The 1999 MTV Video Music Awards (stylized as 9999 MTV Video Music Awards) aired live on September 9, 1999, honoring the best music videos from June 13, 1998, to June 11, 1999. The show was hosted by Chris Rock at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City.[1] Ricky Martin was the most-awarded artist of the night, winning two primary awards for Best Pop Video and Best Dance Video, and three additional awards in the International Viewer's Choice categories for "Livin' la Vida Loca".[2] Martin and Korn were the most nominated artists of the night, both with 9 nominations for their songs, "Livin' la Vida Loca" and "Freak on a Leash", respectively. Martin was also the first Latin artist in history to receive a nomination in Video of the Year category,[3] but lost to "Doo Wop (That Thing)" by Lauryn Hill, which became the first Hip hop video to receive the award.[4][5]
| 1999 MTV Video Music Awards | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Date | Thursday, September 9, 1999 |
| Location | Metropolitan Opera House, New York City |
| Country | United States |
| Hosted by | Chris Rock |
| Most awards | Ricky Martin (5) |
| Most nominations | Ricky Martin and Korn (9 each) |
| Website | http://www.mtv.com/vma/1999/  |
| Television/radio coverage | |
| Network | MTV |
| Produced by | Salli Frattini Dave Sirulnick |
| Directed by | Beth McCarthy |
Highlights of the show included Diana Ross jiggling Lil' Kim's exposed breast in response to her outfit, which left her entire left breast uncovered, but for a small pastie on her nipple. The mothers of slain rappers Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G., Afeni Shakur and Voletta Wallace, came together to present the Best Rap Video Award. The Beastie Boys' Adam Horovitz made a plea for peace in the wake of the sexual assaults at Woodstock '99. Near the end of the night, MTV staged a tribute to Madonna, the most-nominated artist in VMA history, by presenting a host of male drag performers dressed as the singer in her past music videos. Rapper DMX was scheduled to perform but was a no-show; as a result, Jay-Z's solo set was extended. Another moment of the ceremony was the debut of Britney Spears performing her debut single "...Baby One More Time", and then, NSYNC, performed their song "Tearin' Up My Heart".
As Backstreet Boys came up and accepted their award for Viewer's Choice, a stranger came onto the stage and said, "Wake up at 3". This person was later revealed to be John Del Signore, who crashed the ceremony in a failed attempt to sell Viacom a show idea.[6]
The awards show featured a line-up of sponsors and cross-promotions, most notably with SEGA, as the date of the show also coincided with the launch of their Dreamcast game console.
Background
editAfter scouting locations in both New York and Los Angeles, MTV announced in May that the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards would be held at New York's Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center.[7] (MTV's traditional New York venue, Radio City Music Hall, was closed for renovations at the time.) Comedian Chris Rock was announced as the ceremony's host on June 30.[8] Nominations were announced at a press conference hosted by Rock, Carson Daly, and Ricky Martin and held at Lincoln Center on July 28.[9] For the first time, the ceremony was promoted with a "VMA Week" on Total Request Live, which would continue annually until that program's cancellation in 2008. The ceremony broadcast was preceded by the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards Opening Act. Hosted by Kurt Loder and Serena Altschul with reports from Chris Connelly, Carson Daly, Ananda Lewis, and John Norris, the broadcast featured red carpet interviews, a pre-taped interview with Trent Reznor, pre-taped features on Britney Spears' outfit selection and testing various singers' vocal ability to shatter glass, and performances from Smash Mouth and Blink-182.
