a minute. Then there's "Thinking Out Loud," the most boring of the five videos. The female dancer, So You Think You Can Dance contestant Brittany Cherry, does a stunning job with the choreography, and Ed clearly worked hard to keep up with her, but I find the video dull compared to the other nominees. Finally, there's "Uptown Funk," a video with a thesis of "Hot damn, Bruno Mars is just the coolest!" The video does an excellent job at making Bruno look like the coolest man on the planet, and it's pretty iconic. (Also this year, there was some drama with Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj that I can't really remember, but Bruno and Ed had a fake Twitter beef in response. It was hilarious.)

The 2015 VMAs present us with another case where the winner was undeserved because the artist had a better video. I know I said that I like videos that are essentially cameo-fests, like with "Make Some Noise" and "Happy," but the "Bad Blood" video and its countless cameos rub me the wrong way. I think the reason why is because "Make Some Noise" and "Happy" are both lighthearted videos and the main point of them is "Hey, the Beastie Boys are legends and all these celebrities love them!" and "These celebrities enjoy dancing, being happy, and/or Despicable Me 2!" Meanwhile, "Bad Blood" presents itself as a feminist anthem, but it's mostly dedicated to tearing down another woman. It's mainly just a way for Taylor to flaunt her famous "squad" as the pinnacle of feminism, despite said "squad" consisting largely of skinny white supermodels. I get the decision to give the award to Taylor Swift, since this was 2015 where she was at her peak with 1989, but seriously, "Bad Blood" over "Blank Space"? "Blank Space" is a much better song and video in which Taylor actually shows a sense of self-awareness and plays into the "psychotic serial dater" image she was (unfairly) labeled as. But mostly I just like that video because every single outfit Taylor wears in it is perfection. 

Not that it really matters, but these three are my favorites!

Coincidentally, both Taylor and Kendrick Lamar deserved to win with different videos, although Kendrick's "Alright" was actually nominated, unlike "Blank Space." Much like another video a few years later, "Alright" directly addresses the problem of police brutality. The song is from the album To Pimp a Butterfly, the fifth highest-rated album of all time on Metacritic, and both the song and the album are specifically about race, culture, and discrimination. "Alright" in particular was named the single greatest song of the 2010s by Pitchfork. But it's not just an incredible, jazz-influenced hip hop song, and it's not just a great video. It's an important piece of art. "Alright" has become an anthem for the Black Lives Matter movement, a movement that, sadly, is more necessary now more than ever. I love a good frivolous love song every now and then, but when we have such serious issues in the world, we should always hope for art that reflects those issues, and Kendrick Lamar does that magnificently. The most powerful part of the video is when Kendrick is on a lamppost, then gets "shot" by a policeman. However, as he falls, he is smiling. “Alright” is a reminder that, despite the hardships and the tragedies that Black people have seen, at the end of the day, they “gon' be alright!" We just have to keep fighting until we get there. 

2016

Nominees:

"Formation" by Beyoncé (Winner)

"Hello" by Adele

"Sorry" by Justin Bieber

"Hotline Bling" by Drake

"Famous" by Kanye West

Honestly, I think a war might have started if Beyoncé didn't win this. 2016 was, among other things, the year of Lemonade, Beyoncé's critically acclaimed magnum opus that directly addressed her husband's infidelity and the experiences of Black women. (Side note: I just want to highlight the song "Freedom," another track from Lemonade that clearly references institutionalized racism, particularly relating to Black women. Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar address those topics really powerfully, and it's a song I've listened to a lot in the past few months as a response to the racial turmoil.)  Much like "Alright," the "Formation" video references police brutality, featuring a young boy dancing in front of police officers, followed by a wall graffitied with the words "Stop Shooting Us." The video also alludes to Hurricane Katrina, antebellum and Creole culture, and Black pride. My personal favorite scene was when the line "I like my baby heir with baby hair and afros" is sung. Beyoncé's daughter, Blue Ivy, appears, wearing an afro and dancing proudly. It's a satisfying middle finger to Western beauty standards, which often tell Black girls that traditionally Black hairstyles, such as afros, cornrows, and dreadlocks, are unattractive. "Formation" and its music video are incredibly important political statements, and although their impact is far greater than any award could signify, it's still nice to see Beyoncé take home the award.

