BROOKLYN, New York — Drake first appeared on the MTV Video Music Awards in 2010, but before he made his debut alongside Mary J. Blige and Swizz Beatz, the Toronto spitter made his presence felt a few years earlier thanks to his mentor Lil Wayne.

When Weezy took the stage at the 2008 VMAs to perform Tha Carter III's "Misunderstood," the Young Money boss left his own lyrics at home, opting to spit bars written and recorded by Drake, who was largely unknown as a rapper at the time. At the end of the performance, he yelled out "Drizzy Drake, I love you, boy!" It was the ultimate co-sign.

"It was like surreal; I think I was locked outside. I couldn't even get inside, I was at a side door and I heard it," Drake recalled. "The door kept opening and closing and I kinda heard lyrics from my song and I thought like is he rehearsing and then people kept hitting my phone like Wayne is performing. That was crazy."

The verse that Wayne performed would eventually end up on Birdman's 2009 platinum single "Money to Blow." That 2008 night helped to set up Drizzy as an artist to watch for.

Drake would make his physical VMA debut in 2010 to put on a Rat Pack-inspired performance of "Fancy" with MJB and Swizz. "I just really remember like how nervous I was at my first VMAs," he said. "It's one thing to be comfortable with yourself, be yourself in everyday life, but it's hard to walk into this building ...

What was your first reaction when you saw the uncensored version of Robin Thicke's triple-VMA nominated video?

"I was immediately struck by the combination of naked women and farm animals," said Sara Schaefer, one half of MTV's "Nikki & Sara Live" team of the song that turned the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards performer into a superstar. "I thought it was a little ... weird."

Her partner, Nikki Glaser, felt the exact opposite. "I thought it was hot. I'm not gay, but I was really turned on by it," she said, unintentionally punning it up by calling the clip for the song of the summer "titillating."The buzzed-about tops optional video has inspired tons of parodies, some great, some predictably awful and a lot that were weirder than Pharrell's old man dancing in the original.

There was the inevitable "Star Wars" and Muppet versions and a male burlesque take from Mod Carousel, among dozens of others.

We asked Glaser and Schaefer to break down the best ones, including their own hilarious script-flipping take featuring men dancing around wearing not nearly enough. And they're not gonna lie, it seemed like a good idea at the time, but they were mostly just freaked out.

Nikki and Sara turn tables, sort of
"The way a man reacts to a naked woman is so different from the way a woman does," explained Schaefer about why she and Glaser were not looking forward to sharing the stage with shockingly near-nude dudes. "We're like, 'uggh, that's too much, just cover up' ...

Later this week, Directioners will get the chance to flock to theaters to check out One Direction in 3-D when their Morgan Spurlock-directed flick, hits theaters Friday.

In the film, fans get to go behind the scenes with the beloved boy band as they travel across the world on their Take Me Home Tour, as well as head home to see their families in between gigs and engagements. The documentary focuses a lot on their rise to fame, from their early beginnings on the "X Factor" in the U.K. to their current status as pop superstars. At one point, the guys even wonder what would have happened to the group if one of them hadn't auditioned for "X Factor."

So, if Zayn Malik hadn't shown up to his audition back in 2010, could the more outgoing Niall Horan step in as 1D's go-to mystery guy? That question is pondered in the flick, and the fellas opened up about that possibility to MTV News, just ahead of 1D's appearance at tonight's 2013 MTV Video Music Awards. "I think Niall could pull it off," Liam Payne told us Saturday. "Actually, I think he's got that air about him. He could switch it on when he wants to."

With Liam giving Niall his two thumbs up, does Zayn think they could ever pull a switcheroo? "Definitely," he said. "He's got my approval."

Before the movie hits theaters Friday, One Direction will appear at the VMAs, where they're up for Best Song of the Summer for their single "Best Song Ever." They are ...

In addition to licking just about everything
 in sight, Miley Cyrus is sure to have tongues wagging before she takes the stage tonight at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards.

Just hours after finally revealing the full neon-splashed cover
 of her upcoming Bangerz
 album, Cyrus dropped the new song "Wrecking Ball," an intense ballad whose lyrics will definitely raise eyebrows.

Unlike the Mike Will Made It beat-driven "We Can't Stop," the new song is a majestic, slow-burn ballad about a true love blown to bits by its own intensity. "I came in like a wrecking ball/I never hit so hard in love/All I wanted was to break your wall," Cyrus sings in an urgent voice on the tune, whose production credits were unknown at press time. "All you ever did was break me/Yeah, you wreck me."

And while the lyrics are about fighting as hard as possible to keep that love alive, things clearly don't work out. Miley's voice is sing-songy and vulnerable in the verses, which are backed by spare keyboards, exploding into her power range in the choruses, which are accompanied by thundering drums and more ominous piano figures.

"I never meant to start a war/I just wanted you to let me in," sings a vulnerable-sounding Cyrus. "And instead of using force/I guess I should have let you in ... Don't you ever say I just walked away/ I will always want you."

Along with "We Can't Stop," the iTunes store is now also offering "Ball" for sale, though the titles of the other 14 tracks ...

BROOKLYN, New York — So how much is a KAWS Moonman worth? We here at MTV happen to think a Video Music Award is priceless, but if Drake was serious about buying one of the special edition statues off of Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, he's going to have to fork over some serious cake.

Now, of course there's a chance that Drizzy will walk away with an award of his own at the 2013 VMAs — after all October's Very Own walked away with the award for Best Hip-Hop Video last year. But just in case he loses the prize to Macklemore, Drake is formulating a contingency plan.

"I need the trophy for my house, period — even if somebody else gets one I might buy it off them," Drake told us on Friday of the KAWS design. "I might have to tell Macklemore like, 'Yo, I'll buy that trophy off of you,' if he beats me."

Unfortunately for Drake, Macklemore knows his worth. "$200 million dollars, $200 million Canadian dollars," the "Thrift Shop" rapper said, throwing out his price point with a hint of Dr. Evil in his voice.

Ryan drove an even harder bargain, saying he would want the loot in gold-colored Canadian coins. "200 million loonies," the producer chimed in.

On Sunday night (August 25), Macklemore & Ryan Lewis as well as Drake will take the stage to perform live from Brooklyn's Barclay's Center. Both acts could possibly walk away with some hardware, as Mack and Ryan are nominated in six categories while Drizzy's "Started From the ...