R&B singer Victoria Monét shared why she didn't perform at the MTV Video Music Awards, and her fans (including myself) were upset.
Astrid Stawiarz / Getty Images for MTV
So, the MTV VMAs took place on Sept. 12 in Newark, NJ, and everyone was in attendance, from Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez to a brief reunion of *NSYNC, if you can believe it.
Theo Wargo / Getty Images for MTV
Seriously, everybody and their mama was at this year's show.
Of the many celebrities, only a few performed, including Doja Cat, Cardi B, Fall Out Boy, and Lil' Wayne. But, alas, there was no Victoria despite the high demand from her fans.
Mike Coppola / Getty Images for MTV, Jeff Kravitz / Getty Images for MTV, Variety / Variety via Getty Images, Kevin Mazur / Getty Images for MTV
Recently, Victoria's latest single, "On My Mama," went viral and brought new attention to the singer, who is anything but a newcomer to the game.
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While the 30-year-old singer's Jaguar II album could be considered her debut, it's far from her first project. In 2014, Victoria released the EP Nightmares & Lullabies: Act 1, followed by Act 2 in 2015. In 2018, she released Life After Love, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2. Finally, she released her debut album's predecessor Jaguar in 2020.
Santiago Felipe / Getty Images
Victoria's work with Ariana includes songs like "Honeymoon Avenue," "Alright," "34+35," and the Grammy-nominated hits "Thank U, Next" and "7 Rings."
Kevin Mazur / Getty Images
So, by no means is Victoria a brand-new artist without a history in the music industry, but that's different from what MTV allegedly thinks.
After the ongoing support, Victoria explained why she didn't perform, which didn't sit well with the fans, or me, for good reason.
Prince Williams / Getty Images
On Sept. 13, Victoria wrote on X, "I see your advocation for me to have performed tonight, and I'm so grateful to you!! Sincerely! My team was told it is 'too early in my story' for that opportunity, so we will keep working!"
I see your advocation for me to have performed tonight and I’m so grateful to you!! Sincerely! My team was told it is “too early in my story” for that opportunity so we will keep working! I’m grateful for YOU, for my tour starting this Friday and for the ability to see some of my…
— Victoria Monét (@VictoriaMonet) September 13, 2023Twitter: @VictoriaMonet
"I'm grateful for YOU for my tour starting this Friday and for the ability to see some of my favorite people perform tonight and receive the love they so deserve!!! For me, it's part of the story…and in God's time."
Prince Williams / WireImage
Following the recent release of her debut album Jaguar II, Victoria's 22-date tour will kick off on Sept. 15 in Detroit, Michigan.
The fans were not pleased to hear her team was told it's "too early" in her story, many taking the opportunity to call out the hypocrisy of the awards show's alleged decision.
not to go full yeezy but Victoria Monet “On My Mama” video was better than any video nominated at the VMAs this year, n any video i seen this year period
— #MOST (@jeandeauxmusic) September 13, 2023Twitter: @jeandeauxmusic
Your team was told some bullshit and we ain’t stupid. But of course you’re gonna handle it with grace as you always do.
Have a killer SOLD OUT tour, babes 💛
Twitter: @durandbernarr
nah the building would have shut down had you performed On My Mama! Everybody know that song and would have been standing for it period! i don’t see where they was coming from with this one.
— Ace Milan (@_papiace) September 13, 2023Twitter: @_papiace
“Too early”?! Oh, queen they played in your face with that one. On my mama would’ve been perfect and everybody would’ve known every word! 👏🏽 But your time will come and we will be there when the time comes! 🤧❤️
— 𝔏𝔢𝔞𝔥.❁ | 𝒜𝓃𝑔𝑒𝓁 👼🏽 (@redforjanet) September 13, 2023Twitter: @redforjanet
Fans also alluded to the fact that other artists who were "early in their story" performed, which contradicts the apparent excuse given to Victoria.
Twitter: @LenaVandross
30-year-old Kelsea Ballerini released her debut album, The First Time, in 2014.
Variety / Variety via Getty Images
Kelsea performed "Penthouse (Healed Version)" at the 2023 VMAs.
In 2014, 24-year-old Sabrina Carpenter released her debut EP, Can't Blame a Girl for Trying, followed by her full-length album, Eyes Wide Open.
Jason Kempin / Getty Images for MTV
Sabrina performed "Feather" and "Nonsense" at the 2023 VMAs.
20-year-old Olivia Rodrigo only released her first single, "Drivers License," in 2020 and her debut album, Sour, in 2021.
