MTV awards bring glamour, glitz and sizzle to the city of skin

HELD for the first time in Miami, the city of skin, the MTV Video Music Awards were sizzling, energetic and colourful — yet tame, by MTV standards.

There were no wardrobe malfunctions. Britney didn't kiss Madonna like last year or anyone else, for that matter - at the event, which saw Glasgow band Franz Ferdinand take the Breakthrough Video award for Take Me Out.

The most skin shown was from Usher, who preened in front of the camera bare-chested as simulated raindrops fell on his chiselled body during the opening performance.

Even Christina Aguilera was classy, dressed sexily yet demurely as she debuted a jazzy number, Tilt Ya Head, with rapper Nelly. And the sometimes raunchy comedian Dave Chappelle even kept it relatively clean despite teasing that he would not.

"It's the biggest mistake you made since Janet Jackson at the Super Bowl," he joked, alluding to the MTV-produced Super Bowl halftime flesh show that created a firestorm earlier this year.

There may have been plenty of sex appeal, but little shock appeal on hand. Still, MTV provided the already broiling Miami with even more sizzle early yesterday as it brought its annual party to the city for the first time in the awards' 21-year history.

The change of scenery for the awards, typically held in New York or Los Angeles, helped raise the decadence level at the already raucous, celebrity-soaked affair, held at the downtown American Airlines Arena.

OutKast's vivid Hey Ya! won four awards, including video of the year. Jay-Z's 99 Problems, the most nominated video with six, also won four. The gritty black-and-white 99 Problems depicts his own killing as a metaphor for his much-ballyhooed retirement, which has yet to happen.

Usher won his first moonman as he took best male video for Yeah! "This is my first time coming up here let me take my time with this," a beaming Usher said. "I'm so damned happy right now I don't wanna leave."

Later, he took a dig at Justin Timberlake, who has been touted as his rival. "I guess there ain't really any competition between me and Justin no more, right?" he said as he picked up his second award of the night for best dance video.

The daughters of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry and President George Bush made an appearance the Bush daughters on video to urge people to vote.

Perhaps the most surreal, and bizarre, performance came from the Polyphonic Spree, the twenty-something member rock choir that performed in multicoloured, choir-like robes. They looked like members of a lost cult from the 1970s.

Usher and Jessica Simpson arrived on the red carpet not by car, but by luxury yacht.

Simpson, glamorously attired in a white dress with a silver bodice, arrived with husband and Newlyweds co-star Nick Lachey in a 68ft boat.

The biggest entrance, of course, came from P Diddy. Dressed in a white suit and with a Mohawk haircut, he arrived in a towering yacht along with Mase, Naomi Campbell and Bruce Willis.

The show, held a day before the Republican convention was to kick off in New York City, ended on a patriotic note, as red, white and blue balloons fell from the rafters and fans held "vote" signs during the closing performance by OutKast.