Iggy Azalea might be a popular punching bag for hip-hop purists (Azealia Banks in particular), but she’s got one major force standing behind her: the people.
The “Black Widow” rapper was named Favorite Hip-Hop Artist at the 2015 People’s Choice Awards, beating out Jay Z, Drake, her mentor T.I. and, yes, Nicki Minaj.
People’s Choice Awards 2015: See All the Photos!
But controversy couldn’t even stay away from Iggy for the short time it took to accept her award. Just before naming Iggy the winner, presenter Monica Potter — as part of a gag with Dax Shepard — listed off a few mangled rapper names like “Snoopy Dogg” and “Dr. Drew.” The last one she named? Igloo Australia, a derogatory moniker Banks branded Azealia with on Twitter that’s stuck with some haters.
Did Iggy Azalea or Igloo Australia Win a People’s Choice Award?
Iggy brushed off the reference, though, thanking her fans and assuring them the fan-voted award is “not wasted on me.” She also managed to hit on Shepard, telling him he looks “much, much better in person.”
Later during the show, Iggy delivered the evening’s most visually arresting segment with her performance of “Beg For It.” Danish singer MØ, who sings the song’s hook, wasn’t present, but the stage setup was done in the style of the early 20th century Dutch art movement De Stijl — all sharp angles and primary colors. So, Dutch, Danish… close enough, right?
In the Favorite Male Country Artist category, another newcomer beat established names when Hunter Hayes bested Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Luke Bryan and Tim McGraw. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter shouted out his elders in his acceptance speech, admitting, “This is quite the category and I don’t know what I’m doing with this…Thanks for giving me a reason to believe in myself. God bless you.”
Not long after performing an energetic performance of “Freestyle,” Lady Antebellum nabbed Favorite Country Group award. Much like Iggy gently hitting on Dax Shepard, frontman Charles Kelley flirted with award presenter Lisa Edelstein after taking the stage, telling her, “Your show’s amazing and you’re so hot in it.” And much like Shepard, Edelstein is totally taken.
Fall Out Boy Light the People’s Choice Stage on Fire
The night’s most memorable performance came courtesy of Fall Out Boy, who played “Centuries” from their upcoming album American Beauty/American Psycho. Patrick Stump went totally balls out, scatting the song’s “Tom Diner” sample and imbuing the chorus with some serious vocal vibrato.
Check it out below.
In the world of untelevised People’s Choice award categories, Taylor Swift nabbed Favorite Female Artist, Favorite Pop Artist and Favorite Song for “Shake It Off.” But to the dismay of Directions, Maroon 5 beat One Direction for Favorite Group. Wait, seriously? How did 1D lose a fan-voted award? We’re thinking there needs to be a Warren Commission-style investigation into this.
For the complete winners list, check out the People’s Choice website.