The Weeknd had a big night at the 2020 MTV Music Video Awards, but he didn’t let his opportunity in the spotlight go by without using it to shine a light on the current protests across the United States following the death of Breonna Taylor and the shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin.
The singer took home the show’s top honor, winning Video of the Year for his “Blinding Lights” music video, but used his acceptance speech to share how difficult it was for him to celebrate given the current climate.
The Weeknd kept his speech short and instead made a demand for justice.
“Thank you MTV. Thank you again everyone involved in making this video. Again, hard to celebrate so I’m going to say justice for Jacob Blake and justice for Breonna Taylor,” he said.
It was a message he shared repeatedly throughout the night.
Earlier when he won the VMA for Best R&B Video, he shared a similar sentiment.
“Thank you, VMAs and MTV. I wanna thank La Mar Taylor and Anton Tammi for the video. It’s really hard for me to celebrate right now and enjoy this moment so I’m just gonna say – justice for Jacob Blake and justice for Breonna Taylor,” he said.
The #VMA for Best R&B goes to @theweeknd for “Blinding Lights." pic.twitter.com/s2VjssMwjA
— MTV (@MTV) August 31, 2020
He also opened the night with a rooftop performance of his hit single, which featured an over-the-top firework show at the end of the performance.
“WOW, @theweeknd JUST OPENED THE #VMAs WITH HIS SMASH-HIT ‘BLINDING LIGHT’ as @edgenyc. You know I’ll be watching this OVER AND OVER AND OVER. What a superstar,” The VMAs tweeted along with the full performance.
⚡️WOW, @theweeknd JUST OPENED THE #VMAs WITH HIS SMASH-HIT ‘BLINDING LIGHTS’ at @edgenyc ⚡️
You know I’ll be watching this OVER AND OVER AND OVER. What a superstar. 👏 pic.twitter.com/9SZA6zHtQ6
— Video Music Awards (@vmas) August 31, 2020
Check out a full list of this year’s winners here.
— Stephanie Swaim