The 2024 MTV Video Music Awards was off to a strong start Wednesday night (Sept. 11), but one of the most memorable moments came when Megan Thee Stallion paid homage to Britney Spears — and totally panicked in the interim.
During a promo that aired during the show, Megan, dressed in a costume paying to tribute to Spears’ 2001 VMAs performance of “I’m a Slave 4 U,” appeared on stage wrapped in a live snake, just like Spears did 23 years ago.
Unfortunately, the slithery critter didn’t last long on stage as Megan began to visibly squirm and panic while holding the reptile.
“OK, OK. Stop the music!” she shouted as “I’m a Slave 4 U” played in the background.
“I’m just playing… Come get this snake. I don’t know this snake, this snake don’t know me,” she continued, letting out a scream as a handler unwrapped the snake from her and carried it away.
“I tried to hold it down for Britney,” the rapper joked. Watch below.
Spears previously opened up about her iconic VMAs performance in her memoir, The Woman in Me.
“What nobody knows is that as I was singing, the snake brought its head right around to my face, right up to me, and started hissing at me,” she wrote, according to Business Insider.
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“You didn’t see that shot on the TV, but in real life? I was thinking, ‘Are you f—ing serious right now? The f—ing goddamn snake’s tongue is flicking out at me. Right. Now.’ Finally, I got to the part where I handed it back, thank God,” Spears continued.
Notably, Megan included a snake theme in her last album, Megan.
The project featured such songs as “BOA” and the No. 1 single “Hiss.”
2024 MTV VMAs Red Carpet Photos
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Gallery Credit: Jacklyn Krol