IT was the first day of winter, and although the weather set the clock back by one hour, MTV EMA, which took place in Milan, Italy, last Sunday threw up memories that are sure to linger on.
The Mediolanum Forum, venue of the awards show was turbo charged, beginning with the glamorous red carpet at 19:00 through to the actual awards ceremony which kicked off at 21:00, ending with the thrills of spectacular performances and rewards that saw Pop singer, Justin Bieber clinching five laurels. It was the highest received by an individual at the show.
World music stars had converged on Milan for the EMAs, savouring every bit of the spotlight as the show went down, delivering at fever pitch, a potpourri of music, dance, arts and fashion.
Not only was the show broadcast across MTV’s global network of more than 60 channels reaching nearly 700 million households around the world, this year’s show made history as the first global award show broadcast entire event in virtual reality, allowing viewers around the world direct access via the MTV EMA app.
Although Bieber was up for six awards, he picked five as against rivals like Taylor Swift with nine nominations. And if anyone expected the artiste to break down in tears as he did at the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) in August, he did not betray his emotions this time. Bieber won Best Male Performer, Best Collaboration, Best Look, Biggest Fans and Best Canadian Act.
“It’s been a long couple of years. I just feel it’s awesome to be recognised for my music,” he said.
The ovation was loudest for the artiste who performed his single “What Do You Mean?” at the show.
Taylor Swift who was absent at the show picked one award from her nine nominations – Best Song for Bad Blood, featuring Kendrick Lamar. Rihanna won Best Female Performer while Nicki Minaj won Best Hip hop. One Direction won for Best Pop Group while Macklemore & Ryan Lewis won Best Video.
In the Worldwide Act category, Tanzanian artiste Diamond Platnumz was pronounced winner of the Africa/India contest. The singer defeated Indian star Priyanka Chopra to be rated tops across the two continents.
The artiste who spoke to The Nation during the red carpet session was optimistic he would win, saying African music has evolved with so much impact that is difficult to ignore.
“I really hope to make Africa proud tonight,” said Platinum, who only weeks ago took the shine at the All African a Music Magazine Awards, AFRIMMA, in Dallas, Texas, United States, where he won the African Artiste of The Year, East African Artist e of the Year, Best Inspirational Song of the Year and Best Dance of the Year.
“It’s so exciting to see African artistes taking their rightful place on the MTV EMA stage with their peers from around the world. This is a huge achievement for Diamond and a win for both him and African contemporary music, and we send our warmest congratulations to him,” said Alex Okosi, SVP & MD, VIMN Africa.
Co-hosted by Ed Sheeran and Ruby Rose, Sheeran who also performed with Rudimental on their hit Lay It on Me, took home two awards – Best Live Act and Best World Stage out of four nominations
It was altogether an epic outing as Pharrell Williams closed the show with a rousing rendition of his Freedom, after which guests converged for an After Party.
The memory of 2015 EMAs wouldn’t be complete without mentioning that Duran Duran, the chart-topping 1980s band, comprising Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, Andy Taylor and Roger Taylor were honoured with the first-ever MTV video visionary award for music video pioneers. Duran Duran, according to the organizers, were deserving of this award for their strong visual presence and for influencing a generation of musicians with some of the best pioneering music videos of all time.
“Music lovers around the world, when we started, there was us and MTV, and we blazed a trail and we were there for each other,” Simon Le Bon told the crowd.
The previous night, a welcome concert took the city by storm, featuring Duran Duran who showed the stuff. The ecstatic crowd at the Piazza Duomo formed the momentary judges of a show that turned out to be just more than a welcome concert.
But the spirit of the night did not only fall on Duran Duran, the five-man band that headlined and chauffeured the show to its climax. The show’s take off was as powerful as its landing, with UK singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding who quickened fans’ into the dance mood as millions trooped to the Piazza Duomo that chilly night. Goulding played familiar tunes, hitting the right part of the audience who went at the signature note. It was an energetic performance back-to-back before she finally took a bow. And when Italian superstar Marco Mengoni took over the microphone, the homeboy band brought the crowd back to their roots, enthralling even the visitors with rhythm and stagecraft. Music buffs couldn’t have asked for more, clapping and cheering as each performance faded.
Milan hosted the show for the second time since 1998, thus it was apparent the city leveraged on the success of the previous edition. The show itself has lasted 22 years, with Italy getting the hosting right for the third time, having also held in Rome in 2004.
