This year's MTV Video Music Awards didn't feature Miley in about 20 different bizarre outfits and Lady Gaga didn't come dressed as a man or in a meat dress. Needless to say 2016 wasn't as shocking as those in the past but still had some memorable moments. The following is my ranking of this year's performances.
7. The Chainsmokers "Closer" feat. Halsey
Nothing about this performance was really doing it for me. The two things I took away from this was how cute Andrew Taggart is and Halsey must have had some serious double-sided tape to keep that shirt steady. Love the song, but the performance didn't match up.
6. Nick Jonas "Bacon" feat. Ty Dolla Sign
Kudos for this taking place in the middle of a diner and its kitchen - very relevant to the whole bacon theme. It also made for a slightly awkward setup. This performance wasn't necessarily bad but I was indifferent towards it.
5. Future "F**k Up Some Commas"
I guess some rappers can't really put on that big of a performance--his dancing was borderline Drake-in-"Hotline Bling" status. The background effects were cool.
4. Britney Spears "Make Me.../Me, Myself, and I" feat. G-Eazy
This wasn't the comeback I was anticipating. It had good moments if you can get over the awkward feeling up of G-Eazy, the weird yellow sequins, and the horrible lip-syncing.
3. Ariana Grande "Side to Side" feat. Nicki Minaj
I thought the whole workout/gym theme was cute and was carried out well throughout the performance (although I wasn't sure what that poker visor on her head was doing for her). Ariana had to break out the headset for this one because singing while biking takes a lot of effort, especially in heels. We all know one thing, Ariana can belt out a tune. Then Nicki came out with her famous booty in tow.
2. Rihanna
Rihanna came in at a close second to Beyoncé - I mean, she did perform 4 different times throughout the show. All of her mashups were awesome and her backup dancers were killing it as much as she was. The best thing about Rihanna is that she stays true to herself no matter what she does and I was happy to see that continuously brought to the show. Not to mention Drake finished it off with a confession of his love.
1. Beyoncé "Lemonade" Medley
It's no shocker that Beyoncé killed this year's VMAs. Her "Lemonade" medley was truly a mesmerizing performance and we wouldn't expect anything less from her. And after Sunday night's show she now owns the most VMAs to date. Pretty big deal considering she surpassed Madonna's previous record of 20.