America ‘a land of immigrants ... we welcome you’ Leto tells London crowd
LAST November, the MTV European Music Awards called out US politics when Green Day lead singer Billie Armstrong told the audience that it was a relief to get away from America during the “horrendous” presidential election. “The entire country is about to have one big collective heart attack,” Armstrong said during his acceptance speech.
This year, unlike many award shows, the EMAs (taking place at Wembley Stadium in London) stayed away from anything overtly political. Though when Jared Leto’s band Thirty Seconds to Mars accepted the award for best alternative, he had a message that he wanted to get across.
“Europe, you have changed our lives. This is for you this about you. And we stand here proudly on this stage tonight in celebration of you,” Leto said. “We are Americans, a land of immigrants - and we just want to say that we welcome you with open arms and with open hearts and we love you. God bless you.”
The other speeches mostly thanked managers, labels, etc. - though when U2 received the Global Icon Award, Bono got creative, belting out a few lines of U.K. rapper Stormzy’s “Blinded by Grace.”
Meanwhile, Stormzy sang his hit “Big For Your Boots” on stage in a police car during the two-hour telecast, which also included performances by host Rita Ora (“Your Song”); Demi Lovato (“Sorry Not Sorry”); Camila Cabello (“Havana”); Kesha (“Learn to Let Go”); Liam Payne (“Strip That Down”); and Eminem, who performed his new track “Walk On Water” with guest artist Skylar Grey.
Eminem also won the award for best hip-hop over acts like Drake, Future and Kendrick Lamar, and seemed a bit confused by the honour. — WP-Bloomberg