MTV held its 16th annual Europe Music Awards in Berlin, Germany last night and brought out a host of musicians to appear, perform and/or collect awards. Beyoncé turned out to be the big winner at last night’s MTV EMAs but a whole bunch of other folks made their way to the event to celebrate a night of music achievement. Here are a few photos from the red carpet arrivals last night:

But, as I mentioned above … the Queen B reigned supreme last night. Not only did she look fabulous on the red carpet but she also looked fabulous on the MTV EMAs performance stage … oh and she collected awards for Best Female, Best Song (Halo) and Best Video of the Year or her worldwide smash hit song Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It). After the jump, check out some photos from the EMAs stage and find out who else took home awards last night …

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As we are all pretty much aware by now, the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards were handed out at Radio City Music Hall here in NYC last night in a ceremony that was mired in controversy but also featured heartfelt tributes to the late Michael Jackson as well as a few spectacular performances and on stage appearances. Here are a few photos from the red carpet arrivals last night:

But for a few exceptions, most everyone looked amazing on the red carpet. I loved all the shiny bling that some folks were wearing … particularly Kristin Cavallari who wore a simple vintage dress and looked absolutely amazing in it. The show itself was really fun .. the opening tribute performance to MJ was really very cool and except for Kanye West’s douchey behavior, the show was very entertaining. Here are a few pics from the show and some deets about what went down:

Planned and random acts of kindness reigned at the MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on Sunday night. Among the planned acts: Janet Jackson’s opening tribute to her brother Michael, whose death at age 50 on June 25 rocked the music world. The production began with Madonna recalling her encounter with Michael and reminding the audience that “Michael Jackson was a hero.” And while “he seemed otherworldly,” she added, “he was also a human being.” And then, the performance began. Dancers crept up on stage with original Thriller video airing in the background. The dancers’ moves duplicated the ones being performed on the video. Then a sequence of Michael’s hits played. Bad and Smooth Criminal led to Scream, his duet with Janet, who broke through glass to make her way onstage and sing along with the video. The loud, almost angry performance had the audience on its feet. After the tribute, Madonna said backstage that “it was good to finally get to say my piece.” And then near the end of the show, in a gracious act of kindness, video-of-the-year winner Beyoncé offered young country music star Taylor Swift a second chance to say her piece with an acceptance speech. The moment came after Kanye West took everyone by surprise early in the show when he went onstage to interrupt Swift’s acceptance speech for best female video for You Belong With Me … The teen country star returned for her live performance of You Belong With Me later in the show. Celebrities reacted backstage. Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong said, “Well, you know, she’s young, I think she’ll get over it. I think he needs to get it over it also. It was very uncomfortable sitting there.” “I feel bad for Taylor,” said Kristin Cavallari. “I think it was really disrespectful” … Other music-related news items had guests talking at the awards show, too. American Idol’s Kara DioGuardi was asked about her new colleague at the judges’ table, Ellen DeGeneres. “I feel fantastic. I feel ecstatic. I can’t wait for January, when we can all be on the panel.” DioGuardi added that she has been in touch with former judge Paula Abdul. “I’ve spoken to her, and she seems to be doing really well, and that’s what matters.” Abdul is set to play host at the VH1 Divas special on MTV’s sister network on Thursday night (9 ET/PT). Faye Dunaway had two divas she was looking forward to seeing on Sunday at the VMAs. “Lady Gaga and Beyoncé. How could you not love Beyoncé?” Dunaway asked. Ne-Yo echoed Dunaway’s sentiment. When asked who he was rooting for, he replied, “Besides myself?” and then added, “I’m here to see Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Pink, everyone. I’m here just to enjoy the electricity.” And the atmosphere was electric, with returning host Russell Brand doling out his brash brand of humor. Among the stars: Jennifer Lopez, Alicia Keys, Eminem, Jermaine Jackson, Katy Perry, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.