Performances
editMain show
edit| Artist(s) | Song(s) |
|---|---|
| Pre-show[10] | |
| Smash Mouth | "All Star" |
| Blink-182 | "What's My Age Again?" "All the Small Things" |
| Main show | |
| Kid Rock (featuring Run-DMC, Steven Tyler, Joe Perry and Joe C.) | "King of Rock" "Rock Box" "Bawitdaba" "Walk This Way" |
| Lauryn Hill | "Lost Ones" "Everything Is Everything" |
| Backstreet Boys | "I Want It That Way" "Larger Than Life" |
| Ricky Martin | "She's All I Ever Had" "Livin' la Vida Loca" |
| Nine Inch Nails | "The Fragile" |
| TLC | "No Scrubs" |
| Fatboy Slim | "Praise You" |
| Jay-Z (featuring DJ Clue and Amil) | "Jigga My Nigga" "Can I Get A..." "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" |
| Britney Spears and NSYNC | "...Baby One More Time" "Tearin' Up My Heart" |
| Eminem, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg | "My Name Is" "Guilty Conscience" "Nuthin' But a "G" Thang" |
Presenters
editPre-show
edit- Chris Connelly and Ananda Lewis – announced the winners of the professional categories and presented Best R&B Video.[11]
Main show
edit- Moby – DJed during the commercial breaks
- Janet Jackson – presented Best Dance Video
- Puff Daddy and Denise Richards – presented Best Group Video
- Tom Green – appeared in vignettes about Viewer's Choice voting procedures
- Wyclef Jean and Charlotte Church – presented Best New Artist in a Video
- David Bowie – introduced Lauryn Hill
- Will Smith – introduced Afeni Shakur and Voletta Wallace and presented Best Rap Video with them
- Carson Daly and Pamela Anderson – described balloting procedures, and introduced the Backstreet Boys
- Gavin Rossdale and Susan Sarandon – presented Best Female Video
- Christina Aguilera and Tommy Lee – presented Best Rock Video
- Janeane Garofalo and Method Man – presented Breakthrough Video
- Mark McGrath and Jennifer Lopez – presented Best Video From a Film
- Johnny Depp – introduced Nine Inch Nails
- Limp Bizkit (Fred Durst and Wes Borland) and Heather Locklear – presented Best Pop Video
- Prince – introduced TLC
- Mira Sorvino and Freddie Prinze Jr. – presented Best Male Video
- Regis Philbin – introduced Fatboy Slim, Richard Koufey and the Torrance Community Dance Group
- Renée Zellweger and Jay Mohr – introduced the International Viewer's Choice Awards winners
- Stone Cold Steve Austin – introduced Jay-Z
- Buddy Hackett, Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard and Michael C. Williams – presented Best Direction in a Video
- Mary J. Blige and Lil' Kim – introduced Diana Ross and presented Best Hip-Hop Video with her
- Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, Heidi Klum and Tim Robbins – presented Viewer's Choice
- Lars Ulrich – introduced Eminem
- Madonna – introduced Paul McCartney and presented Video of the Year with him
Winners and nominees
editWinners are listed first and highlighted in bold.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Queen, Alexis (December 25, 2023). "Why the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards Were the Death of the '90s". Throwback Pop. Archived from the original on February 1, 2024. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
- ^ Kaufmang, Gil (September 10, 1999). "Ricky Martin, Lauryn Hill Dominate at MTV Video Music Awards". MTV News. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
- ^ Unterberger, Andrew (July 21, 2020). "Who'll Be Nominated For Video of the Year at the 2020 VMAs? Sizing Up the Most Likely Contenders". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 24, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
- ^ Weingarten, Christopher R. (August 25, 2018). "Flashback: See Lauryn Hill Perform Lush Version of 'Lost Ones' at MTV VMAs". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved March 21, 2021.
- ^ Anthony, Kiyonna (September 10, 2021). "5 Best Hip Hop Moments From The 1999 MTV Video Music Awards". iHeartRadio. Archived from the original on September 11, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
- ^ Del Signore, John (November 6, 2009). "Bite Me, Kanye! I Bum-Rushed the MTV Video Music Awards, Ten Years Ago This Week". The Awl. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
- ^ Petrozzello, Donna (May 27, 1999). "MTV awards come home to N.Y." New York Daily News – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Chris Rock takes the mic for Video Music Awards". MTV News. June 30, 1999. Archived from the original on November 15, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
- ^ "Korn, Ricky Martin, Will Smith, TLC lead 1999 Video Music Award nominees; Martin, Backstreet Boys, TLC to perform". MTV News. July 28, 1999. Archived from the original on June 18, 2016. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
- ^ Basham, Dave (September 9, 1999). "Smash Mouth Brave Rain While Blink 182 Enjoy Perfect Weather At VMA Opening Act - MTV". mtv.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2017. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
- ^ MTV Video Music Awards Pre-Show (Television broadcast). United States: MTV. September 9, 1999. Archived from the original on 2021-12-15. Retrieved October 5, 2020.
- ^ "Kids ThinkLink - CultureLink". Archived from the original on 2011-10-07. Retrieved 2009-06-30.