Marina Satti was awarded Best Pop Artist at the Mad Video Music Awards (VMA) last night, but not without some drama.
The award was presented by Athenais Nega, who prefaced the announcement with a reference to Satti's controversial behaviour at Eurovision, where she was seen yawning during an interview with the Israeli contestant.
"I'm here to award Best Pop Artist. I could yawn, but I won't because I really appreciate her as a singer, even though I disagree with her. Marina, come," Nega said.
🥱 Αθηναΐς Νέγκα λίγο πριν βραβεύσει τη Μαρίνα Σάττι στα MAD VMA 2024: «Θα μπορούσα να χασμουρηθώ, αλλά δεν θα το κάνω, γιατί την εκτιμώ πάρα πολύ ως τραγουδίστρια αν και διαφωνώ μαζί της».
Η ΜΑΡΙΝΑ ΣΑΣ ΠΗΓΕ ΤΑΠΑ ΚΙ ΕΙΠΕ CIAO, ARRIVEDERCI, ΦΙΛΑΚΙΑ!#νέγκα | #σάττι | #madvma24 pic.twitter.com/PHX3gxrHFB
— Σωτήρης Χαραλαμπόπουλος (@s_charal) June 19, 2024
An audience member captured Satti's reaction on video. When she heard Nega's remark about yawning, she paused her conversation and appeared surprised. Satti then took the stage to accept the award.
this is gay history pic.twitter.com/mt89Bf5i4i
— stefanos (@yoncexcivus) June 19, 2024
"Thank you very much. It's my first time here, my first award, thank you very much. It's been an interesting year; I learned a lot, won a lot, and lost some things. Thank you very much for your love and support," Satti said.
Following the awards, Nega took to X to explain her stance: "If I have expressed that I disagree a lot with someone, I can't get excited about them a few days later; it would be hypocrisy. We're not toddlers to spin everything. I sincerely appreciate the talent. In this age of 'being myself,' there's also the difficult integrity, you pick and choose."
Αν έχω εκφράσει πως διαφωνώ πολύ με κάποιον δεν μπορω να ενθουσιαστώ μαζί του λίγες μέρες αργότερα, θα ήταν υποκρισία. δεν είμαστε νήπια όλα να τα γυρίζουμε.Εκτιμώ ειλικρινώς το ταλέντο.Στην εποχή που δεσπόζει το «είμαι ο εαυτός μου», υπάρχει κ η δύσκολη ακεραιότητα,διαλέγεις
— Athinais Nega (@athinaisnega) June 20, 2024
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