Theo Wargo / Getty Images for MTV
Olivia performed "vampire" and "get him back" at the 2023 VMAs. In 2021, she performed "good 4 u" from her debut album that released the same year.
23-year-old rapper Kaliii performed at the VMAs after gaining popularity from a song on TikTok, and the release of her debut mixtape This Why They Mad Now in 2021.
Christopher Polk / Variety via Getty Images
Kaliii performed "Area Codes" and "K Toven" on the Extended Play stage during the VMAs.
And, 23-year-old Reneé Rapp just released her debut EP Everything to Everyone in 2022, and her full-length album Snow Angel this year — so it's fair to say Victoria's talented peers are "early" in their stories as well when it comes to music.
Theo Wargo / Getty Images for MTV
As another X user pointed out, last year, Chloe of the R&B duo Chloe x Halle performed at the VMAs with only a single (as a solo act) under her belt, which is probably an attribution of the star power from their connection to Beyoncé, who currently is the most awarded artist in the VMAs' history.
if what is happening to victoria monet doesn’t show you how much parkwood fights for these girls… chlöe performed at the vma main stage with no album out and only one single that was 3 days old. https://t.co/2eS2j4FNfn
— lesego. (@LeeLovesBey) September 14, 2023MTV / VMAs / Via Twitter: @LeeLovesBey
I think Victoria didn't get to perform with these other women because of the lack of inclusion. Based on the VMAs shows over the years, there's a particular narrative MTV is trying to convey, and it doesn't include soulful rhythm and blues music (save Beyoncé). Instead, it's saturated with overtly sexual and provocative performances from women of color.
Mike Coppola / Getty Images for MTV
While the themes featured are great, a variety of music from Black women could give opportunities to showcase a range of talent.
For years, music genres like rap, hip-hop, and R&B have been separated from the mainstream categories of pop despite their popularity based solely on the fact that it was deemed "urban music."
This moniker was used to segregate American music created by Black artists because it was believed it wouldn't be received in the same regard as music by white artists. Internationally successful artists like Beyoncé, The Weeknd, Lizzo, and Rihanna have all been pigeonholed into this category.
I’d much rather y’all say that the vmas don’t prioritize R&B than make it seem like Victoria Monet would be a waste of space on that stage y’all looked at last night
— Mel Smith (@iamMelsmith) September 13, 2023Twitter: @iamMelsmith
The VMAs problem is it’s living off nostalgia instead of trying to be fresh. Telling Victoria Monet it’s too early in her story is crazy considering 10 years ago she would’ve been perfect for a pre show feature at the least.
— Stephen (@TheStevenDwayne) September 13, 2023Twitter: @TheStevenDwayne
It wasn't until 2020, when Tyler the Creator called out the Grammys for this "urban" categorization, that these problematic origins were finally addressed.
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Recording Academy / GRAMMYs / Via youtube.com"It sucks that whenever we – and I mean guys that look like me – do anything that's genre-bending, they always put it in a 'rap' or 'urban' category," Travis told the reporters at the Grammys. "I don't like that 'urban' word. To me, it's just a politically correct way to say the N-word. Why can't we just be in pop?"
While awards shows like the Grammys, Billboard, and the American Music Awards attempted to rectify the problems by including more R&B artists on the main stage, MTV has relied solely on Black Entertainment Television (BET) to pick up the slack.
Bennett Raglin / Getty Images for BET
Female R&B artists like Coco Jones, Summer Walker, Ella Mai, and Ari Lennox have never performed at the MTV VMAs. Instead, it feels like the "urban" quota is met with all the rap artists performing and nothing more.
I asked the question: if we're working to move away from problematic classifications of "urban" music being labeled unsuitable for the general population, what is the distinction between Olivia Rodrigo and Taylor Swift versus H.E.R. and Jazmine Sullivan? Why can't Black music be represented beyond the rap genre at the VMAs?
Udo Salters / Patrick McMullan via Getty Images, David Livingston / FilmMagic
And if somebody leaped to the excuse of the VMAs only allowing the top artists to perform, I didn't see Morgan Wallen or Zach Bryan on that stage. I believe Victoria's exclusion wasn't personal. It's a reflection of a narrative long overdue for change.
Terry Wyatt / WireImage,, Michael Hickey / Getty Images
If awards shows are intended to celebrate all genres of music, let's include everybody you might only see on networks like BET.
Michael Tran / AFP via Getty Images
Then maybe R&B artists like Victoria can have a chance to be on the stage regardless of how "early" or "urban" her journey may appear.
Astrid Stawiarz / Getty Images for MTV
We can do better, and I put that on my mama and my hood!
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