Celebrity Scoop – 05/02/2019
DRAKE RULES 2019 BILLBOARD MUSIC AWARDS – (05/02/2019)
The 2019 Billboard Music Awards were handed out at the MGM Garden Arena in Las Vegas last night.
With Kelly Clarkson hosting and Cardi B leading the nominees with 21 noms in 18 categories, it was Drake who was history-making: He became the most-awarded artist in BBMAs history, nabbing 12 awards to bring his all-time total up to 27. Highlights included:
Taylor Swift opened the show with a hyper-colorful performance of her new single “ME!” She was joined on stage by duet partner Brendon Urie for a high-energy performance of the hit.
Immediately after Taylor’s performance, host Kelly Clarkson kicked things off with a rapid-fire, note-perfect medley of hits by some of the night’s performers.
Mariah Carey was honored with the prestigious Icon Award. She took the stage to perform a medley of hits – including “A No No,” “Always Be My Baby,” “Emotions,” “We Belong Together” and “Hero” – before Jennifer Hudson presented her with her award. In her emotional acceptance speech, Carey thanked her fans, as well as her kids, 8-year-old twins Moroccon and Monroe, wishing them a happy birthday. Carey is only the eighth artist to ever receive the icon award at the Billboard Music Awards, following: Neil Diamond (2011), Stevie Wonder (2012), Prince (2013), Jennifer Lopez (2014), Céline Dion (2016), Cher (2017) and Janet Jackson (2018). “Icon? I really don’t think of myself that way. I started making music out of a necessity to survive,” she said in her speech. “I still feel like that lost interracial child who felt lost,” she continued.
Drake dropped a surprise Game of Thrones shout-out into one of his speeches. Taking the stage to accept the Billboard Top 200 Album award, Drake thanked family, friends and those who helped work on his album Scorpion – then proved he’s a big GoT fan by saying: “And shout-out to Ayra Stark for putting in that work last week.”
Madonna performed a high-tech performance wards that’s rumored to have cost her $5 million. The singer, 60, performed her new single “Medellin” with Colombian singer Maluma, 25 – and a quartet of hologram Madonnas, each representing a different character she inhabits on her upcoming concept album, Madame X.
The newly-reunited Jonas Brothers gave fans a taste of solo hits “Jealous” and “Cake By The Ocean” before performing their No. 1 comeback smash “Sucker.”
Paula Abdul closed the show with a medley of her late ‘80s / early ‘90s hits that came complete with one eyebrow-raising moment. Dancing through the crowd, Paula flung off her hat in one smooth Michael Jackson-esque move – and whipped it straight into Julianne Hough’s throat.
SOPHIE TURNER AND JOE JONAS GET MARRIED! Shortly after the Billboard Music Awards ceremony, Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas got married in a surprise Las Vegas ceremony. Diplo documented the ceremony on his live Instagram feed; an Elvis impersonator performed the ceremony, which took place at Chapel L’Amour inside A Little White Wedding Chapel. Khalid, Joe’s brothers Nick and Kevin, also reportedly attended and Dan + Shay performed “Speechless.”
MTV VMAS TO TAKE PLACE IN NEW JERSEY FOR THE FIRST TIME: MTV has announced the 2019 edition of its Video Music Awards ceremony is scheduled to take place at the Prudential Center in Newark. This is the first time the gala’s signature moonperson statuettes will be presented in New Jersey. MTV’s Bruce Gillmer noted that the state was the birthplace of an “endless” list of music legends, including Frank Sinatra, Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen, the Fugees and the Jonas Brothers. The event typically happens in New York and Los Angeles, but has also occasionally occurred in Miami and Las Vegas. The network tweeted a brief video this week, announcing the show’s date as August 26th. No host has been revealed yet.
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