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 Cabello, 21, was chosen artist of the year and won video of the
year for her Latin-flavored hit "Havana," while rapper Cardi B
picked up wins for best new artist and song of summer for her
dance hit "I Like It" with J Balvin and Bad Bunny.
"I can't believe this is for me," said Cabello, who split from
girl group Fifth Harmony in late 2016 to launch a solo career.
New York rapper Cardi B, 25, made her first public appearance
since giving birth to her first child in July. But the feisty "Bodak
Yellow" singer failed to make good on her leading 10 nominations
going into the show as fans spread their votes far and wide.
"A couple of months ago people were saying, you're gambling your
career by having a baby," Cardi B said. "I had a baby ... and
now I'm still winning awards."
The biggest winner of the night was Childish Gambino, the music
stage name of actor Donald Glover, who came away with three for
his hard-hitting video "This Is America" about black identity
and police brutality.
But the trophies were mostly in technical categories, including
choreography and direction. Beyonce and Jay-Z's much
talked-about "APES**T," which was shot inside the Louvre in
Paris against the backdrop of some of the world's most famous
art works, won just two of its eight nominations.
Canadian rapper Drake, one of the most popular artists in terms
of sales and streaming, came away empty-handed, as did multiple
Grammy winner Bruno Mars.
Neither Mars, Drake, Gambino, Beyonce nor Jay-Z attended the
awards show in New York City, which featured performances by
Ariana Grande - who won best pop video for "No Tears Left to
Cry," - Nicki Minaj, Aerosmith, Shawn Mendes and Travis Scott.
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Jennifer Lopez brought the audience to its feet with a song and
dance medley of her biggest hits as she was presented with the
annual Vanguard Award, named after Michael Jackson, recognizing her
20 years in show business.
"It's been an incredible journey of dreaming my wildest dreams and
then watching them come true," said Lopez.
However, a promised tribute to Aretha Franklin following her death
last week at age 76 consisted only of a speech by Madonna and a
brief video clip from Franklin's early career.
The VMAs have a reputation for irreverence and provocative stunts
but, aside from a segment on U.S. President Donald Trump's
controversial immigration policies, there were few surprises.
Rapper Logic was joined onstage by dozens of immigrant children and
their families wearing white t-shirts saying "We are all human
beings," for a performance of his song "One Day."
The song is a protest against the policy that saw thousands of
immigrant children separated from their parents in June after
crossing the southern border with Mexico without documents.
(Additional reporting by Gina Cherelus; Editing by Darren Schuettler
and Paul Tait)
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