Ellen Leventry: September 2008 Archives

Twenty-five years ago Madonna opened up the very first MTV Video Music Awards with a now iconic rendition of her smash hit "Like a Virgin." And, yet, you would have never known it from last night's 25th anniversary VMAs where host Russell Brand's joking about the Jonas Brothers' purity rings elicited a nasty retort from purity ring wearing American Idol winner Jordin Sparks.

After joking that it's "a little bit ungrateful" for the teen sensations to swear chastity until marriage "because they could have sex with any woman they want," the British comedian and recovering sex addict then went on to say that it's a strange way to control a boy band with rings around their fingers, wink, wink. The audience gave a knowing chuckle.

But Ms. Sparks found nothing funny about the comment and said prior to giving out a Moonman, "I just wanna say, it's not bad to wear a promise ring because not every guy and a girl wants to be a slut, OK?"

Brand then quasi-apologized to the Jonas Brothers saying he didn't mean to take it lightly, but that "a little sex once in a while never hurt anybody."

Don't get me wrong, I love Brit-Brit and have been pulling for her to beat her reported battle with bipolar disorder, but last night's MTV Video Music Awards was such a Britney lovefest that it feels as if a recount should be demanded. Sure, English comedian Russell Brand's hosting may not have gone over very well-- I don't think the audience got his distinctively Brit wit and his joke about his hair and mental illness was, as could be expected with Britney in the room, a lead balloon and his Jordin Sparks/Jonas Brothers/Purity Ring sparring was awkward--but the fact that Ms. Spears received three Moonmen in a year when she wasn't exactly musically relevant doesn't go over well with me.

Although once rumored to be performing, with gossips hoping the pop star would recreate her buzz-worthy VMA openers from 2000 and 2001 and erase the disaster of her critically lambasted 2007 performance, Britney instead opened the show with a tepidly amusing sketch with "Superbad's" Jonah Hill and then came out to welcome everyone to the 25th anniversary of the VMAs. She looked good, her voice was clear, and she even punctuated the welcome with a goofy sticking out of the tongue, a self-deprecating touch we've come to expect from the pop princess. I was proud.