The 2024 MTV VMAs’ opening was Olympics-coded. Host Megan Thee Stallion delivered her opening monologue in a gymnastics-adjacent leotard because, as she said, she is “repping Team VMA.” Meg also clarified that “VMA” stands for the Voluptuous Megan Awards” and declared that she deserves “a gold medal for being a bad b*tch!” Megan Thee Stallion kicked it over to Flavor Flav and USA Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles to present the night’s first category, Best Collaboration.
But before announcing the winner, Flavor Flav had more important business to take care of. The iconic rapper, pop cultural icon, and newly minted Team USA mascot gifted Chiles a bedazzled pink clock necklace to replace her Olympic bronze medal that she was controversially (and wrongfully, but that’s a discussion for another day) stripped of.
“I know they tried to take your medal away from you,” Flav said, as captured by Deadline, and briefly paused to account for the audience booing. “I got you something that they can’t take away from you.”
Flavor Flav put the gigantic clock around Chiles’ neck, and Chiles thanked Flavor Flav while the crowd applauded.
“As you know, I am an official sponsor for the United States Olympic Water Polo team,” Flav continued. “So, that’s why I wanted to turn this into an Olympic moment, Jordan, a’ight? And guess what else, too? I got your prize money, too.”
Before the 2024 Paris Olympics got underway in July, Megan Thee Stallion sent Chiles a bouquet of flowers to send her off.
Chiles won the women’s team gold medal alongside her teammates, and she had been awarded the bronze medal for individual floor, but days later, the Romanian team filed a petition to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The CAS ruled to reinstate the initial scoring, awarding the bronze to Romanian Ana Barbosu and ordering Chiles return hers. See the full timeline of the controversy here.
Oh, and Post Malone and Taylor Swift won Best Collaboration for “Fortnight.”