That being said, “Hotline Bling” would be my second pick to win after Beyoncé. Even five years later, I still see memes about Drake's awful dancing and facial expressions in the "Hotline Bling" video. 

I also just really like the general aesthetic of the "Hotline Bling" video- that softer neon aesthetic just works for me. I also enjoyed the "Sorry" video. It doesn't feature any dramatic plot or effects or anything, but the dance choreography was fun. Then there's "Hello," which is a good song, but the video is kind of dull. It feels like it only received so much attention because it's Adele's comeback single. The video did get parodied a lot, but I think that's mostly because of the song. 

However, the worst video of the five is, by far, Kanye West's "Famous." I didn't even watch it, I refused to, but I can say that confidently. The video features Kanye sleeping with wax figures of various celebrities in the nude, which is disgusting and clearly just to shock people. First of all, there's a sculpture of Taylor Swift. While we can argue over whether Kanye asked Taylor permission to address her by name in the song's lyrics, he definitely didn't ask for permission to put a depiction of her naked body in the music video, and that's taking things too far. He also put sculptures of Bill Cosby and Donald Trump, both of whom have sexual assault allegations. However, I'd argue that the most offensive thing about it is that he put the sculpture of Rihanna right next to that of Chris Brown- her abuser. I know I said that videos like "Blurred Lines," "We Can't Stop," and "Wrecking Ball" deserved to be recognized as the Video of the Year due to how they provoked people, and "Famous" did provoke people, alright. But there's a line between shocking imagery and going against moral decency, and "Famous" is on the latter half of that. 

2017

Nominees:

"HUMBLE." by Kendrick Lamar (Winner)

"Scars to Your Beautiful" by Alessia Cara

"Wild Thoughts" by DJ Khaled ft. Rihanna and Bryson Tiller

"24K Magic" by Bruno Mars

"Reminder" by The Weeknd

A common trend for this crop of nominees is that the videos in question are good, but the artists have better videos. First we have “HUMBLE.” This is an incredible, eye-catching video that absolutely deserved to win. I loved the visual references, such as Kendrick recreating The Last Supper, and the video is full of strong iconography. I just personally preferred the “DNA." video. I mean, it’s Kendrick and Don Cheadle doing a lie detector test and going back and forth, rapping the song! It’s like with “Bad Romance” vs. “Telephone”: Although the former is more iconic, I personally preferred the latter. Then we have “24K Magic,” which is a jam, but the “That’s What I Like” video is much better. It’s so simple with Bruno just dancing, but the animation over it really makes the clip stand out. Finally, we have “Reminder.” The video is mostly just The Weeknd hanging out with some famous friends, like Drake and Travis Scott. And that’s fine, if not a little boring, but the “False Alarm” video was right there! That video was basically a first-person-shooter bank robbery and it matched the frantic energy of the song perfectly. It's super gory and violent but it's one of the coolest music videos I've ever seen. And I’d get if they didn’t nominate it because it wasn’t a huge hit, but then again, neither was “Reminder”! If “False Alarm” was nominated, it would provide Kendrick with some serious competition, but as it stands, “HUMBLE.” absolutely deserved to win.

As for the other two videos, they’re whatever. “Wild Thoughts” is very vibrant and Rihanna looks fantastic, but it’s not anything special. “Scars to Your Beautiful,” on the other hand, has a good message of embracing your imperfections, but the video was poorly edited. Intercut with the song, they have scenes of people who have struggled with body image talking about their insecurities. However, the transitions between the dialogue and the song are sloppily done. I would have nominated "Despacito" by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee instead of either of these videos. It's not a particularly incredible video, but it's currently the most viewed video of all time on YouTube and its impact cannot be denied. I also think "Gangnam Style" by PSY should have been nominated in 2013 for the same reason: tremendous impact. 

