Congratulations are in order for Normani and Teyana Taylor, who are now proud owners of the remaining free space in my brain after their performance at the MTV Video Music Awards tonight.
Normani—who recently returned this summer with her first single in two years, “Wild Side”—brought her song to life at Sunday’s ceremony and tapped Taylor for a surprise cameo. At the end of her sexy, 2000s-inspired set, Taylor appeared onstage and Normani climbed atop her for a seductive dance number that left viewers speechless.
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Fans quickly pointed out the parallels to Janet Jackson’s live performance of “Would You Mind.”
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This marks Normani’s first VMAs performance since she brought her solo debut, “Motivation,” to the stage in 2019. When she finally returned tonight, following an introduction by Ciara, she proved every second was worth the wait. Much like her Tanu Muino-directed visuals, Normani’s latest set was a steamy performance wrapped in a glossy Y2K aesthetic. Dressed in an Aaliyah-like silver crop top and pants (she notes the late singer as her biggest inspirations), Normani and her dancers executed the video’s viral choreography perfectly against sleek white and red backdrops.
Bennett RaglinGetty Images
The 25-year-old recently told BAZAAR.com that her new music has a “darker and edgier” feel. “I think that’s just because I grew up listening to a lot of ’90s R&B—and I love pop as well—but I think for me, a main goal is really not to be limited [musically] and really wanting to be genre-less.”
She added, “A lot of the music that I’ve released even before my solo endeavors, I wasn’t completely fulfilled. And I always say that this is a rebirth and a chance for me to have a second go-around and do things my way. My main goal is also just to show people that I’m grown now.”
Viewers were understandably going crazy over her performance. See the reactions below.
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This year’s VMAs marks the 40th anniversary of the much buzzed-about (and often controversial) award ceremony. Will Normani and Teyana Taylor’s “Wild Side” moment go down in VMA history? I sure hope so.
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