Shrieking fans and stylish celebrities spilled over several city blocks Sunday night as the music community celebrated videos at a loud, freewheeling bash hosted by MuchMusic.
Videos from rapper K-os won four trophies, while rock bands Billy Talent and Death From Above 1979 took home two apiece.
But the evening was more about the blowout than the hardware.
"We love the energy," shouted the Black Eyed Peas' Taboo upon exiting his limousine for the untraditional red carpet, which was flanked by screaming, autograph-seeking fans rather than reporters.
K-os's Man I Used To Be, which features eye-catching dance moves using the Brazilian martial arts form capoeira, scored three trophies including best rap video and best cinematography.
Crabbuckit was named best pop video.
Billy Talent's video for River Below nabbed best rock video and the night's highest honours, video of the year.
Newcomers Death From Above 1979, a Toronto two-piece outfit made up of Jesse Keelor and Sebastian Grainger, won their awards for Romantic Rights and for Blood On Our Hands.
As usual, performances ate up a large chunk of the night with K-os, The Arcade Fire, The Killers, Black Eyed Peas, Ashlee Simpson, Ciara, Billy Talent and Alexisonfire among the artists scheduled to take the stage.
In keeping with a 16-year tradition, there were no seats for the awards show.
Instead, fans got free, front-row access to the celebrity VIPs - which included the sexy Carmen Electra, reality TV newlyweds Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich and NHLer Tie Domi - thanks to a setup that included three stages and plenty of informal, middle-of-the-crowd acceptance spots.
"It's crazy. It's insane," said R&B singer Ciara, barely able to follow the show over the crowd's ear-piercing hooting and hollering.
The arm's-length distance made standing in line for hours on end worthwhile for ardent young fans.
"I'm dead tired but it's fun," beamed 17-year-old Diana Gates of Woodbridge, Ont., who lined up at 3 a.m. a night earlier to be able to "reach out" to singer Kalan Porter.
"It's worth it to see the bands, get their autographs and get to talk to them," added Brittany Newell, a 12-year-old from Oshawa, Ont., who arrived at 10 a.m.
The evening was filled with quirky incidents beginning with Billy Talent. The foursome showed up for the red carpet in an army tank. Sum 41 arrived in rickshaws flanked by girls dressed in the Harajuku style.
Inside the building, purple wristbands gave the stars access to an all-you-can eat - and drink - cocktail bash. NDP Leader Jack Layton and the Canadian Idol judges were among those hobnobbing.
Other winners included Alexisonfire's Accidents for best independent video.
Usher's Caught Up won best international video for an artist. The Black Eyed Peas' Let's Get It Started lost to The Killers' Mr. Brightside for best international video by a group.
Awards are determined by an in-house MuchMusic panel, except for the People's Choice Awards which are selected by fans via an online and telephone voting system.
The inaugural MuchMusic Awards were held in 1989 during a train ride across Canada.