The Best Memes & Tweets About Nicki Minaj’s VMAs Vanguard Performance & Speech

The 2022 MTV Video Music Awards didn’t just have one emcee. Serving alongside Jack Harlow and LL Cool J as co-host of the VMAs, Nicki Minaj entered the show on a personal high — with her single “Super Freaky Girl” debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking her first time at the top as a solo artist and the first time for a female hip-hop musician this century.

As if all that weren’t enough to make Minaj want to relive this “Moment 4 Life,” she was also nominated for Song of Summer (“Super Freaky Girl”) and Best Hip-Hop (“Do We Have a Problem?”) at the VMAs. But perhaps most importantly, Minaj received the Video Vanguard Award — an honor that has previously gone to Rihanna, Beyoncé, Madonna, and other iconic recipients.

Minaj has a well-documented history of memorable VMA moments — from debuting her signature pink hair in 2010 to delivering the much-memed “Miley, what’s good?” in 2015 — so it’s no surprise that her Video Vanguard performance and her speech will also take up major space in the history books.

Twitter celebrated Minaj’s medley of hits like “Monster,” “Super Bass,” and “Super Freaky Girl.”

For many viewers, the medley was a nostalgic trip through the past decade-plus of Minaj’s music.

Other viewers had fun pointing out fun (and very relatable) reactions from fellow celebrities in the audience — including Taylor Swift, Chlöe Bailey, and Lil Nas X.

Fans also celebrated Minaj’s emotional acceptance speech, for which she was introduced by actual Barbz. Minaj almost didn’t get to say her speech because she’d written down notes on her phone but left it offstage. Fortunately, Minaj’s device was brought up to her, and she was able to thank a lot of people, including Kanye West, Beyoncé, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Eminem, Britney Spears, and Rihanna, who “gave me huge opportunities that I’ll never forget.”

Minaj also took some time to remember several late musical legends. “I wish that Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson were here,” she added. “I wish that people understood what they meant and what they were going through. I wish people took mental health seriously, even for the people who you think have the perfect lives.”

Minaj remembered Pop Smoke, Juice WRLD, and Nipsey Hussle, too, in addition to honoring loved ones in her personal life such as her dad, Robert Maraj (who died in a hit-and-run last year), her cousin Richard, and her business manager Angela Kukawski.

Before wrapping up her speech, Minaj was sure to give a shoutout to her fandom.