Top 20 Craziest Billboard Music Award Moments

As the evening of the 2000 BBMAs came to a close, it was finally time for the award we’d all been waiting for: Artist of the Year. And the competition was fierce. However, After Rob Thomas said their name, a very surprised-looking Destiny’s Child made their way to the stage. After thanking everyone on earth who’d supported them, the ladies saved an extra special thank you for the big guy upstairs in song form. Yes, during their acceptance speech, they quite literally started singing praises. Unconventional? Perhaps. But when these three harmonize together, they always sound heavenly, and they totally rocked this impromptu performance.

This comedic actress is well known for her zany sense of humor. And, of course, she brought it in abundance to the 25th Billboard Music Awards. Wilson took to the stage in a hot pink gown claiming to have come straight from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding. Apparently, she’d had a few words with the Queen over who she believed should be next in line for the throne. Wilson’s jokes were a bit hit-and-miss, but she nonetheless topped it off with a bit of physical comedy as she struggled to open the envelope before announcing Khalid as the winner.

TSwift knows how to put on a show; the bigger, the better, right! And does it get much bigger or better than this performance? Swift begins her performance backstage, gradually and elaborately bringing it all to the main stage. It’s really quite spectacular and there’s so much thrown into it! Dancing on a table, a grand bicycle entrance, a memorable look, and an epic dance break from the Jabbawockeez crew. Plus, just when you think the performance has peaked, she goes in that much harder. It’s bright, colorful, bubbly, energetic, and exhilarating at the same time! And it definitely “felt like one of those nights”!

Chrissy Teigen isn’t exactly one to shy away from speaking her mind. While that often makes for great entertainment, it can also make things pretty awkward. Take, for instance, the time she explained her credentials for hosting the BBMAs, and continuously dropped gags about her husband throughout the night. Arguably though, her cringiest quip came while she was introducing Meghan Trainor and John Legend, who were about to sing together. Yes, we know it was a joke, but it’s probably one that could have gone without making! Needless to say, we needed a musical performance to get our minds off how cringey the whole thing was.

We all know these award shows can feel endless, especially when you’re in the room with no escape. So, presenters, performers, and hosts typically try to keep things as light-hearted and humor-filled as they can. We’re not sure if this unlikely comedy duo is either of those things… Together, Foo Fighter’s Dave Grohl and Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, savagely take down several of the attendees and nominees in the room. Their set received a mixed reaction from the audience, and many of their jokes certainly wouldn’t fly today. This is one of those moments we have to rewatch to remind ourselves that it wasn’t just a fever dream. It was truly barking!

In 2011, these two musical icons got everyone hot under the collar (albeit for various reasons) with their steamy performance of “S&M.” It starts with RiRi dominating the stage as she sings while wearing handcuffs. But then she’s joined by Spears, and together they turned up the heat so high we’re still cooling off. It was a spicy performance, complete with sexy costumes, sultry moves, and… a pillow fight? Apparently, some viewers felt uncomfortable with this uninhibited display of female sexuality. It’s just as well that ABC chose not to air the kiss the pair reportedly shared; otherwise, some heads might’ve exploded!

If there’s one word we can use to describe the BTS Army, it’s dedicated. In fact, they’re so dedicated that they turned up in their millions (300 million to be precise) to secure the group’s win in the 2017 fan-voted Top Social Artist category. If that doesn’t prove their loyalty enough, just listen to this performance of “Fake Love” from the following year’s award show. In case you were wondering, that sound you hear of fans screaming their heads off isn’t part of the official track. But the Army was present and couldn’t quite contain their excitement, and we can’t say we blame them. We’re not even sure if they could hear the group singing.

Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins was absent from the Billboard Music Awards the same year the group happened to win in several categories. But her bandmates, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes and Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas, still found a way to make her part of this momentous occasion. And the best part? They also managed to coordinate outfits. Cardboard cutout T-Boz even gets in on the hugs before the group heads to the stage. They seem unsure where to place their 2D bandmate, but the sentiment is sweet. Well, you know what they say about the band who carries around cardboard cutouts to accept awards together…

Well, here’s a moment we didn’t have on our “20th Billboard Music Awards” bingo cards. Following his international breakthrough with “Gangnam Style,” the BBMAs invited South Korean artist PSY to serve as a presenter. Only, he’s interrupted by comedian and actor Tracy Morgan as PSY’s hit “Gentleman” plays. The pair then engage in a brief and hysterical dance-off. PSY busts out some of his most recognizable moves before synching up with Morgan and ending the friendly competition a hug. It’s not the collaboration any of us could’ve imagined, but it’s honestly iconic. And who knows, maybe there’s a music video collab somewhere in their future.

In 1999, Blink-182 celebrated the great success of their coming-of-age rock anthem “What’s My Age Again?” If you recall, the accompanying music video sees the band running through the streets naked. During the ‘99 BBMAs opening sketch, the group paid homage to the music video by running around Vegas, you guessed it, in the nude. Eventually, the group emerges on stage, covering themselves only with Billboard posters. Think it can’t get much weirder? The group further draws the audience’s attention to their nether regions as they help introduce the evening’s hosts, Kathy Griffin and Adam Carolla. Needless to say, it was an unforgettable introduction from each…member.

