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    • Reviews of all performances, including Chappell Roan
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    Reviews of all performances, including Chappell Roan

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    The MTV VMAs are officially middle age.

    The 40and The show’s run has long been valued more for the performances that have become milestones in the careers of many artists than for who takes home a statue of the Moon.

    It’s no wonder that a superstar like Chappell Roan was willing to shuffle her tour schedule to take the stage Wednesday night at the UBS Arena on Long Island, New York, alongside next-generation megastars Eminem, LL Cool J, Lenny Kravitz and Video Vanguard career-relaunch winner Katy Perry.

    The elaborate set, featuring a 62-foot-tall inflatable Moon figure towering over five stages, proved the ideal playground for host Megan Thee Stallion, who helmed a production ready to welcome pop idols Sabrina Carpenter, Camila Cabello, Halsey, Blackpink standout Lisa and the recently resurfaced Shawn Mendes, among others.

    Below you can read how their performances went.

    Megan Thee Stallion with Yuki Chiba, medley

    The evening’s fantastic but rarely seen host, Megan Thee Stallion, performed a medley including “BOA” and BAS, bouncing around in her yellow outfit that covered some of her body while mostly dancing and belting out rap songs.

    She roamed the crowd during “Hiss” and welcomed Japanese rapper Yuki Chiba for her current hit, “Mamushi.” Chiba showed off his unique flow as he had Megan stand on her side of the stage to shake her thighs.

    Chappell Roan, ‘Good Luck, Darling’

    It’s fitting that the pop star chose a dark, medieval theme for her performance, as she sounds like a less heavy Kate Bush, a woman no stranger to a Gothic background.

    After setting the castle behind her ablaze with a flaming crossbow – go for it – Chappell Roan, in fake armor and with her crimson hair braided behind her, sang probably the best song of the year.

    Both dramatic and subtle – her well-timed touch of a sword perfectly matched her lyrics about a “sexually explicit love affair” – Roan’s delivery was only surpassed by her powerful vocals.

    The power in her voice as she struck the final “I hate to say, I told you so” signaled that she’ll be singing “Good Luck, Babe” for decades to come. At least, we hope so.

    Katy Perry, a medley spanning her entire career

    This year’s Video Vanguard winner received an introduction from a movie star, something most recipients can’t claim.

    But Perry’s partner is Orlando Bloom, who kindly told the audience that he had not fallen in love with international pop star Katy Perry, but with California’s Katheryn Hudson.

    That left Perry suspended in the air, floating like a superhero who came down to earth for “Dark Horse,” one of her classics that was shaved and sewn for this 10-minute medley.

    Synthesizer hums on “ET” as Perry, dressed in a hand-me-down from the set of “Mad Max,” “walked” over a line of muscular dancers before joining rapper Doechii for some sexy sliding across a platform during the new “I’m His, He’s Mine.”

    The theme turned to mirrorball fun as Perry, dressed in a beige chest armor and thigh-high boots, launched into the delicious fun of “California Gurls.”

    Bloom watched from the audience with an expression of both admiration and bewilderment as the relentless beat segued into “Teenage Dream,” her softest hit with an unwavering chorus.

    The intriguing screeching guitar line that heralded Perry’s winking breakthrough in 2008 was quickly countered by the appearance of her inflatable wings, a bizarre sight that briefly overshadowed the song. But only briefly, because this rockified version was so appealing, Perry would have to reissue it. It’s not like she has anything to lose

    Anitta featuring DJ Khaled, Fat Joe, Tiago PZK, ‘Paradise,’ ‘Alegria,’ ‘Savage Funk’

    The Brazilian beauty returned to the VMAs stage after a spirited performance last year and was joined by the ever-useless DJ Khaled and utility player Fat Joe, for “Paradise.”

    We’re pretty sure Anitta and her wingwomen could handle the performance without Khaled screaming “Hands up!” over and over again. At least Anitta had a connection with Fat Joe switching between her singing and his rapping over a clip-clop beat.