2018

Nominees

"Havana" by Camila Cabello ft. Young Thug (Winner)

"Apeshit" by The Carters

"God's Plan" by Drake

"This Is America" by Childish Gambino

"No Tears Left To Cry" by Ariana Grande

"Finesse (Remix)" by Bruno Mars ft. Cardi B

Before I even watched any of the videos for this year, I thought, “Yeah, they gave the award to the worst video nominated.” “Havana” isn’t a terrible video. It’s a decent homage to telenovelas and the song is pretty good. It’s just...worse than the other five videos. It might just be because I’m pretty biased against Camila Cabello because her voice is really nasally and annoying and she has this “trying too hard to be quirky and relatable” personality that I find incredibly grating. The video also features Lele Pons, an Internet personality who I don’t think is funny at all, and another influencer named LeJuan James in drag as Camila’s grandma. The video’s cute, I guess, but it can’t compare to the other nominees.

First of all, we have “Apeshit,” a video in which Beyoncé and Jay-Z hang out in the Louvre because they can. The video looks expensive and clearly has a high production value. Next we have “God’s Plan,” which would be a satisfactory winner because of all the good Drake does in the video. He gives away $175,000 to various Miami residents, and it is probably for publicity, but a good thing is still a good thing. I doubt the people who got the money were skeptical of any ulterior motives; they’re just grateful for the donations. Next we have “No Tears Left To Cry.” I’m very open about my bias towards Ariana Grande, but even with that, “No Tears Left To Cry” was a great video. It had a lot of interesting, almost trippy visuals, such as the scene with Ariana sitting on the ceiling, removing her face like a mask. Then there’s “Finesse,” which is an homage to the 90s sketch comedy series In Living Color! As I said before, I’m always a fan of homages and parodies, and although I’ve never watched an episode of In Living Color!, the video is still a fun homage that earned praises from cast members of the original series. Finally, we have the video that absolutely deserved to win the most with Childish Gambino’s “This Is America.” I can’t think of any videos that have been more analyzed and dissected than this one, as every frame of the video contains a reference to racism and the plight Black Americans have faced for centuries. While it’s fun to watch the power couple in the music industry do their thing in the Louvre or watch Bruno Mars and Cardi B get their 90s on, “This Is America” is the one nominee from this year that actually had something important to say. With this video, Donald Glover provoked people and got them talking about the gun violence, mass shootings, police brutality, and general racism that plagues our country. It’s a video that was timely then, but two years later, has only grown in relevance. 

Despite all the protests, petitions, and the like, cops continue to misuse their power and harm Black people who have, at most, committed minor felonies. This past Sunday, officers in Kenosha, Wisconsin shot 29-year-old Jacob Blake seven times as his kids watched in the car. Blake is still alive, but he is in a serious yet stable condition. I’ve always been aware of how much of a problem police brutality is, but Blake’s shooting has particularly resonated with me on a personal level. I live two hours from Kenosha, so this tragedy has been a call to arms. This shit is happening only two hours away from me. If I didn’t care before, I sure would have cared now. I’ve seen friends of friends on Facebook argue that Blake deserved what happened to him because he has assault charges. No, he didn’t. It doesn’t matter if a person is a complete saint or a convicted felon. Nobody, and I mean nobody, deserves to be a victim of police brutality. But despite the completely reasonable outrage, many victims have yet to receive the justice they deserve. Breonna Taylor was murdered in March and the cops who killed her are nonchalantly chilling at the beach as if they didn’t commit a hate crime earlier this year. Elijah McClain was killed a year ago and his family is still begging for justice! Worse yet, a 17-year-old boy named Kyle Rittenhouse shot three protesters in Kenosha on Tuesday. He killed two people, by the names of Anthony M. Huber and Joseph Rosenbaum. Yet the police see him as an ally, despite him being a felon on multiple accounts. (Obviously, there’s the murder, but no one under the age of 18 is allowed to have an assault rifle, and he was 17.) Black people are shot and killed while going to the convenience store, white people can commit murder and the police reward them with water bottles- this is America, indeed.

