Britney Spears opened this year’s MTV Video Awards, and closed them, too.

After her controversial performance of “Gimme More” last year, the troubled pop star was back to being a video queen, nabbing her first three VMAs ever for “Piece of Me,” including Video of the Year, Best Female Video and Best Pop Video.

Manic U.K. MC Russell Brand got in some jabs as well, urging Americans to vote for Barack Obama, calling George W. Bush “that retarded cowboy fellow,” and making fun of the Jonas Brothers’ sexual purity "promise" rings.

And, oh yeah, Katy Perry said the girl she most wanted to kiss was Miley Cyrus.

Other awards went to Chris Brown’s “With You” (Best Male Video), Pussycat Dolls’ “When I Grow Up” (Best Dancing in a Video), Linkin Park’s “Shadow of the Day” (Best Rock Video), Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop” (Best Hip-Hop Video) and Tokio Hotel’s “Ready, Set, Go!” (Best New Artist).

The evening’s performances included Rihanna doing “Disturbia,” mashing in a little of “Seven Nation Army”; the Jonas Brothers with a half-acoustic, half-electric version of their new single, “Love Bug”; Katy Perry singing “Like a Virgin” and “I Kissed a Girl” in the audience; Leona Lewis, accompanied by a string section, doing “Don’t Get It”; Lil Wayne rapping “A Milli,” then joined by T-Pain for “Get Money,” as Weezy’s pants fell down; Paramore playing their hit, “Misery Business” at what looked like the Whiskey a Go Go, but was really somewhere on the back lot; P!nk’s frenzied take on her new single, “So What,” as explosions went off in the background; The Ting Tings performing their song “Shut Up and Let Me Go” with Travis Barker and DJ AM, the house band; T.I. with his new single, “Whatever You Like”; Christina Aguilera doing “Genie in a Bottle” and her new hit, “Keeps Gettin’ Better”; Kid Rock being joined on “All Summer Long” by Lil Wayne; and Kanye West, finally getting a chance to close the show with “Love Lockdown.”