    Anitta replaced Khaled and Joe with Tiago PZK for “Alegria,” moving back and forth between a pair of red-shaded stages, spinning and bouncing.

    The seductive images probably distracted people from the fact that Anitta’s vocals stopped a few seconds before she took her final position on stage. Oops.

    VMAs: All winners and nominees in 2024

    Sabrina Carpenter, ‘Please, Please,’ ‘Taste,’ ‘Espresso’

    Sabrina Carpenter beamed from the ridge beams on a gilded silver swing, enjoying a Glinda the Good Witch moment as she cooed, “Please, please, please.”

    But quickly – cramming three songs into one performance is an unenviable challenge – Carpenter moved into “Taste,” now accompanied by an astronaut and an alien groping each other as she sang. It’s possible Carpenter was giving a nod to the iconic space-themed MTV VMAs Moon Person imagery, but it didn’t quite work.

    More astronauts joined her and walked the runway, a pair of red lips visible on her inner thigh, while Carpenter tossed her flaxen mane, coquettish as ever, as she belted out her catchy hit “Espresso.”

    Shawn Mendes, ‘Nobody Knows’

    As Shawn Mendes prepares for his comeback, the thoughtful singer-songwriter unveiled “Nobody Knows” for his first live show. It was a brave decision to follow an empty pop showcase (Lisa) with a simple track grounded in acoustic guitar.

    Standing on a rug surrounded by fake candles, his shirt casually unbuttoned to his belt, Mendes belted out the soulful number on a dark stage. Stripped of all its shiny trappings, the ballad escalated into a powerful roots rocker, with Mendes uncorking his voice into a howl and quickly de-escalating it to a near-whisper.

    The hug he and his two bandmates gave when they left the stage was the best moment of the show.

    LISA, ‘New Woman’, ‘Rock Star’

    The Blackpink member made her VMAs debut as a solo artist in a red, fringed top and miniskirt, sitting on a chair next to her six female dancers for “New Woman.” Lisa strutted supermodel-style to the top of a raised platform with a moving catwalk as she half-sang the sappy pop anthem.

    Her transition to “Rockstar” was welcomed.

    Now on the main stage, Lisa and her male dancers performed sharply choreographed moves for a star engulfed in flames (was there a metaphor we missed?). Her lithe frame got a little lost in the crew as the number evolved into a frenzy of pyro and air guitar moves, ending with Lisa flashing the rock ‘n’ roll devil horns that apparently transcend generations.

    Karol G, ‘Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido’

    Addressing the crowd in Spanish, the Colombian hitmaker moved her hips and (mostly) bare torso as she belted out “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido,” which translates to “If I had met you earlier.”

    Karol G ran around a festive stage decorated with a makeshift bar and footage of a beach before heading out onto the arena floor for TikTok moments. She paused for Taylor Swift, who showed off her best slinky pout, and then found Camila Cabello, who also gamely jumped into the groove.

    The song isn’t particularly memorable, but Karol G’s audience interaction, enthusiasm and dancers made up for its shortcomings.

    Eminem, ‘Houdini’, ‘Somebody Save Me’

    With a giant “E” lighting up the sky outside the arena as his personal Bat-Signal, Eminem entered the arena, followed by a group of Slim Shady look-alikes, rapping his Steve Miller-sampling hit “Houdini.”

    His blond wig looked more like fur than hair, but the ridiculous look couldn’t dampen Eminem’s enthusiasm as he walked across the stage full of doppelgangers and sang the end of the song alongside a Dorian Gray version of himself.

    Eminem combined his bouncy hit with the most poignant song of his 12and album, “The Death of Slim Shady,” the ballad “Somebody Save Me.”

    Although the heartbreaking song about Eminem’s failures as a father features the chorus of Jelly Roll’s “Save Me,” the great man was only there in mind and on video to sing the choruses.

    After removing his wig, Eminem pored over the lyrics and ended his performance with a pensive look as he sat in a worn-out armchair watching home videos of his children, seemingly contemplating his return to the VMA stage.

    Vaseline
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