Usher has a confession to make about his performance at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards.
While appearing on Monday’s episode of Power 105.1 FM’s “The Breakfast Club,” the recent Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show headliner reflected on a resurfaced clip of him slapping Nicki Minaj’s butt during their VMAs performance a decade ago.
“Have you seen some of your old moments, like when you were onstage with Nicki Minaj and you were head buttin’ her ass? Why was you so unhinged?” host Charlamagne Tha God questioned him about the performance.
During the duo’s set of their song, “She Came to Give It to You,” Usher, 45, banged his head against Minaj’s derrière and spanked her while he played the bass guitar.
The “U Got It Bad” singer told Charlamagne and his co-host, Jess Hilarious, that the impromptu moves were inspired by Jamaica’s dance culture.
“That was Jamaican culture! So you gotta go to Jamaica. That was just a moment that was fun,” he said with a laugh. “By the way, it was me playing my bass, so I probably would’ve bumped my shoulder or my hand, but I had my bass in my hand and I was playing, so I kind of bopped off her body a little bit. If you go back and look at the video, you’ll understand because I did it there for the first time.”
But the “In the Mix” actor went on to admit that he was “reaching a bit” with the unauthorized gestures.
“I think I was reaching a bit when I smacked her, though,” Usher shared. “I shouldn’t have smacked her. I shouldn’t have did that.”
Kevin Mazur/MTV1415 via Getty Images
Usher’s reflection on the resurfaced clip comes on the heels of the superstar’s recent Super Bowl halftime performance, in which he tapped singer Alicia Keys to perform their 2004 smash hit, “My Boo.”
Their performance quickly went viral after fans shared mixed feelings on social media over Usher intimately hugging Keys, who is married to producer and rapper Swizz Beatz, from behind during the show.
The moment kicked off an onslaught of jokes and memes from fans, prompting Beatz to defend the “No One” singer on Instagram.
“Y’all talking about the wrong damn thing !!! y’all don’t see that amazing dress covering the entire stadium ⚡️🚨😂😂😮💨😮💨😮💨😮💨,” the producer wrote on Feb. 12. “Tonight’s performance was nothing but amazing with 2 amazing Giants ! Congrats @usher and my love @aliciakeys that song is a classic 🤍 We don’t do negative vibes on this side we make history ✌🏽.”
The “My Way” singer explained to the “Breakfast Club” hosts that he meant “no disrespect” by the moment.
“No, it was literally about having fun because of a song that me and Alicia made many years ago,” Usher said. “We celebrated because of the legacy of it, and [meant] no disrespect to anybody.”
Besides, it seems Usher is too caught up in his own love to worry about the rumors considering he tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend, Jennifer Goicoechea, in Las Vegas on Feb. 11.
(this story has not been edited by TSA Mag staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
