The MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) have returned to celebrate this year’s biggest artists and music videos.
The 2025 ceremony, hosted Sunday evening by LL Cool J at New York’s UBS Arena, will welcome special performances from a range of nominees, including Lady Gaga, country star Jelly Roll, pop stars Sabrina Carpenter and Tate McRae, rising singer-songwriters Alex Warren and Lola Young, and rappers Doja Cat and Post Malone.
British singer-songwriter Yungblud, Aerosmith bandmates Joe Perry and Steven Tyler, and Portuguese-American guitarist Nuno Bettencourt are additionally expected to take the stage to perform a special tribute to late Black Sabbath metal legend Ozzy Osbourne, who died in July at the age of 76.
Mariah Carey is set to be honored with the special Video Vanguard Award, while rapper Busta Rhymes receives the Rock the Bells Visionary Award, and Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Ricky Martin is recognized with the Latin Icon Award.
Going into the night, Lady Gaga leads the pack with 12 nods, followed closely behind by her “Die with a Smile” collaborator Bruno Mars with 11 nominations and hit “Not Like Us” rapper Lamar with 10.
Taylor Swift, who holds the record for most-awarded solo artist of the VMAs with a total of 30 wins, is again nominated for Artist of the Year. She is up against Beyoncé, Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga, Lamar, country singer Morgan Wallen, and Canadian singer-songwriter The Weeknd.
Find the full list of winners below. This article will be updated live throughout the ceremony.
Video of the Year
Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
Billie Eilish — “BIRDS OF A FEATHER”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars — “Die with a Smile”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
The Weeknd, Playboi Carti — “Timeless”
Artist of the Year
Bad Bunny
Beyoncé
Kendrick Lamar
Lady Gaga
Morgan Wallen
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd
Song of the Year
Alex Warren — “Ordinary”
Billie Eilish — “BIRDS OF A FEATHER”
Doechii — “Anxiety”
Ed Sheeran — “Sapphire”
Gracie Abrams — “I Love You, I’m Sorry”
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars — “Die with a Smile”
Lorde — “What Was That”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Tate McRae — “Sports Car”
The Weeknd, Playboi Carti — “Timeless”
Best New Artist
Alex Warren — WINNER
Ella Langley
Gigi Perez
Lola Young
sombr
The Marías
Best Pop Artist (new category)
Ariana Grande
Charli xcx
Justin Bieber
Lorde
Miley Cyrus
Sabrina Carpenter
Tate McRae
MTV Push Performance of the Year
August 2024 — Shaboozey — “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
September 2024 — Ayra Starr — “Last Heartbreak Song”
October 2024 — Mark Ambor — “Belong Together”
November 2024 — Lay Bankz — “Graveyard”
December 2024 — Dasha — “Bye Bye Bye”
January 2025 — KATSEYE — “Touch”
February 2025 — Jordan Adetunji — “KEHLANI”
March 2025 — Leon Thomas — “YES IT IS”
April 2025 — Livingston — “Shadow”
May 2025 — Damiano David — “Next Summer”
June 2025 — Gigi Perez — “Sailor Song”
July 2025 — ROLE MODEL — “Sally, When the Wine Runs Out”
Best Collaboration
Bailey Zimmerman with Luke Combs — “Backup Plan (Stagecoach Official Music Video)”
Kendrick Lamar & SZA — “luther”
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars — “Die with a Smile”
Post Malone ft. Blake Shelton — “Pour Me a Drink”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Selena Gomez, benny blanco — “Sunset Blvd”
Best Pop
Alex Warren — “Ordinary”’
Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
Ed Sheeran — “Sapphire”
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars — “Die with a Smile”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
Best Hip-Hop
Doechii — “Anxiety”
Drake — “NOKIA”
Eminem ft. Jelly Roll — “Somebody Save Me”
GloRilla ft. Sexyy Red — “WHATCHU KNO ABOUT ME”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
LL COOL J ft. Eminem — “Murdergram Deux”
Travis Scott — “4X4”
Best R&B
Chris Brown — “Residuals”
Leon Thomas & Freddie Gibbs — “MUTT (REMIX)”
Mariah Carey — “Type Dangerous”
PARTYNEXTDOOR — “N o C h i l l”
Summer Walker — “Heart of a Woman”
SZA — “Drive”
The Weeknd, Playboi Carti — “Timeless”
Best Alternative
Gigi Perez — “Sailor Song”
Imagine Dragons — “Wake Up”
Lola Young — “Messy”
mgk & Jelly Roll — “Lonely Road”
sombr — “back to friends”
The Marías — “Back to Me”
Best Rock
Coldplay — “ALL MY LOVE”
Evanescence — “Afterlife (From the Netflix Series ‘Devil May Cry’)”
Green Day — “One Eyed Bastard”
Lenny Kravitz — “Honey”
Linkin Park — “The Emptiness Machine”
twenty one pilots — “The Contract”
Best Latin
Bad Bunny — “BAILE INoLVIDABLE”
J Balvin — “Rio”
KAROL G — “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido”
Peso Pluma — “LA PATRULLA”
Rauw Alejandro & Romeo Santos — “Khé?”
