TORONTO – JUNE 19, 2011
The Much Music Video Awards (MMVAs) received a breathtaking 1 million viewers this year, making it one of the grandest award shows in Canadian history.
The 2011 MMVAs was a showcase of both homegrown and international superstars on the streets of downtown Toronto. Fans this year were looking forward to performances by Lady Gaga, Far East Movement with Dev, Justin Bieber, Fefe Dobson and co-host Selena Gomez, who debuted the official brand-spanking new award trophy.
This year, Much Music invested a lot of time and effort into getting fans from all across Canada to participate in voting for the unique “UR FAVE” awards. And they got to reap the rewards, as the MMVAs gathered almost 900,000 votes, which is a 90% increase compared to 2010.
Fans flooded the corner of Queen and John in Toronto as the mega-event kicked off with an electrifying and elaborate performance by Lady Gaga who was sporting a teal hair-do. Right after that, things got pumping as Far East Movement and Dev performed their Billboard #1 hit “Like a G6” followed by a surprise appearance by Snoop Dogg for a rendition of “If I was You (OMG)”.
Live in Limbo (LiL) was able to sit in at the press conference to bring you the words of some of the biggest names in the music industry today, Far East Movement and Vancouver’s own Classified.
LiL: How did it feel to be performing at the MMVAs?
Far East Movement (FEM): “Kind of crazy. We remember being independent and driving ourselves up to Canada for our first shows when we passing out CDs, watching the MMVAs on TV and saying oh that looks crazy they shut down the streets. And so its kind of a trip to actually be here, we all kind of look back and everything kind of flashed before our eyes.”
LiL: It is amazing to see Asian faces in pop culture and in music. Any culture mixes within new music?
FEM: First of all, we want to thank you and the community for even recognize us like that. We’re just some everyday L.A kids that grew up downtown, so for people to actually acknowledge that, I mean, we always feel that there are so many more people breaking down other types of doors. Our everyday life style is what culturally influences our music. Our crew is so diverse, maybe that is the new experience, and maybe that is the new culture. So that is what you will see in our music now and in the future.”
LiL: Now that you have big time success, are you going to start or do you have time to help other artists develop now?
Classified: That’s what I’m trying to do in the long run. I want to tour and do my own but I want to be a producer for other artists.
Some of the most notable award winners from this years MMVAs included:
UR FAVE Video: Fefe Dobson – “Stuttering”
UR FAVE International Video – Lady Gaga “Born This Way”
UR FAVE New Artist – Justin Bieber Feat. Usher “Somebody to Love (Remix)”
International Video of the Year / Group – Far East Movement feat. Dev “Like a G6”
Pop Video of the Year – Down with Webster “Whoa is Me”
MuchVIBE Hip-Hop Video of the Year – Classified “That Ain’t Classy”
Video of the Year – Shawn Desman “Electric/Night Like This”
