MTV VMAs 2015: What the Cameras Missed

This year’s MTV Video Music Awards offered plenty of buzzworthy moments via the network telecast, but inside the Microsoft Theater at L.A. Live where the show was held, some of these moments came off decidedly different from how they were seen on TV.

Kanye West’s awkward acceptance speech for the Video Vanguard Award (presented by Taylor Swift) for example, wasn’t quite as well received as it appeared on the broadcast. Sure, the cheering fans who surrounded the stage, and the celebs who sat near the front row near the Kardashian clan, all seemed touched and tickled by ‘Ye’s many off-the-cuff remarks and drawn-out pauses. But as it was going down, those in the rest of the theater, especially near the back, could be heard shouting for him to get off the stage about halfway through the bizarre, sermon-esque moment.

We will give West credit, though – even the biggest eye-rollers in the house had to laugh and give him his due for shaking things up when he ended his longwinded speech by announcing his run for presidency in 2020, complete with a mic-drop and giddy prance back over to his seat where Swift stood next to Kanye’s pregnant wife, Kim Kardashian.

Another moment that came off a bit differently on TV: Nicki Minaj and host Miley Cyrus’s heated exchange after Minaj’s “Anaconda” won for Best Hip-Hop Video. After shaking her buns with presenter Rebel Wilson and thanking her pastor, Minaj paused and said, “And now… back to this bitch that had a lot to say about me the other day in the press. Miley, what’s good?”

It seemed to catch Cyrus a bit off guard, and we’re pretty sure it wasn’t in the scripted teleprompter, but watching it go down live, Minaj’s vibe seemed more like a good-natured ribbing than ready-to-throw-down raging. She smiled after saying it, for instance. As her videos prove, Minaj is a good actress. Plus, she’s smart. She was a hot topic after calling out Swift in a Twitter rant against MTV’s alleged racial and/or body-type discrimination when it comes to nominations, so it wouldn’t be surprising if Minaj decided to create a little more drama – even after burying the hatchet with Swift onstage earlier. Ultimately, in pop music, it’s always good a thing if you get people talking.

Photos: 2015 MTV Music Video Awards Performances

Cyrus knows this better than anyone. On the whole, she did a great job as hostess. Yes, she kept the censors busy busting out F-bombs throughout the night, both in her presentations and in her pre-filmed packages, but she proved her timing was impeccable as the show producers called out countdowns for commercial breaks and setups for performers. She emerged onstage and stood unlit in outfit after outrageous outfit, then turned it on when lights hit, with something funny and slightly controversial to say about everyone who performed before and afterward.

Photos: Behind the Scenes at the 2015 VMAs

Off-camera, Cyrus touched hands with fans below the stage and even made jokes with them that didn’t make it to air, like when she came out in a skimpy white Fifth Element-style get-up before introducing Jared Leto. “I knew I should’ve worn underwear!” she joked, looking down at the crowd below her, just before the cameras started rolling.

Yes, Cyrus worked her sex appeal as we all expected her to, but those in the audience Sunday night saw a lot more than those who watched her on TV. After Justin Bieber’s emotional performance, she sought to lighten the mood by stripping off her metallic, shard-covered coat to reveal a very high-cut bodysuit. The monitors gave the audience an eyeful, but the televised version only showed a faraway shot.

Bieber, by the way, garnered the most enthusiastic reaction in the venue, with more than two-thirds of the crowd on their feet.

For all the director’s cutaways, they still managed to capture a nip-slip on film, from backstage when Cyrus was getting ready for her final number. She didn’t seem to care. MTV gave her free reign to do, say, and wear what she wanted, so there were tons of pot references and bad jokes – topped by some crude comments about Kardashian’s nipples.