The MTV Video Music Awards are known for their shocking moments. One of the most shocking ones involved a pop princess with a foam finger.
Many people were likely unable to look at one the same again shortly after watching Miley Cyrus' performance at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. At the time, the singer was starting to showcase a sexier, edgier persona following years of being known as Hannah Montana. After putting on a raunchy display onstage, during which she twerked against co-performer Robin Thicke while wearing a foam finger, there was no doubt Hannah Montana was gone.
"For me, I wouldn't change a thing," Robin told E! News. "Miley and I had a blast. She's a great girl...we went out there to raise some eyebrows and provoke some energy so we accomplished our goals."
Miley had also been a part of another controversial VMAs moment two years later; Before the 2015 MTV VMAs, which she hosted, she incurred the wrath of Nicki Minaj by making negative remarks about her in a New York Times interview. Nicki confronted her publicly at the award show while accepting an award, asking her "What's Good?" and calling her a bitch.
"We all do interviews," Miley responded. "We all know how they manipulate s--t. Congratuf--kinglations, Nicki."
Who could forget when Rage Against the Machine bassist Tim Commerford expressed his displeasure at the band losing an award to Limp Bizkit by storming the stage and scaling a display tower? Although his moment was short-lived on television—since the network cut to a commercial—in reality, Tim's night was not since he was arrested and sentenced to a night in jail.
Believe or not, the Kanye West-Taylor Swift incident was not the only impromptu onstage moment to happen during the 2009 show. After the now-infamous interruption, Lil Mama decided to unexpectedly join fellow New Yorkers Jay-Z and Alicia Keys during their duet of "Empire State of Mind."
The "Material Girl" famously sang "Like a Virgin" while rolling around the stage in a white wedding dress.
The Shock Jock lived up to his raunchy reputation when he was lowered onto the stage as a superhero named Fartman.
The two were involved in one of the most famous rock feuds. At the 1992 VMAs, tensions ran high backstage, where Cobain's wife Courtney Love, who also brought along then-newborn daughter Frances Bean, taunted Rose, prompting the Guns N' Roses frontman to threaten to beat up Cobain if he didn't shut his "bitch" up. Kurt then told Love, sarcastically, "Shut up, bitch!"
After he performed with his band Nirvana, the group's drummer Dave Grohl kept saying "Hi, Axl!" into his mic.
Shortly after their wedding, the couple walked on stage holding hands as the audience cheered. After Jackson declared, "I'm very happy to be here and just think, nobody thought this would last," the King of Pop and Elvis Presley's daughter shared a kiss and walked off.
The songstress won the award for Best New Artist in a Video, but used her acceptance speech as an opportunity to speak out against Hollywood, telling viewers, "This world is bulls--t."
While presenting Best Hip-Hop Video, the legendary singer unexpectedly tapped Lil' Kim's exposed left breast.
The pop princess unforgettably took the stage for her performance of "I'm a Slave 4 U" with a snake draped over her shoulders.
Amid an ongoing feud between Eminem and Moby, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog poked fun at their beef while roasting the latter artist to his face in the VMAs audience. Triumph then attempted to do the same to Eminem, who was not in the mood.
Eminem later took to the stage to accept the award for Best Male Video and said mid-speech, "That little Moby girl threw me out of my zone for a minute."
To open the show, Britney, Madonna and Christina Aguilera joined together for a rendition of "Like a Virgin" and "Hollywood," sealed with a headline-making kiss between the women.
The pop princess made her highly anticipated return to the VMA stage, though her performance of "Gimme More" was panned.
The rapper crashed the stage when Taylor Swift won Best Female Video because he thought Beyoncé "had one of the best videos of all time." When Bey later won for Video of the Year, she asked T.Swift to join her on stage to have her moment.
Gaga made headlines when she sported the now-unforgettable meat dress by Franc Fernandez as the most awarded star of the night.
The pop star announced she and Jay-Z were expecting their first child together when she cradled her baby bump on the red carpet and literally dropped her mic and rubbed her baby bump at the end of her performance of "Love On Top."
The Biebs had his own snake moment when he brought a baby boa constrictor named Johnson to the show.
Hannah Montana who? The former Disney star twerked her way into MTV history with her performance of "We Can't Stop" and a duet of "Blurred Lines" with Robin Thicke.
While accepting the award for Best Hip-Hop Video for "Anaconda," Nicki confronted Miley, who was hosting, over negative comments she had made about the rapper in a New York Times interview. She called the pop star a "bitch" and asked her, "What's good?"
At the end of his lengthy Video Vanguard acceptance speech, the rapper unforgettably announced his plan to run for president in 2020.
The rapper sparked headlines when he declared his love for the songstress while presenting her with the 2016 Video Vanguard Award, telling the audience, "She's someone I've been in love with since I was 22-years-old."
On the heels of Camila Cabello's exit, the girl group shocked the world when they opened their performance with the image of a fifth member falling off the stage.
The list of other artists who had controversial VMA moments includes Madonna, Britney Spears, Eminem and Lil' Kim.
The 2017 MTV Video Music Awards air live on MTV on Sunday, Aug. 27 at 8 p.m ET.