2014 AMA’s Brought the House Down

2014 AMA’s Brought the House Down

Jessica Ventura, Writer/Editor

It was a sizzling hot night in Los Angeles on November 23, and we’re not talking about the climate.

The 2014 American Music Awards took place at the Staples Center in downtown LA, which gave fans and audiences plenty of fierce performances and fiery fashions to obsess over. Pitbull, who returned as the host for the action-packed evening, kept the show going as audience members adored the sounds of big names including Selena Gomez, Jennifer Lopez, Iggy Azalea, and more, while also admiring some of the big victors of night, such as One Direction.

The AMA’s opened with Taylor Swift’s world premiere performance of her single, ‘’Blank Space,’’ which was the best AMA opening to date. Her act played off of the track’s music video and pretended to be a ‘’crazed’’ girlfriend. Along with her impeccable performing skills included many fierce backup dancers, a pop-up mansion, and real flames. She truly showed us incredible things.

Pitbull brought some flavor to the stage when he took the stage to host for the second consecutive year. However, when the Cuban-American rapper took the stage for the first monologue, it just fell flat. ‘’Mr. Worldwide’’ spent a good portion of his introductory speech with Latino-themed puns and wisecracks, including jabbing fun at President Obama’s recent immigration action and speaking Spanish to improve the show’s ratings. For most viewers, the Miami rapper left a sour taste in their mouth.

After Pitbull’s failed joke efforts, Magic! and Wyclef Jean united for an energetic performance. They kicked off the reggae-pop infused performance with Jean’s latest single, ‘’Divine Sorrow.’’ Then, Magic! sung along with Jean, transitioned to the Hot 100 No. 1 hit, ‘’Rude.’’ Wyclef Jean tossed the lyrics to the audience, which resulted in silence. Awkward!

Iggy Azalea scored her first AMA for Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album, beating out two guys (including Eminem, who she recently had some beef with) for the honor.

‘’This award is the first prize I’ve ever won in my whole life and it means so much to me that it is for Best Hip-Hop, because that’s what motivated me to move to America and chase my dreams. It’s what helped me when I was a teen to escape and get through my life and to happier times,’’ she said.

‘’It means so much that I can stand here against Eminem and Drake and come out with this. It’s incredible. Thank you so much to T.I. for trusting in me and to all my supporters, I appreciate it so much. Thank you.’’

Sam Smith’s performance revealed an unusual duo. He collaborated with A$AP Rocky, which no one anticipated. However, Smith gave viewers goosebumps with his amazing vocals while belting ‘’I’m Not the Only One.’’ It included a rap section from A$AP, which unexpectedly mixed perfectly with Smith’s mesmerizing vocals.

Shortly after receiving her award, Iggy took the stage alongside Charli XCX for a medley of ‘’Fancy’’ and ‘’Beg for It,’’ which included a fierce dance break, sparkly leotards, crazy vocals, and some unfortunate sound problems.

Lorde brought her natural intensity for the debut performance of ‘’Yellow Flicker Beat,’’ which is presented in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay——Part 1. Even her best friend Taylor Swift couldn’t help but bust a move in the crowd. I don’t blame her!

Ariana Grande brought class and sass to the stage during her performance. Looking absolutely stunning in her form-fitted dress, the singer kept all the attention on her divine vocals while serenading the audience with a medley of ‘’Problem,’’ ‘’Break Free,’’ and ‘’Love Me Harder’’ with Weeknd. Her proud brother Frankie warmed our hearts as he flashed a massive grin while twirling and singing along.

Happy couple Jenny McCarthy and Donnie Wahlberg were just too adorable while giving the award for Best Pop/Rock Album, which went to One Direction. From stealing kisses on stage to tossing playful digs at each other, you can’t help but adore these two.

Pitbull is a known hit-maker, so it’s not surprising that his performance of ‘’Fireball’’ and ‘’Time of My Life’’ brought the house down. He managed to pull off some astounding vocals and moves. The rapper’s signature style was flawless, and the audience loved every minute of his solo performance ‘’Fireball’’ and his collaboration for ‘’Time of My Life’’ with Ne-Yo. This might just be one of Pitbull’s greatest performances thus far.

Selena Gomez gave a passionate debut performance of her new single ‘’The Heart Wants What It Wants’’ and made us all get choked up. A silhouette was projected on the screen during the performance, which fostered some doubt as to if it was alleged to be Justin Bieber.

Things were heating up between Christina Milian and Lil Wayne on stage. The pair got flirty while performing ‘’Start a Fire.’’ With a background of fire and smoke, the couple heated up the show not only with their track, but also with their indisputable PDA. Christina couldn’t keep her eyes off Weezy, and before Nicki Minaj and Skylar Grey took the stage, they walked off the stage together hand-in-hand.

Taylor Swift received a unique and brand new award from Dick Clark Productions. Swift received the honor for her record-setting sales. Titled “1989,” her fifth album, released last month, became the singer’s third album to sell more than 1 million units in its debut week. She was presented this award by Diana Ross.

Josh Duhamel announced his spouse Fergie’s performance of ‘’LA Love’’ and made sure to note that she makes cute babies. After that boost of encouragement, the hot mama killed it with a rocking performance of her ridiculously catchy song. To add to the excitement, rapper YG joined her on stage to deliver some of the song’s sickest lines. However, it looked like Fergie had slight distress with getting her coat off at the end of her performance, but it didn’t take away from this jaw-dropping performance whatsoever.

Towards the end of the night, Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj brought a larger-than-life performance to the stage. The singers turned the AMA’s into a dance party for the stars during their entrance for ‘’Bang Bang’’ by dancing with Khloe Kardashian, Taylor Swift, Lorde, and more.

What finer way to close out the evening than Jennifer Lopez and Iggy’s performance of ‘’Booty?’’ The girls danced it out and gave the audience a blowout dance break that left everyone feeling fierce at the end of the show.