On 6 September 2001, MTV staged its Video Music Awards at New York's Metropolitan Opera House, one of the final major red-carpet events in the city before the month's end. The arrivals mixed pop, hip-hop, film and television figures in a tight run of carpet portraits.
Jennifer Lopez arrived with Chris Judd. Destiny's Child - Kelly Rowland, Beyonce Knowles and Michelle Williams - were photographed in coordinated orange, while Usher appeared in a shirt honoring Aaliyah, who had died in a plane crash on 25 August 2001, twelve days before the ceremony.
Will Smith was photographed with his son Trey, and the carpet also included Christopher Walken, Pamela Anderson with Kid Rock, India Arie and Ja Rule. Together, the eight reviewed frames preserve a cross-section of performers and guests from that edition of the awards.
The event itself sits between two fixed points in 2001 music culture: MTV's annual award show format and the immediate aftermath of Aaliyah's death, which was still fresh on the night. These images are presented with reviewed metadata and source links for each frame.
