“It’s Mother!” was the sentence that introduced MTV’s 43rd Video Music Awards in Los Angeles last night, as Madonna opened the show for the fifth time in her career. The Queen of Pop kicked off her nearly nine-minute segment with “Bring Your Love”, the lead single from her Confessions II album, alongside Sabrina Carpenter. The pair performed the house-pop collaboration before Madonna segued into a dance break that revealed Charli XCX, who emerged from a bathroom set recreating the scene from the Confessions II short film. XCX and Madonna then performed their collaboration, “Danceteria Afterhours,” which was released last Friday.
The high-energy performance came packed with celebrity cameos, from Julia Garner to Madonna’s longtime friend Debi Mazar and Seth Rogen (?). On “Danceteria Afterhours,” XCX adds two original verses to the track, following its original premise by digging into her own origin story and history, with shoutouts to collaborators A.G. Cook and the late SOPHIE. Producer Stuart Price updates the production to reflect both XCX’s electroclash roots and Madonna’s house origins, creating a kind of sonic memoir that merges the two pop stars’ histories. It’s a very Madonna-esque passing of the torch to her latest heir apparent.
The performance marked Madonna’s return to the VMAs after 23 years, a fitting homecoming for an artist whose history with the ceremony stretches all the way back to its inaugural edition in 1984. She entered this year’s ceremony as its most-nominated artist with 13 nods, and walked away with seven awards, including Artist of the Year and Best Album for Confessions II.