In conclusion, “This Is America” didn’t win Video of the Year, despite it being a quality video that deserved such an accolade. But at the end of the day, that VMA is meaningless. Donald Glover and director Hiro Murai created a video that has far more real-world relevance and impact than any of the other videos I talked about today, with the exception of “Formation” and the two solo Kendrick Lamar videos. I only hope for the day when “This Is America” is no longer relevant because we no longer have to deal with cops using their power in the worst kinds of ways. 

2019

Nominees:

"You Need to Calm Down" by Taylor Swift (Winner)

"a lot" by 21 Savage ft. J. Cole

"Bad Guy" by Billie Eilish

"Thank U, Next" by Ariana Grande

"Sucker" by the Jonas Brothers

"Old Town Road (Remix)" by Lil Nas X ft. Billy Ray Cyrus

Looks like we're yet again going to deal with some heavy topics with this bunch of videos. First of all, we have "You Need to Calm Down," the winner for this year, and I'm going to try to make my case without coming off as insensitive. I'm walking on eggshells here. For those who don't know, "You Need to Calm Down," both its song and video, are clearly and obviously about the LGBTQ community, and the video features countless drag queens and other LGBTQ public figures, such as the Fab Five from Queer Eye and Ellen DeGeneres. I absolutely, 100% support LGBTQ rights and I think homophobes are worse than scum. However, this video rubs me the wrong way. While it's so important to celebrate pride and I'm sure Taylor's intentions were completely sincere, I do feel like this video comes off as stereotyping. It plays a lot into the "flamboyant and fabulous" stereotype for gay men, and the decision to portray the homophobes as poor and poorly educated hillbillies seems pretty elitist. Most of the really dangerous homophobes are those in power. The decision to put Katy Perry in the video also seems nice at first as a way to show that they've made amends from their stupid feud, but it completely takes away from all the activism the video did, as all the gossip sites are going to focus on Katy rather than the LGBTQ celebration. Finally, since this video did come out during Pride month, it does kind of feel like Taylor is using pride as a fashion statement or just for publicity. I'm sure that's not the case, but it feels that way. TLDR: The intentions for this song and were very good, but good intentions do not make a good video, and the execution for "You Need to Calm Down" was flawed. And for the record, although I'm coming off as negative and "hating" on Taylor: I don't really hate her. She has some amazing music videos; "Blank Space" is my personal favorite, but "Look What You Made Me Do" had a really good, creative video too, despite the song not being my thing. I just wish her two Video of the Year wins were for better videos. 

Then there's "a lot," the second video I have more than a few sentences to say about. It's another video that deals with Black struggles, and it's a very well-done video. I like how it shows 21 Savage having a family reunion in a luxurious mansion, with everyone wearing fancy clothes and looking poised. But as it shows them living lives of luxury, it cuts to the "real" them, in much grittier situations such as jail or a funeral. I also like the song quite a bit. I had always thought 21 Savage sounded really bored and dull, but here, it actually makes sense for him to sound so lifeless; he's just burnt out from all the shit he's seen, such as the deaths of his younger brother and best friend, as well as that whole fiasco he had with ICE, which is a problem that did not need to happen. (Stellar says Abolish ICE.)

