Social media was buzzing last night as music fans celebrated one of music's biggest nights, the MTV Video Music Awards.
The show, which has earned its reputation for scandal and outrageous moments returned to New York City Sunday night.
Rihanna got the party started in a bubblegum pink ensemble and set.
With the show being held in New York City, it was only right that a native of The Big Apple handed out the first award. The answer? Diddy (AKA Puffy Daddy, born Sean Combs), was the first presenter of the night. He presented the award for Best Hip-Hop Video to Drake. The problem, however, was that Drake was not there. Diddy said Drake was "stuck in traffic," and it remained the elephant in the room throughout the evening.
Key and Peele were the hosts of the evening, yet took on alter-egos, as social influencers The Shamaster and Lizard Sheeple.
Next up was Ariana Grande, who debuted her new single "Side to Side," featuring Nicki Minaj. The pop song with Caribbean roots was paired with a fitness-inspired performance, inspiring many of us to find our nearest spin class ASAP. This marks the sixth time the two have collaborated at an awards show.
What would the VMAs be without a rant from Kanye West?
West took the stage for four minutes before presenting his newest music video. In his four minutes, he spoke about his ongoing feud with Taylor Swift, gun violence in his hometown of Chicago. and even gave a shout-out to his ex, Amber Rose, while also acknowledging his wife, calling Kim Kardashian-West a 'G.' He also stated he would be okay if he lost the night's biggest award, Video of the Year, to Beyonce.
Michael Phelps cleverly introduced rapper Future. Here, Phelps explained his angry face, saying he was actually listening to Future and getting in game mode.
The pacing of the show slowed down tremendously until Rihanna's second performance of the evening with a tribute to her Caribbean roots.
And then...Beyonce took the stage.
She didn't just do a song. She didn't just give a medley of her greatest hits. She gave fans a 15 minute mini-concert that mirrored her Formation World Tour. The explosive performance set social media on fire. To some, the show was over after that.
Yet, the show wasn't over and Britney Spears was slated to perform after her. Introduced by Kardashian-West, this was Spears' first VMAs performance in a decade.
Rihanna hit the stage for the third time shortly after and still, there was no sign of Drake anywhere.
Rihanna was the recipient of the Vanguard Award and who better to present the prestigious award to her than...Drake? That's right! He finally made it. It has us wondering if the traffic excuse a ploy the entire time so he could surprise her?
Beyonce, as predicted by Kanye West, won Video of the Year. Four of the Final Five Gymnasts handed the moon man to Beyonce.
