MTV Recruits Oscar Winner and Pop Singer to Host Next Awards Show
Oscar-winning screenwriters are not usually recruited to host music awards shows, and that's because most of them are not Taika Waititi. The Thor: Love and Thunder director and his wife, "Let You Love Me" singer Rita Ora, will co-host the 2022 MTV Europe Music Awards. Ora previously hosted the MTV EMAs solo in 2017.
"I'm thrilled to be back hosting, and sharing the stage with Taika makes it all the more special," Ora said in a statement to Billboard. "We've got it all at this year's EMAs, fun surprises, fantastic fashion, comedy, and above all amazing music!" Ora has been nominated for several EMAs in the past, and won the 2017 Power of Music Award for participating in the Artists for Grenfell Tower charity recording of Simon & Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water."
"Rita Ora is a long-time MTV/EMA favorite and together with the multi-talented Taika Waititi, we're absolutely certain this powerhouse duo will set the stage for one electrifying night of global music celebration," Bruce Gillmer, president of music, music talent, programming and events at Paramount, and chief content officer of music for Paramount+, added. Gillmer and Richard Godfrey are the executive producers on the show, with Debbie Phillips and Chloe Mason producing.
The 2022 MTV EMAs will be broadcast live on MTV in over 170 counties and on Pluto TV on Nov. 13. The broadcast will be available to stream the following day on Nov. 17. This year's ceremony will be held at the PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany.
Fans can vote on their favorite musicians and songs at MTVEMA.com until Nov. 9. The nominees for Best Song are "Me Porto Bonito" by Bad Bunny and Chencho Corleone; Harry Styles' "As It Was"; "First Class" by Jack Harlow; Lizzo's "About Damn Time"; Nicki Minaj's "Super Freaky Girl"; and Rosalia's "Despecha." Adele, Beyonce, Styles, Minaj, Rosalia, and Taylor Swift are the Best Artist nominees. Two new categories, Best Longform Video and Best Metaverse Performance were added this year.
Waititi won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Jojo Rabbit, which also earned him a Best Picture nomination. He is also an executive producer on the hit FX series What We Do In the Shadows, which is based on the 2014 mockumentary he directed. Waititi also directed Thor: Ragnarok and Thor: Love and Thunder for Marvel Studios.
Ora scored her first big hit as the featured artist on DJ Fresh's single "Hot Right Now." Her solo hits include "R.I.P.," "How We Do (Party)," "Your Song," "Anywhere," and "Let You Love Me." She is now working on a third album and signed a global recording deal with BMG in February.