2019 MTV Video Music Awards: ‘Old Town Road’ Wins Song of the Year
The incredible ride for Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus, driven by the record-breaking success of the pop culture phenomenon "Old Town Road," continued Monday night (Aug. 26), when the song took home two trophies at the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards. The rising rapper and the country singer took the stage during the ceremony to accept the moonperson for Song of the Year.
Lil Nas X humbly admitted that his MTV VMA Song of the Year trophy was his first award before pulling off a visual gag that's as fun as his award-winning song: After promising a very short speech, he unrolled a comedically lengthy scroll. It would've been funny on its own, but it's breakout star Lizzo's reaction that made the segment memorable.
Cyrus began his portion of the acceptance speech by admitting that he never dreamed he'd be winning a major music award in 2019. Somehow, in a year when Brooks & Dunn and Trisha Yearwood have returned to form and Garth Brooks has barnstormed the bar scene, the "Achy Breaky Heart" singer has gone from famous father and pop culture punchline to perhaps the most visible '90s country star out there.
After the original version of "Old Town Road," which originally found an audience via the TikTok smartphone app, was removed from Billboard country chart consideration, Cyrus teamed with Lil Nas X for a remix that went on to top the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart for a record 19 consecutive weeks.
"Old Town Road" and its performers were up for a total of eight 2019 MTV VMAs. In addition to Song of the Year, "Old Town Road" won Calmatic a Best Direction trophy.
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