Acceptance speeches, eh? You’ve heard one, you’ve pretty much heard ‘em all, right? Well, not when it’s being given by musical legend Prince. While receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award, the icon bucked the typical thank-yous and instead graced the crowd with a medley of hits, including “Let’s Go Crazy” and “Fixurlifeup.” Few artists go harder than Prince, and even fewer can make it look this effortless. We can only imagine the crowd’s delight and excitement when they realized what they were about to witness live. It was so fire that even those of us watching on TV felt like we were right there in the room!

No one can say Nicki Minaj doesn’t know how to put on a show. But for this rendition of “High School,” she toned things down, opting for a simple albeit glitzy outfit and breaking out her best moves. In fact, we’d argue that this might be one of her most understated performances. Well, it might’ve been until they brought out the chair, and Lil Wayne’s face said it all. Minaj turned up the heat by straddling her co-performer and giving us some major twerk-age. Even the artists themselves seemed surprised they pulled it off, as both can be seen giggling after the song ends.

Pink’s performances are always a sight to behold. But she elevated this one to new heights, and it was lit— puns definitely intended. What didn’t this performance have? Aerial acrobatics, dancing, a rap verse, and a clock face engulfed in flames. With so much going on, just the fact that Pink didn’t miss a beat or run out of breath is insane! We practically forgot to breathe, just trying to take it all in! To say that this performance was “Just Like Fire” would be an understatement, honestly. And that big finale? Talk about going out in a blaze of glory.

Look, we get it; you’ve just won. You’re excited and emotional; a billion thoughts are probably racing through your mind, and you might even be a little nervous. So, remembering to acknowledge every person who helped you get here might feel rather overwhelming. Still, while accepting the Top Hot 100 Song Award, Wiz Khalifa remembered to thank plenty of people, from his fans to his family and even god. But there’s one person who didn’t get a shout-out: his “See You Again” song collaborator, Charlie Puth. …Majorly awkward! We hope the next time he was up for an award, he jotted down a few notes, you know, just in case.

What’s a birthday without a cake and balloons? For one lucky birthday girl, this was a celebration she— and the rest of us— wouldn’t soon forget. Perry, who was on the U.K. leg of her “Prism” tour, couldn’t be there in person but still blew us away with this over-the-top and bonkers performance of “Birthday.” Okay, who do we have to contact to get Perry to throw our birthday bashes from now on? The birthday girl she invited from the crowd was made to sit on a rising cake throne while dancers spun around her on huge candles. Perry floating over the audience from a bunch of balloons was just the icing on the cake!

In 2016, Billboard honored Britney with their Millennium Award. She opened their show with a medley so epic that there was no dispute over who was the one true Princess of Pop. This performance marked her comeback after a short hiatus, but she clearly hadn’t lost her unique spark or ability to captivate audiences. Singing hit after hit, there are so many tempo and vibe changes— not to mention a giant guitar—yet Brit seemingly never stopped for a second. To top it all off, she ended with a magnetic version of “Toxic.” If we said we could watch this “Till the World Ends,” would you “Hold It Against [Us]?”

Inspired by Italian pop star Lorella Cuccarini, Beyoncé outdid herself with a visual spectacular while performing her hit feminist anthem. Just how do you compete with that level of showmanship? There’s an interactive backdrop, an army of Beyoncés, and of course, her signature power moves. She’s then joined by an ensemble of live dancers who help drive the message home with some fierce choreography. They took things to the next level, turned it up several notches, and then knocked it straight out of the park. It was the perfect balance of powerful statement and creative masterpiece. By the end, we were ready to fall in line and join the feminist revolution!

You don’t have to love Justin Bieber, but can we all just agree that this was too much? While accepting the fan-voted “Milestone Award,” Beebs approached the stage to both cheers and boos. It’s hard not to feel a little heartbroken seeing his initial crestfallen reaction. The 19-year-old pop star waited for the crowd to quiet down before reminding them how young he is. If you ask us, he handled the situation with plenty of grace and maturity, and his ability to remain so composed is commendable. To the audience members who cheered twice as loud to drown out the haters, we see you and you deserve an award of your own.

If you ever dreamed of being so close to your idols that you can practically touch them, this may change your mind. During his BBMA performance, Miguel went above and beyond, energetically maneuvering the stage and even attempting an unplanned leap over the audience. Let’s just say that this showstopping trick failed to land and, unfortunately, resulted in quite an ill-timed encounter with a couple of audience members. Miguel styled out the misstep and kept going almost as if he hadn’t just jumped on two unlucky bystanders. Although he met with one of the injured crowd members later on, he did end up getting sued.

Even posthumously, no one can compete with the King of Pop. Resurrected via hologram, Jackson steps out of a portrait to perform his song “Slave To The Rhythm.” The craziest part is just how realistic and believable it all is. Like, he actually seems to be interacting with all the various elements that make up this insane performance. The synchronicity with the dancers is phenomenal, and it almost looks as though he was the one to choreograph all the pyrotechnics. And, of course, it wouldn’t be an MJ performance without his iconic moves or a solo dance break. As he returns to his golden throne, we’re reminded of his reign in music history.