For me, the live performances were the highlight of the entire night. After the jump, check out a few photos from the press room and watch a couple of my fave performances from the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards …

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Happily married couple Beyoncé and Jay-Z, collectively and lovingly referred to as B-Jay, were spotted frolicking on and off a private yacht off the coast of Croatia this week as the pair seemed to be enjoying a quiet holiday together. While other celebs are flocking to St. Tropez, St. Lucia and Portofino, Italy (like Madonna and her crew), B-Jay bucked convention and made their way to the coast of the Adriatic Sea … behold:

Beyonce Knowles proved she still lives up to her Bootylicious label as she flaunted her curves in a skimpy bikini yesterday. The pop star, 27, has been spotted soaking up the sun on a luxury yacht called off the coast of Croatia with her husband Jay-Z, 39. While her chart contemporaries have been spending the summer sailing around the traditional showbiz haunts of St Tropez and Portofino, Beyonce has broken out and visit one of Europe’s newest and trendiest hotspots. After flying in from New York this week, Beyonce has wasted no time in getting some exercise by swimming and riding a banana boat in the warm Adriatic Sea. Wearing a red and orange string bikini, the Halo singer gave her swimwear some added ‘bling’ with a gold belly chain linked to her neck. Beyonce and her personal assistant were spotted screaming with delight as they were whizzed through the waves on a banana boat, while Jay-Z watched from the dry safety of the yacht. Later that evening, the pair and their entourage ventured on to dry land for dinner at the French fusion restaurant Gils in Dubrovnik’s Old Town. Still wearing her belly-neck chain from earlier in the day, Beyonce showed off her curves once again in a red hot, figure-hugging body con dress and gold heeled sandals. Currently enjoying a holiday before she resumes the second part of her year-long I Am… world tour, Beyonce has been enjoying the good life as she island hops around the Eastern European country. After visiting the towns of Dubrovnik and Cavtat, Beyonce was also spotted swimming near Lokrum Island. Local press report the couple are also planning to visit the scenic islands of Mljet, Hvar and Kornati later this week. Beyonce and Jay-Z, real name Shawn Carter, have rented the 47.5metre Va Bene (Italian for ‘It’s good’) yacht for $195,000 (£119,000) a week. The lavish six-bedroom boat boasts a cruising speed of 14 knots and contains a jacuzzi, sun deck, Satellite TV and the use of two Jet-skis. Beyonce previously visited Croatia in April when she performed in Zagreb and promised fans she would return to the country for a holiday. She is set to resume the tour in the Ukraine on August 29, before finally wrapping her concerts in Belfast on November 24.

Lucky for Beyoncé, the water helped her mask the new Rick James ‘do that she was rockin’ in NYC last weekend cuz, LAWD, it did not look cute. It really looks like she’s having a blast … Jay looked happy to just sit back, chillin’, watching his lady have fun. It’s nice that B-Jay are taking the time to unwind for a bit before B has to get back to work. I expect the couple will be back in NYC after Beyoncé finishes her tour, Jay-Z is scheduled to perform at the 2009 MTV VMAs on September 13. No rest for the weary.

[Photo credit: Bauer-Griffin; Source]

Beyoncé, the artist sometimes known as Sasha Fierce, brought her new concert tour I Am … to Madison Square Garden in NYC to kick off the US leg of her tour. B shocked the crowd by bringing her hubby Jay-Z on stage for their duet of her megahit song Crazy In Love and, by pretty much all accounts, brought the house down with their hot performance. Because I am seeing this show here in LA on July 13, I’m desperately trying to stay away from too many tour spoilers but since I doubt that B-Jay will be on stage together for the rest of the tourdates, I think it’s safe to share. Here are a few photos from Beyoncé’s concert last night along with a review of the show (Be Warned: the review offers some show spoilers):

Beyonce has finally sorted out her split personality. Feeding both the flashy hip-hop side and the sensitive balladeer is something she has struggled with since stepping out of Destiny’s Child and out on her own. It came to a head on last year’s “I Am . . . Sasha Fierce” double album, but it wasn’t until her Madison Square Garden show Sunday night, the first on the American leg of her world tour, that she consistently integrated them both successfully. (She plays the Garden again Monday night.) See, Sasha Fierce has the booty roll in “Crazy in Love,” which featured hubby Jay-Z who got a response so loud his verses were lost in the roar. She has the “Freakum Dress” and the trapeze act during “Baby Boy” on her side. Can balladeer Beyonce compete with just her big ol’ voice? Well, she spices things up during the ballads now – assembling a wedding gown onstage for “Ave Maria” and throwing Alanis Morissette’s “You Oughta Know” into “If I Were a Boy.” It’s no big surprise – after all, “Irreplaceable,” which infuses a Beyonce ballad with Sasha Fierce-ness, is her biggest success. Another combination was equally impressive – as she proved that hot choreography and strong vocals don’t have to be mutually exclusive. Beyonce is an amazing, unique dance-pop and hip-hop artist, arguably the best around, as “Diva” and “Radio” showed. She’s only a good balladeer, though she continues to improve, as her powerful take on “At Last” proved. Not only is she irreplaceable, but now Beyonce may be unstoppable, too.