As for the rest, I like most of them. Personally, I would give the trophy to "Thank U, Next" or "Old Town Road." With the former, of course, I'm biased towards Ariana and it's one of my favorite songs by her, and I love the chick flick homages and celebrity cameos. I do prefer the "God Is A Woman" video, but "Thank U Next" was more iconic in pop culture, breaking the record for most viewed video in 24 hours at the time. As for "Old Town Road," that song was a true phenomenon and the video captured everything about the phenomenon perfectly. Lil Nas X is a perfect hilarious gay cowboy who I will defend to the death and so many of the scenes were wonderfully absurd. My favorite is when Lil Nas and Billy Ray Cyrus perform the song at an elderly bingo game. The song did win the new "Song of the Year" award, which it 110% deserved. Next there was "Bad Guy," which was a perfectly sarcastic and sinister accompaniment to the song. However, for Billie Eilish videos, I preferred "When the Party's Over." It's so minimal, but the image of Billie crying jet-black tears is haunting and striking. Finally, we have "Sucker," which is an okay video for an okay song. It's always nice to see the Jonas wives (Priyanka Chopra, Sophie Turner, and Danielle Jonas) hanging out together, and they're wearing some extravagant couture here. 

Now, the 2020 nominees! We won't have a winner for this until tomorrow, so I will make predictions and give some thoughts on the nominees!

"Everything I Wanted" by Billie Eilish

"Godzilla" by Eminem ft. Juice WRLD
"Life is Good" by Future ft. Drake

"Rain on Me" by Lady Gaga ft. Ariana Grande

"The Man" by Taylor Swift

"Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd

I definitely think “Rain on Me” will win. The other artists have powerful, vocal fanbases, namely Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish. But “Rain on Me” is a video by two artists, each with one of the most fervent fanbases on the planet. Both the Little Monsters and the Arianators have probably been voting like their hearts depend on it. And as much as I’ve been acting like these awards are based on quality and/or impact, they are essentially popularity contests. That’s how Camila won in 2018, despite having the worst video; because her fans voted the most. I love the song a lot and I’d love to see Ariana take home a Video of the Year trophy, but honestly, I think it’s one of the weaker videos nominated. The choreography is great and Ariana and Gaga look fantastic, but a lot of the green screen effects look cheesy and cheap. 

I’m not sure which video is my favorite. My favorite song of the six is “Blinding Lights,” followed by “Everything I Wanted.” I think of both of those songs as good “driving through a big city at night” tracks, albeit in different ways. Coincidentally, both videos do feature night driving scenes, exactly what I’d imagine while listening to the song. “Everything I Wanted” features Billie and her brother, Finneas, calmly driving at dusk into an ocean. It’s a very sweet tribute to their brother-sister relationship. Meanwhile, the “Blinding Lights” video is all racing through Vegas at midnight at a hundred miles an hour- exactly what the song sounds like. If it were my choice, I’d probably give the trophy to “Blinding Lights,” just because I love the song so much and the video matches the 80s intensity of the song perfectly. I also really liked “The Man” video. In the video, Taylor transforms into a man (named Tyler Swift, of course) through some incredible prosthetic makeup. It’s basically a clever commentary on all the shit men can do and get away with, and for bonus points, Tyler Swift is voiced by The Rock. Who doesn’t love The Rock? Then there’s “Life as Good,” and as amusing as it is to see Drake and Future work a drive-thru, this video doesn’t deserve to win. How can we name a song called “Life is Good” the Video of the Year in 2020, a year where life is absolutely not good? Finally, we have “Godzilla.” I do think this is probably the worst video nominated, as a bunch of the effects look silly. However, I wouldn’t complain at all if it won. The song “Godzilla” was the first song released posthumously to feature Jarad Higgins, better known as Juice WRLD. Juice was my younger brother’s favorite artist and he was pretty devastated when his death was confirmed. I wasn’t a diehard fan of him, but I recognized his talent and was heartbroken to see him go out at the age of 20 when he had so much more potential to do great things. By all accounts, Juice seemed to be a good person (something that’s pretty rare in the SoundCloud rap-sphere), and his music resonated with countless young people. It would be nice to see “Godzilla” get the award, but Jarad has still left behind an incredible legacy and impact, with or without the trophy. May he Rest In Peace.

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The VMAs will be on MTV and all its sister networks if you’d like to watch them; they’re also going to stream online, which is how I’ll probably watch them. On Monday, I’ll write a recap and some highlights, so tune in for that if you’re interested.

Stellar