--- title: MTV 2014 VMAs: 9 Feminist Lessons from Beyonce, Lorde and Katy Perry description: Men provided mostly forgettable moments canonical: https://time.com/3173795/vmas-2014-beyonce-lorde-katy-perry-feminism/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-08-25T15:55:53.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:55:52.581Z og:title: 9 Feminist Takeaways From the VMAs og:description: Men provided mostly forgettable moments og:url: https://time.com/3173795/vmas-2014-beyonce-lorde-katy-perry-feminism/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd906403cd94d9f2a/6986a0b2d0b6f272b0305cf1/454109058.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: 2014 MTV Video Music Awards - Roaming Show og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 9 Feminist Takeaways From the VMAs twitter:description: Men provided mostly forgettable moments twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd906403cd94d9f2a/6986a0b2d0b6f272b0305cf1/454109058.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 9 Feminist Takeaways From the VMAs > Sponsored content. 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Worth Your Time is TIME's culture newsletter, published Tuesdays and Saturdays to 40,000 subscribers as of August 2026. #### Who writes TIME's culture recommendations? Culture editor Eliza Berman writes Worth Your Time, drawing on TIME's critics and culture desk. #### Is Worth Your Time free? Yes. It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Aug 25, 2014 3:55 PM UTC  Singer Beyonce performs onstage during the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum on August 24, 2014 in Inglewood, California. Singer Beyonce performs onstage during the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards at The Forum on August 24, 2014 in Inglewood, California. Kevin Winter—Getty Images by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Aug 25, 2014 3:55 PM UTC **Feminism Doesn’t Mean ‘Man-Hater’** In fact, what it actually means is: the belief that all genders should be equal to each other politically, economically and socially. Thank you, Beyoncé. **Female Breadwinners Are Amazing** A Tumblr blogger put it best: “If Jay Z can support Beyonce’s stance on feminism and not feel threatened by it and cheer on her work with their daughter in his arms then ya’ll motherf\*\*\*\*\*s ain’t got no excuses.” Amen. **Gender Parity: It’s Possible!** The ladies took home [10 of 16 of the awards](http://www.thewrap.com/mtv-vma-winners-2014-complete-list/), or a whopping 63%. **You Can Use Fashion to Declare Your Independence** Katy Perry and RiFF RAFF [dressed as early 00s power couple Britney Spears and Justin Timberlak](http://time.com/3170557/vmas-2014-katy-perry-riff-raff-britney-justin/)e on the red carpet. Even though it was a couple’s costume, Perry basically used the jean-clad rapper as a prop to state her independence while playing with [rumors](http://www.tmz.com/2014/03/26/riff-raff-ass-thong-katy-perry-video-dating/) about her dating life. **Women Can** **_Support_** **Each Other** It was notable to hear Lorde introduce Taylor Swift as her “friend;” for Demi Lovato to tweet that she loves Nicki Minaj; to see female artists collaborating rather than tearing each other down. God I love [@NICKIMINAJ](https://twitter.com/NICKIMINAJ?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw) — Demi Lovato (@ddlovato) [August 25, 2014](https://twitter.com/ddlovato/status/503723544212426752?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw) **Ladies Are Multifaceted, Get Over It** Yep, they can call themselves feminists and do it in a bodysuit. **Embrace the Female Badass** The best presenters of the night were Laverne Cox, Taylor Schilling and Uzo Aduba from _Orange Is the New Black,_ who compared the competitive world of the VMAs to the all women’s prison on their show. **Women Can Rock Out, Too** While announcing the award for Best Rock Video, presenter Trey Songz said — in an eye-roll moment— that “even a lady \[was\] in the mix.” Well that lady was Lorde, and she was the first woman to ever win in that category. Besides, it’s not like Trey Songz was nominated for anything. **Being a Mom is Empowering** Beyoncé’s tribute to her adorable daughter brought the diva — and likely the entire audience — to tears. Count motherhood among Beyoncé’s many achievements. 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