For its 33rd year, the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards made a epic return to New York City’s Madison Square Garden. And it was Beyonce who commanded the stage with a whopping 15-minute-long medley of tracks from her groundbreaking visual album Lemonade, and also earning the video of the year honor for “Formation” and best female video for “Hold Up.”
“I want to thank my beautiful daughter and my incredible husband for all of their support,” Queen Bey told the crowd during her acceptance speech, also dedicating the honor to “the people of New Orleans” and paying tribute to her team for their “tireless support.”
The show also featured an energetic performance from Rihanna. The 28-year-old singer sang and danced through the first of several medleys throughout the night of her career hits including “Don’t Stop The Music” and “Diamonds.”
Since their 1984 debut, the VMAs have been heralded as the Grammys‘ hipper, younger sibling, bringing together the biggest names in music for a crazy night of cutting-edge fashion, wild performances, and buzzworthy moments.
This year’s ceremony was broadcast live from Madison Square Garden with a rotating cast of emcees including comedians Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele.
