Mariah Carey wins big at Vibe Awards
No one does "fashionably late" like Mariah Carey. After being a no-show to accept her first award of the night (R&B Voice of the Year), Mimi, who was the big winner at the third annual VIBE Awards, surprised the crowd by coming up to collect her next trophy for Best R&B Song ("We Belong Together"). Without so much as a nod to her tardiness, Carey, ever the diva in a sparkling dress cut to there, thanked L.A. Reid and Jermaine Dupri, before going on to win the coveted Album of the Year and Artist of the Year awards at the November 12 event.
Perhaps it had to do with the cut of the dress, but Kimora Lee Simmons - sporting a dangerously similar short and sparkling frock of her own - was the only other multiple award-winner of the night, taking home the coveted red "V" statue for Vibe Vixen and V Style for her line, Baby Phat. The platinum-blond designer made sure to give proper credit to her "baby daddy", Russell Simmons.
Carey and Kimora's potential dress snafu aside, the VIBE Awards steered clear of any major drama, following last year's well-publicized melee surrounding V Legend recipient Dr. Dre's acceptance. While several jokes were cracked, including one from Tracee Ellis Ross who opened the show with "we're going to take a stab at... Did I really just say that?!," no knives were pulled this year. Attribute it to the beefed-up security, or the fact that 50 Cent didn't show up to see The Game proudly showing off the phrase "G U-Not", shaved into the back of his head.
The evening kicked off with lead nominee, Ciara, descending from the ceiling in a metal ball to perform "Hotline" and "Oh". Performers ran the gamut from understated - like Keyshia Cole, who performed an emotional rendition of "I Should've Cheated", with just two back up singers - to over-the-top. Pharrell, easily wearing the most outlandish ice in the house, with a rope-thick diamond-encrusted chain, performed "Can I Have it Like That" with a quartet of dancers, while his Ice Cream skateboard team grinded on a rail behind him.
In a "tribute" to Hurricane Katrina victims, Louisiana's Lil Wayne, Texas's Mike Jones and Paul Wall and Mississippi's David Banner each performed a song against a backdrop of fire, fans, and aerobicizing women, respectively. Akon and Young Jeezy gave a nod to the ubiquitous snow man, performing "Soul Survivor" clad in white, in front of fake towering blocks of ice.
Like the performers, acceptance speeches ranged from short and sweet, like The Game's brief thanks for his Hottest Hook award, to clever or lengthy. Kevin Liles, author of Make it Happen, who won for Power Broker, gave a shout out to "every intern who don't get paid".
Mary J. Blige's speech as she accepted her V Legend Award, was perhaps the most memorable of the night. Jimmy Iovine and VIBE Founder Quincy Jones introduced a video montage of Blige's career, which included an interview with Diddy. "I endured a lot of trials and tribulations that I'm so thankful for," Blige said as she accepted her award. "You're supposed to get a legend award when you're 60, but I'm getting one today because I started so early."
Cole, often compared to Blige, tied with Jeezy for the Next Award. While most stars were in the house to collect their trophies, a few were missing in action, like Kanye West, who won for Best Rapper, and R. Kelly, who nabbed an award for Reelest Video for the "Trapped in the Closet" saga.
Crowd favorites, Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley was awarded the Boomshot Trophy, just before he took the stage with a full band and a screen featuring political statements, to perform "Welcome to Jamrock". After the show wound to a close, with a performance by Bobby Valentino, Ludacris and Sharifa, who covered Ray Charles' "Georgia", attendees like Banner, Farnsworth Bentley, Slim Thug and Taryn Manning partied outside the Sony Studios soundstage, as the red carpet turned into the evening's after-party.
The third annual VIBE Awards will air on UPN on Tuesday, November 15 at 8pm ET/PT. (Vibe)
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