Shakira — “Soltera”
Best K-Pop
aespa — “Whiplash”
JENNIE — “like JENNIE”
Jimin — “Who”
JISOO — “earthquake”
LISA ft. Doja Cat & RAYE — “Born Again”
Stray Kids — “Chk Chk Boom”
ROSÉ — “toxic till the end”
Best Afrobeats
Asake & Travis Scott — “Active”
Burna Boy ft. Travis Scott — “TaTaTa”
MOLIY, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea — “Shake It to the Max (FLY) (Remix)”
Rema — “Baby (Is It a Crime)”
Tems ft. Asake — “Get It Right”
Tyla — “PUSH 2 START”
Wizkid ft. Brent Faiyaz — “Piece of My Heart”
Best Country (new category)
Chris Stapleton — “Think I’m in Love with You”
Cody Johnson with Carrie Underwood — “I’m Gonna Love You”
Jelly Roll — “Liar”
Lainey Wilson — “4x4xU”
Megan Moroney — “Am I Okay?”
Morgan Wallen — “Smile”
Best Album
Bad Bunny — DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS
Kendrick Lamar — GNX
Lady Gaga — Mayhem
Morgan Wallen — I’m the Problem
Sabrina Carpenter — Short n’ Sweet
The Weeknd — Hurry Up Tomorrow
Best Long Form Video
Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
Bad Bunny — “DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS (Short Film)”
Damiano David — “FUNNY little STORIES”
Mac Miller — “Balloonerism”
Miley Cyrus — “Something Beautiful”
The Weeknd — “Hurry Up Tomorrow”
Video for Good
Burna Boy — “Higher”
Charli xcx — “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
Doechii — “Anxiety”
Eminem ft. Jelly Roll — “Somebody Save Me”
Selena Gomez, benny blanco — “Younger and Hotter Than Me”
Zach Hood ft. Sasha Alex Sloan — “Sleepwalking”
Best Direction
Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
Charli xcx — “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
Best Art Direction
Charli xcx — “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
Lorde — “Man of the Year”
Miley Cyrus — “End of the World”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Best Cinematography
Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
Ed Sheeran — “Sapphire”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
Miley Cyrus — “Easy Lover”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
Best Editing
Charli xcx — “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
Ed Sheeran — “Sapphire”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
Tate McRae — “Just Keep Watching (from F1: The Movie)”
Best Choreography
Doechii — “Anxiety”
FKA twigs — “Eusexua”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
Tyla — “PUSH 2 START”
Zara Larsson — “Pretty Ugly”
Best Visual Effects
Ariana Grande — “brighter days ahead”
Tate McRae — “Just Keep Watching (from F1: The Movie)”
Lady Gaga — “Abracadabra”
ROSÉ & Bruno Mars — “APT.”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Manchild”
The Weeknd — “Hurry Up Tomorrow”
