Dancing kings win kudos

London Swedish pop stars Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, who set the world rocking as half of ABBA, were honored with an international award for their lifetime contribution to music.

The songwriting duo were presented Thursday with the Ivor Novello Special International Award by the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters.

The pair spoke the words to their hit track “Fernando” as they collected the award at the Le Meridien Grosvenor House hotel in London.

Other winners at the 47th Ivor Novello Awards ceremony included Sting, who won the International Achievement award, and Kate Bush, who was honored for her outstanding contribution to British music.

MTV turning Japanese

Tokyo Boyz II Men, Sheryl Crow and other American artists joined such Japanese stars as Rip Slyme and rapper Zeebra on Friday for the first MTV Video Music Awards Japan.

The awards, chosen by MTV’s Japanese viewers, were given in 15 categories, ranging from dance to hip-hop and rap.

Ayumi Hamazaki, a Japanese singer whose popularity is spreading through Asia, won the top female honors.

“It was the first award, so I was really nervous,” Hamazaki said. “I’m just happy to be here.”

The Backstreet Boys, who were not present at the ceremony in downtown Tokyo, were selected as the best group of the year. Japan’s Chemistry won the top pop honors, and the British band Oasis won for best live performance.

Rip Slyme, which opened the award show performing in men’s kimonos, won in the hip-hop/rap category.

The Japan event follows similar annual efforts by the all-music network throughout Asia to promote local stars. Other awards it has produced include the MTV Asia Awards, held in Singapore, the MTV Mandarin Awards in Taiwan and MTV Penghargaan in Indonesia.

Walters donates cool million

Yonkers, N.Y. Barbara Walters donated $1 million toward a gallery in a new arts center at Sarah Lawrence College, her alma mater.

The gift was announced Thursday at the groundbreaking for the Heimbold Visual Arts Center on the college’s Yonkers campus.

“The arts matter and should be supported,” said Walters, co-anchor of ABC’s “20/20” newsmagazine program.

The gallery, the most prominent space in the new 60,000-square-foot center, will be named for Walters. It will be open to the public and will display works of prominent artists, faculty and students.