The VMAs pre-show has always signaled tomorrow’s biggest superstars, making space for performers who tend to find their way on subsequent years’ main stage with some eventually winning awards for their work.
Nicki Minaj’s iconic 2010 appearance alongside Will.i.am immediately comes to mind, with her robotic purple and pink bodysuit and futuristic bouffant for “Check It Out.” But alongside Minaj, there’s been No Doubt, Rihanna, Fergie, Ariana Grande, Cardi B and more — a list that’d later establish themselves as pop mainstays.
This year the same path for success was laid out for Kim Petras, the rising pop star who just signed a massive deal with Republic Records after organically building buzz for her work on projects like Clarity and Turn Off the Light.
Her VMAs pre-show slot also ushered in an important piece of history for the award show, cementing Petras as its first-ever out transgender performer — a long-overdue win for the German-born musician and the trans community at large.