Teyana Taylor suffered an awkward mishap at the 2026 Billboard Women in Music Awards that caused her to abruptly walk off stage.
The singer and actress, 35, was at the event – which took place at the Hollywood Palladium – to accept the Visionary Award and to perform. However, after taking the stage, Taylor realized that the teleprompter did not have her speech ready.
At one point the malfunctioning teleprompter instructed the Oscar nominee to ‘exit’ the stage, after which she stormed off without saying a word.
Legendary star Dionne Warwick later brought out Taylor before the show ended to finally have her moment. Taylor returned in a pair of grey sweatpants and a matching hoodie to give her speech while also taking a few jabs at Billboard.
At the start of what was supposed to be her speech, Taylor awkwardly waited in silence, even doing a little dance, as she asked twice if she could get the teleprompter.
When someone finally told her to ‘ad lib’ she quipped, ‘My speech is cute. They’re gonna pull up this goddamn speech. Where’s my speech?’
Teyana Taylor, 35, suffered an awkward mishap at the Billboard Women in Music Awards on Wednesday when a teleprompter glitch told her to ‘exit’ the stage, prompting her to walk off
The One Battle After Another star later returned in a pair of grey sweatpants and a matching hoodie to finally give her speech while also taking a few jabs at Billboard
‘Y’all know I be having good speeches. I wanna read my little speech. I’m not ad libbing,’ she said, before mentioning that her microphone was ‘messed up’ during her performance.
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The One Battle After Another star then noticed a message on the teleprompter that she read out loud: ‘Oh, it says Teyana Taylor we have no script for you. Everyone exit stage right.’
Taylor then immediately walked off the stage.
She later returned, changing from a glamorous low-cut white dress into a more comfortable look to finally give her speech.
Taylor was accompanied by Warwick, who told the audience, ‘We’re back. And she has something to say.’
The actress then proceeded to give her speech, though she made a pointed remark about Billboard.
‘Thank you to the legendary Miss Dionne Warwick for being a part of this moment,’ she said. Taylor then slowly deadpanned, ‘Thank you to Billboard for this incredible honor,’ before jokingly smacking her lips.
Taylor went on to thank God for the award, joking that throughout her life there were ‘so many moments I didn’t really understand, even like the one now.’
Taylor noticed a message on the teleprompter that read: ‘Teyana Taylor we have no script for you. Everyone exit stage right.’ Taylor then immediately walked off the stage
After ditching her gown and returning to give her speech, Taylor slowly deadpanned, ‘Thank you to Billboard for this incredible honor,’ before jokingly smacking her lips
Taylor then thanked Billboard for ‘the accountability’ and for ‘coming to the room right away and acknowledging what was done’
While waiting for her speech to show up, Taylor also mentioned that her microphone was ‘messed up’ during her performance; She is seen performing at the event
Following the debacle, Billboard issued an apology to the star ‘for the uncomfortable error’
Fans were amused by Taylor’s outfit change, with one writing, ‘The sweatsuit! My girl was about to GO! Lol’ as others called the mishap a ‘mess’
‘This year marks 20 years in music for me. 20 years of showing up, even when it hurt, like now.’
‘As women, we are visionaries by nature. We don’t wait for permission. We create possibility. We take what we’ve been through, and we turn it into something the world can feel.’
‘We turn pain into purpose, silence into sound, dreams into something people can finally see. And that kind of vision, it doesn’t change us. It changes everything around us,’ Taylor said.
She then teared up while talking about her mother, Nikki Taylor, stating, ‘You are my backbone, my safe place.’
‘It was so dope watching you curse them out back there,’ she added, in reference to what happened backstage after the teleprompter mishap.
Taylor then thanked Billboard for ‘the accountability’ and for ‘coming to the room right away and acknowledging what was done.’
Following the debacle, Billboard issued an apology to the star: ‘We apologize to Teyana Taylor for the uncomfortable error and are grateful that she agreed to graciously return to the stage, delivering an incredible speech as this year’s Visionary Award recipient.’
Fans were amused by Taylor’s outfit change, with one writing, ‘The sweatsuit! My girl was about to GO! Lol.’
‘She changed into her sweats and I’m here for it!!’ another added.
Yet another fan joked about the star’s ‘walk off’ while someone else wrote, ‘this was a mess.’
‘Technical issues in 2026 is crazy.’
Taylor joined an array of stars for the glitzy show, including Zara Larsson and Keke Palmer.
Taylor put on a glamorous display as she arrived wearing a white corset that clung to her figure and contained dark brown details on the material.
During her speech the star also teared up while talking about her mother, Nikki Taylor, stating, ‘It was so dope watching you curse them out back there’; Seen with her mom on the red carpet
Taylor put on a glamorous display as she arrived wearing a white corset that clung to her figure and contained dark brown details on the material
She also donned a white skirt that had a fringed hem that fell into hues of brown for a dramatic flare.
She slipped into a pair of lace-up, pastel pink boots and allowed her long locks to effortlessly flow down past her shoulders in voluminous curls.
Taylor opted for minimal accessories to allow the outfit to be the main focal point for the evening and added a pair of mini earrings.
She later switched into a very low-cut white silk gown for her performance of her 2025 song, Bed of Roses.
The Billboard Women in Music Awards honor ‘accomplished women and their contributions to the music industry,’ per Billboard.
