Highlights from the Billboard Music Awards 2016

Last night was the night — the “Oscars of Music,” according to Ludacris. Okay, it’s really not equivalent to that since that’s what the Grammys are for… But I digress. The Billboard Music Awards (BBMAs) honors the top trending artists today. You may know some of the familiar names that you’ve heard on your local radio stations… Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Adele, The Weeknd, just to name a few.

You know we all tuned in for one reason: the performances! This award show was jam packed with acts back to back and without a hitch, reigning queen Britney Spears kicked off the show with a medley of a few of her hit songs including “Toxic.” I don’t know about anyone else, but I was waiting for her to bust out with the “Sometimes” track. I can’t help but admire Britney for coming so far since her fiasco back in 2007. She is the role model for anyone who thinks their life is going haywire. Britney made it past that dark time and so can you.

The hosts of the night were aforementioned Ludacris for his third time and singer Ciara for her first time. I’ve got nothing but love for those two. They had great chemistry and at least it didn’t feel like a forced gig. Don’t you feel sometimes award shows put some of the randomest people together thinking it’ll be OK when in fact, it’s super awkward for everyone watching?

Now, the performances. Aside from Britney stealing the opening, we got to see Fifth Harmony strut their stuff singing “Work From Home” with Ty Dolla $ign straight into Meghan Trainor’s latest single “No.” Girl power much? Speaking of girl power, legendary Pink made her world television premiere of “Just Like Fire” and you know it isn’t a show without any acrobats! If you haven’t seen Pink in concert, I suggest you do the next time she heads out on tour. It’s absolutely phenomenal.
From Pink, we’re shown “7 Years” singer Lukas Graham. I could not agree more when I read a tweet that said, “First SONG of the night.” Not to diss any artist out there, but I simply enjoyed this song so much. It’s so honest and can you honestly say there’s a lot of songs that do that as of late?
I think the wildcard out of all the songs had to be Gwen Stefani and Blake’s “Go Ahead and Break My Heart.” It was random out of the bunch of other songs performed and I’m not sure if this is a song I’ll be rushing to play on a loop on my Spotify.

The night was also filled with the heavy hitters from Adele who premiered her new music video to “Send My Love to Your New Lover” to Celine Dion who accepted the Billboard Icon Award. Celine was surprised by her son René-Charles and there was not a dry eye… In my room. She dedicated this award to her late husband René Angélil and you can really see how much family and music means to her.
After a long week of dispute and rumors, Kesha stole the show for a bit when she covered Bob Dylan’s “It Ain’t Me Babe” (made famous by Johnny Cash and June Carter). I’m going to bet that this is the performance people will talk about for days to come. It’s been a long uphill battle for her due to the Dr. Luke lawsuit she’s been up against but she showed everyone that she’s standing strong no matter what.
Kia’s ‘One To Watch’ goes to Troye Sivan this year. Last year, they awarded this to Tori Kelly who is huge in the music industry. Kia isn’t wrong about Troye. I’ve been following him for a while and he is certainly someone everyone should check out. I wouldn’t be surprised if by this time next year, he’ll be selling out multiple tour dates just like Tori.

The final act of the night goes to a special tribute to Prince by Madonna and a special guest appearance by Stevie Wonder. Questlove introduced it with a beautiful speech showcasing his absolute respect to the legend. Now, I’ve seen a lot of mixed reviews regarding Madonna’s vocals, song choice, and just about everything. The Internet is a world full of opinions and just to add my two cents: she could have picked a better song, or maybe even incorporated an epic guitar solo that Prince probably would have slayed himself.
Was it a mesmerizing night that I’ll be able to talk about for weeks on end? Eh. Were there memes ready to be made? I wouldn’t be surprised if there were several of Rihanna whispering to her friend every five seconds during a performance.
For a complete list of the night’s winners, head over to Billboard Music Awards website.
Read more Celebrity News on ClicheMag.com
Highlights from the Billboard Music Awards 2016: Featured image courtesy of Jeff Kravitz/BBMA2016/FilmMagic