Ed Sheeran leads winners at MTV European Music Awards

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Ed Sheeran led the winners at the MTV European Music Awards on Sunday night, taking home the Best Artist and Best Song awards.

The Bad Habits star was chatting backstage to host Saweetie when she surprised him by announcing he’d won the coveted gong, and presented it to him from the trunk of a glittering car they were standing next to.

Failing to hide his shock at the announcement, Ed said, “I didn’t come here tonight expecting to win an award, I just came to perform. But thank you for this!”

The British singer later performed his chart-topping smash Shivers, much to the delight of the crowd in Budapest, Hungary, before he won the final award of the evening – Best Song for Bad Habits.

Other winners during the ceremony included Yungblud, who delivered a passionate speech advocating for individualism as he collected the Best Alternative prize.

“This award is a tribute to individualism,” he said. “If you are out there and you feel like you cannot be who you are – you can be. Keep fighting and keep being brilliant. Your individuality is the best thing you can have. Be proud, be proud of who you are.”

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Meanwhile, Nicki Minaj beat Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion to take home the Best Hip Hop award, while Italian rockers Maneskin were crowned Best Rock – pipping Foo Fighters, Imagine Dragons and The Killers to the prize.

Presenter Saweetie, who donned a variety of dramatic ensembles each time she took to the stage, also enjoyed success as an award winner – taking home the Best New gong and promising the crowd: “Trust me, y’all, this is only the beginning.”

Performers during the evening included Maneskin, OneRepublic, Maluma, Yungblud, and Kim Petras, who jetted to Europe after performing at Paris Hilton’s wedding on Thursday.

The full list of winners at the 2021 MTV European Music Awards is as follows:

Best Song: Ed Sheeran – Bad Habits

Best Artist: Ed Sheeran

Best Alternative: Yungblud

Best Pop: BTS

Best Hip Hop: Nicki Minaj

Best Rock: Maneskin

Best New: Saweetie

Best Video: Lil Nas X – Montero (Call Me By Your Name)

Best Latin: Maluma

Biggest Fans: BTS

Best K-Pop: BTS

Best Collaboration: Doja Cat and SZA – Kiss Me More

Best Electronic: David Guetta

Video for Good: Billie Eilish – Your Power

Best U.S. Act: Taylor Swift

Generation Change Award: Amir Ashour, Matthew Blaise, Sage Dolan-Sandrino, Erika Hilton, and Viktoria Radvanyi