The Ten Best VMA Performances Of All Time
By Ani Bundel
1. Michael Jackson Medley (1995)
There’s only one person though who can sit at Number 1. And it’s one who didn’t set foot at the VMAs until 1988. Yes, Michael Jackson did not attend the first four years of the Video Music Awards. Why? Because they were white, white, white ass affairs. In fact, so was the channel when it started. Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” was the first major black artist to break through that silent testament to how racist a society we still were in the 1980s. It took another few years before he graced their awards show with his presence.
But Michael Jackson’s greatest performance wasn’t that 1988 rendition of “Bad.” Instead it was his 1995 comeback performance, where he ran through an entire medley of hits ahead of receiving his VanGuard award. Slash showed up. All his dancers showed up. The best version of Michael Jackson, the genius dancer wonder showed up. It was a beautiful moment, where everything came together and just worked.
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The VMAs air tonight at 9pm on MTV.