OOOOOOOH man … the show sounds so good! As I’ve mentioned before, I have yet to see Beyoncé live in concert so I am very excited for all the fierceness in store. David and I will be seeing the show from the Diva Stage so I’m hoping our vantage point will get us close enough to the fierocity so that we may imbue some of it into our beings. Beyoncé has brought her show the US … I hope all y’all are ready.

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

Add celeb couple Beyoncé and Jay-Z to the list of folks who have made their way to the Caribbean isle of St. Bart’s to party away the last hours of 2008 … here are pics of the couple playing in the water off the coast of St. Bart’s yesterday afternoon:

Singer Beyonce puts her best foot forward as she struggles to keep her balance on the yacht-side inflated water trampoline attached to her luxury yacht in the Caribbean. Showing off the fine figure, that along with her huge voice, has made her a worldwide star, the bikini-clad beauty bounced around as her rap mogul husband Jay-Z looked on. The hardest-working female in the music business allowed herself a break from world domination to enjoy a luxurious break on the isle of St Barts with her husband of eight months. Beyonce and Jay-Z are holidaying in St. Barts in the Caribbean and were seen aboard luxurious 50 foot yacht ‘Galaxy’, which they are renting at a reported cost of $200,000 a week. Despite recently admitting she didn’t know “how to chill out”, the singer appeared to be making a good stab at it as she soaked up the sun, and romped through the waves on a jetski … Although the two chose the marry quietly in April this year, she revealed she is not keen to have children anytime soon, especially after witnessing her sister Solange, 24, give birth in 2004. She said: “I’m terrified of delivering a child because I saw my nephew born. That traumatized me,” she said of sister Solange’s 2004 birth. “I’m only 27, I’ve got time.”

I dunno … all this relaxin’ in the Caribbean could lead to a little baby B sooner rather than later. Beyoncé had herself a really bizzy year, it’s nice to see that she and Jay decided to spend some not working … at least for a little while. It’s great seeing B-Jay lookin’ so happy together … St. Bart’s looks like fun!

[Photo credit: Splash News, Big! Pictures; Source]

For a few weeks now, we have seen messages popping up in advertising on posters, billboards and on websites (including right here on Pink is the new Blog) asking the question Who Is Sasha Fierce? Well, at long last, we finally have the answer. [Drum roll, please] It turns out that Sasha Fierce is none other than Beyoncé Knowles herself. Of course, anyone familiar with Beyoncé and her alter-ego nonsense knows that B has been, at times, calling herself Sasha for many months now … but at least now, we know her last name. Here are a couple pics of Beyoncé or Sasha Fierce (not sure which) making her way out of Cipriani restaurant in NYC with her husband Jay-Z last night:

The R&B singer has christened herself “Sasha Fierce” for her new double album, “I Am … Sasha Fierce,” due in stores on Nov. 18, and has released a lengthy justification for the comical moniker. “I have someone else that takes over when it’s time for me to work and when I’m on stage, this alter ego that I’ve created that kind of protects me and who I really am,” the former Destiny’s Child frontwoman said in a statement. “Sasha Fierce is the fun, more sensual, more aggressive, more outspoken side and more glamorous side that comes out when I’m working and when I’m on the stage.” Additionally, she has set up a cryptic MySpace page (http://www.myspace.com/sashafierce) that gives a “lucky person” the opportunity to receive a personal message and a gift bag valued at $500.

So … lemme get this straight. Beyoncé created an alter-ego to draw attention away to “protect herself” and is now telling anyone who will listen (and offering a cash prize to anyone interested in giving a damn) that the alter-ego is actually her. Clearly, Beyoncé would make an horrrrrrible superhero cuz she just can’t keep a secret. As you may recall, Beyoncé released 2 music videos recently … and one of them features Ms. Sasha Fierce. Methinks Mrs. Jay-Z has got way too much time on her hands.

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

Beyoncé and clandestine hubby Jay-Z were spotted around town here in NYC yesterday afternoon (on the 4 month anniversary of their secret nuptials) and B was snapped wearing a Barack Obama Progress t-shirt:

Call it a crazy hunch but I think that Beyoncé might be supporting Obama in the upcoming presidential campaign. Yes?

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]