The weekend saw a collection of some of the biggest names in world music assemble in London for MTV’s annual Europe Music Awards. Canadian heartthrob Shawn Mendes was the big winner of the night, taking home 3 awards including Artist of the Year. During what was a relatively slow evening of entertainment, there were a few live performances that saved the evening and deserve recognition.
Eminem feat. Skylar Grey - “Walk on Water”
Despite lacking the Beyonce vocal from the studio version, Eminem opened the show with the debut live performance of new track “Walk on Water”.
As an ode to London, the host city, Eminem kicked things off from Stanley Mitchell’s - Revival Pub, where Skylar Grey was sat at a piano proving herself a worthy stand-in for Beyonce. Eminem then gets up from the bar and proceeds to give an emotionally charged performance of a track that is good enough to give me high hopes for another great Marshall Mathers album. Everything from the iceberg visuals, Grey’s impeccable vocals and Eminem’s lyrical genius made for a powerful start to the show and great message on humanity, ending with the line: "Cause I'm just a man / But as long as I got a mic, I'm godlike / So me and you are not alike / B***h, I wrote Stan. Mic drop Mr.
Mathers."
Stormzy - “Big for your Boots”
It was only right that one of the biggest UK acts took to the London stage to perform one of the biggest breakthrough tracks of the year. Grime has exploded globally in recent years and Stormzy has become one of the year’s musical talking points, and Sunday night proved exactly why. Not only did he release “Gang Signs and Prayers”, one of the best albums of the year, he has also turned heads with his ferocious live presence.
Without much visual production at all, Stormzy rolled on to stage in a police car and proceeded to barrage the MTV crowd with bar after bar of pure rap class. Nothing but a man, his lyrics and an incredible atmosphere.
Camila Cabello - “Havana”
Former Fifth Harmony member Camila Cabello earned her first UK Number 1 with “Havana”, so it was completely unsurprising that the UK crowd erupted during this performance.
The show featured a plethora of dancers, a holiday-inspired swimming pool sequence and a Latin-inspired dance break. Packed to the brim with performance quality, Cabello has, in recent months, solidified her position as a solo artist worthy of attention.
Clean Bandit - “Symphony / I Miss You / Rockabye” Medley
Innovative trio Clean Bandit used their female vocalist phonebook to call upon hit collaborators Zara Larsson, Julia Michaels and Anne-Marie to perform a medley of two of the group’s biggest hits and current single “I Miss You”. Their refined blend of classical and electronic music has served them well throughout their career and that doesn’t seem likely to slow down anytime soon. They have the ability to write incredible anthemic EDM tracks which often feature some top class vocal talents.
Stefflon Don - “Hurtin’ Me”
Rising hip-hop star Stefflon Don took to the EMA red carpet to perform her biggest hit to date “Hurtin Me”. The 25 year old rapper and vocalist emerged from a traditional red phone box with all the style and attitude of a performer much more experienced than you would expect. An artist worthy of performing on the main stage and undoubtedly will be performing and collecting awards on that stage in years to come.
