Janet Jackson slays Billboard Music Awards with first TV performance in almost 10 years

Janet Jackson schooled the kids at the Billboard Music Awards on Sunday night (May 20) as she delivered her first TV performance in nine years.

The legendary singer, 52, was picking up an Icon Award during the show at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, and showed audience just why she’s deserving of the accoladte as she performed classic hits ‘Nasty’ from 1986’s Control and ‘If’ and ‘Throb’ from 1993’s Janet.

Jackson, who gave birth to her first child, a son named Eissa, in January 2017, later used her acceptance speech to back the #MeToo campaign against sexual abuse in the entertainment industry.

“I believe that for all the challenges, for all our challenges, we live at a glorious moment in history,” Jackson said.

“It’s a moment when at long last women have made it clear that we will no longer be controlled, manipulated, or abused. I stand with those women and with those men equally outraged by discrimination who support us in heart or mind.”

Jackson wasn’t the only star whose appearance took a politicial turn during one of music’s biggest nights of the year: Host Kelly Clarkson used her introductory speech to call for increased gun controls following yet another US high school in Santa Fe, Texas on Friday (May 18) in which 10 people were killed.

Kelly Clarkson says she’s done with moments of silence. In honor of the victims of the Santa Fe shooting, Clarkson says she wants a moment of action.

Here’s how she opened the Billboard Music Awards tonight. It’s worth a watch. pic.twitter.com/z7b105Lc1b

— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 21, 2018

Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran was the night’s big winner after being named ‘Top Artist’, ‘Top Male Artist’ ‘Top Hot 100 Artist’ and ‘Top Sales Artist’.

There were also awards for females stars including Taylor Swift and Camila Cabello, who won ‘Top Female Artist Award’ and ‘Billboard Chart Achievement Award’ resepctively.

Check out selected winners from the Billboard Music Awards 2018 below (via Billboard):

Top Artist:
Drake
Kendrick Lamar
Bruno Mars
Ed Sheeran — WINNER
Taylor Swift

Top New Artist:
21 Savage
Camila Cabello
Cardi B
Khalid — WINNER
Kodak Black

Billboard Chart Achievement Award:
Camila Cabello — WINNER
Cardi B
Drake
Sam Hunt
Ed Sheeran

Top Male Artist:
Drake
Kendrick Lamar
Bruno Mars
Post Malone
Ed Sheeran — WINNER

Top Female Artist:
Camila Cabello
Cardi B
Halsey
Demi Lovato
Taylor Swift — WINNER

Top Duo/Group:
The Chainsmokers
Coldplay
Imagine Dragons — WINNER
Migos
U2

Top Billboard 200 Artist:
Drake — WINNER
Kendrick Lamar
Ed Sheeran
Chris Stapleton
Taylor Swift

Top Hot 100 Artist:
Imagine Dragons
Kendrick Lamar
Bruno Mars
Post Malone
Ed Sheeran — WINNER

Top Streaming Songs Artist:
Cardi B
Drake
Kendrick Lamar — WINNER
Post Malone
Ed Sheeran

Top Song Sales Artist:
Imagine Dragons
Kendrick Lamar
Bruno Mars
Post Malone
Ed Sheeran — WINNER

Top R&B Artist:
Chris Brown
Khalid
Bruno Mars — WINNER
SZA
The Weeknd

Top R&B Male Artist:
Khalid
Bruno Mars — WINNER
The Weeknd

Top R&B Female Artist:
Beyonce
Rihanna
SZA — WINNER

Top Rap Male Artist:
Drake
Kendrick Lamar — WINNER
Post Malone

Top Rap Female Artist:
Bhad Bhabie
Cardi B — WINNER
Nicki Minaj

Drake
Kendrick Lamar — WINNER
Post Malone

Top Rap Female Artist:
Bhad Bhabie
Cardi B — WINNER
Nicki Minaj

Top Country Artist:
Kane Brown
Luke Combs
Sam Hunt
Thomas Rhett
Chris Stapleton — WINNER

Top Country Male Artist:
Sam Hunt
Thomas Rhett
Chris Stapleton — WINNER

Top Country Female Artist:
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Maren Morris — WINNER