• Lady Gaga cleaned house at the 2020 MTV Video Music Awards, while The Weeknd took home the top prize -- and both pop stars sent important messages to viewers about the current state of the world: "Wear a mask" and "Justice for Jacob Blake and Breonna Taylor." Gaga won five honors Sunday, most for her No. 1 hit with Ariana Grande, "Rain on Me," which the pop stars performed live for the first time. "Wear a mask. It's a sign of respect," Gaga said during one of her several appearances onstage as she accepted awards like artist of the year, song of the year and the MTV Tricon award. With an electronic mask, Gaga performed a medley of her songs. She and Grande were joined by a number of background dancers all wearing masks. The Weeknd paid tribute to Blake and Taylor -- two Black people who were shot by police officers -- after winning video of the year and best R&B for "Blinding Lights." "It's really hard for me to celebrate right now and enjoy this moment, so I'm just going to say: justice for Jacob Blake and justice for Breonna Taylor." The VMAs kicked off with host Keke Palmer telling viewers the show was dedicated to Chadwick Boseman, who died Friday at age 43 after privately battling colon cancer. Most of the show was dedicated to fun performances -- some taped, some filmed in various locations in New York City, although the locations weren't always clear. The VMAs were originally supposed to be held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, but plans changed because of the pandemic.
• Comedian John Oliver upped the stakes in his tongue-in-cheek spat with a Connecticut city, offering to donate $55,000 to charity if officials follow through on a threat to name its sewage treatment plant after him. Last week, Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton said the city was going to rename the facility the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant in response to Oliver's expletive-filled rant against the city on a recent episode of HBO's "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver." "Why? Because it's full of c* just like you, John," Boughton said in a video posted on social media. On Sunday, Oliver said he was surprised and delighted by the city's response but then went off on another rant after playing a video of Boughton saying it was just a joke. "Wait, so you're not doing it?" Oliver said. "You had the first good idea in your city's history, and you chickened out on the follow-through. What a classic Danbury move." If the city doesn't rename the plant after him, Oliver said he would make charitable donations to "rival" towns including Waterbury and Torrington. On Monday, Boughton said that city officials were considering Oliver's offer and planned to respond by the end of the week.
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