The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards brought some of the biggest names in music together in Los Angeles on September 27. Hosted by Snoop Dogg, the ceremony featured major wins for Taylor Swift, Madonna, LISA, BTS, Sabrina Carpenter, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars and several other artists.
Taylor Swift took home Video of the Year for “The Fate of Ophelia.” She also won the New Artist Director Honors for her work as a music video director. Madonna had a major night as well, winning Artist of the Year and several other awards connected to Confessions II – The Film.
LISA won Best Pop for “Dream” featuring Kentaro Sakaguchi, while BTS won both Song of the Year for “Swim” and Best K-Pop for the same song. Sienna Spiro took home Best New Artist.
The ceremony also included a special Video Vanguard Award for Nirvana. Taylor Swift’s new Artist Director Honors recognized her work behind the camera and added another major milestone to her VMA history.
Here is the complete VMAs 2026 winners list.
Taylor Swift Wins Video of the Year
Taylor Swift won the night’s Video of the Year award for “The Fate of Ophelia.”
The video competed against major releases from Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, GENER8ION, Madonna and Sabrina Carpenter.
Swift also won the inaugural MTV VMA Artist Director Honors. The new award recognizes artists for their work as music video directors and their contribution to visual storytelling.
During her Video of the Year speech, Swift dedicated the award to Dolly Parton and spoke about Parton’s songwriting and career.
Swift also premiered the video for her new song “Patient Zero,” featuring Colin Farrell and Dakota Johnson, during the ceremony.
Madonna Has a Major Night at the 2026 VMAs
Madonna entered the ceremony with the most nominations and finished the night with several trophies.
She won Artist of the Year and also received awards for her work on Confessions II – The Film. Her wins included:
- Artist of the Year
- Best Collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter
- Best Dance
- Best Cinematography
- Best Choreography
- Best Long-Form Video
- Best Album
Her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter, “Bring Your Love,” won Best Collaboration.
Madonna’s Confessions II – The Film also won Best Dance, Best Cinematography, Best Choreography and Best Long-Form Video. Her album Confessions II won Best Album.
Madonna also opened the 2026 VMAs. The performance marked her first VMA performance in 23 years.
LISA Wins Best Pop
BLACKPINK member LISA won Best Pop for “Dream” featuring Kentaro Sakaguchi.
The category included songs from Ariana Grande, Charli xcx, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, Tate McRae and Taylor Swift.
The win adds another VMA milestone for LISA and highlights the continued presence of K-pop artists in major MTV categories.
BTS Wins Song of the Year and Best K-Pop
BTS had a strong night at the 2026 VMAs.
The group won Song of the Year for “Swim.”
The song also won Best K-Pop, giving BTS two awards from the same release. BTS also won Best Group in the social category.
The Best K-Pop category included BLACKPINK, CORTIS, KATSEYE, LE SSERAFIM featuring j-hope and LISA.
Sienna Spiro Wins Best New Artist
British singer Sienna Spiro won Best New Artist.
She competed against Bella Kay, CORTIS, Magnus Ferrell, Malcolm Todd, Myles Smith and Stella Lefty.
The category included several artists who received their first VMA nominations in 2026.
Full VMAs 2026 Winners List
Here is the complete list of winners from the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards.
Video of the Year
Winner: Taylor Swift – “The Fate of Ophelia”
Artist of the Year
Winner: Madonna
Song of the Year
Winner: BTS – “Swim”
Best New Artist
Winner: Sienna Spiro
Best Collaboration
Winner: Madonna & Sabrina Carpenter – “Bring Your Love”
Best Pop
Winner: LISA – “Dream” feat. Kentaro Sakaguchi
Best Hip-Hop
Winner: Cardi B feat. Kehlani – “Safe”
Best R&B
Winner: Bruno Mars – “I Just Might”
Best Alternative
Winner: Olivia Rodrigo – “the cure”
Best Dance
Winner: Madonna – “Confessions II – The Film”
Best Latin
Winner: Bad Bunny – “NUEVAYoL”
Best K-Pop
Winner: BTS – “SWIM”
Best Country
Winner: Ella Langley – “Choosin’ Texas”
Best Direction
Winner: Taylor Swift – “Opalite”
Best Art Direction
Winner: PinkPantheress & Zara Larsson – “Stateside”
Best Cinematography
Winner: Madonna – “Confessions II – The Film”
Best Editing
Winner: Sabrina Carpenter – “House Tour”
Best Choreography
Winner: Madonna – “Confessions II – The Film”
Best Visual Effects
Winner: Ariana Grande – “hate that i made you love me”
The professional categories recognize the creative teams behind music videos, including direction, art direction, cinematography, editing, choreography and visual effects.
Social Category Winners
The 2026 VMAs also included fan-voted social categories.
Best Group
Winner: BTS
Best Long-Form Video
Winner: Madonna – “Confessions II – The Film”
Best Album
Winner: Madonna – Confessions II
Song of Summer
Winner: Ariana Grande – “hate that i made you love me”
The Best Album category included releases from Drake, Madonna, Olivia Dean, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter and Taylor Swift. The Song of Summer category featured 15 nominees, including songs from Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, KATSEYE, Sabrina Carpenter, Tame Impala, and JENNIE, and others.
Special VMAs Honors
Two major special honors were also part of the 2026 ceremony.
Artist Director Honors
Winner: Taylor Swift
This was the first-ever MTV VMA Artist Director Honors award. It recognizes an artist’s work in music video direction and visual storytelling.
Video Vanguard Award
Winner: Nirvana
Nirvana received the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, one of the most recognized honors at the VMAs.
Madonna’s Confessions II Dominates the Professional Categories
One of the biggest themes of the 2026 VMAs was the number of awards connected to Madonna’s Confessions II – The Film.
The project won Best Dance, Best Cinematography, Best Choreography and Best Long-Form Video.
Madonna also won Best Album for Confessions II and Artist of the Year. Her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter won Best Collaboration.
This gave Madonna a total of seven competitive awards during the 2026 ceremony.
Taylor Swift Adds More VMA History
Taylor Swift’s 2026 VMA night also had a strong focus on music video direction.
Her Video of the Year win came for “The Fate of Ophelia,” while Best Direction went to “Opalite.”
She also received the first Artist Director Honors award.
Before the ceremony, the Associated Press reported that the new honor would make Swift the most-awarded artist in VMA history, moving her past Beyoncé’s previous total.
The recognition also reflects Swift’s work beyond performing. She has directed several of her own music videos and short-form projects.
A Strong Night for K-Pop
K-pop had a noticeable presence throughout the 2026 VMAs.
BTS won Song of the Year, Best K-Pop and Best Group.
LISA won Best Pop for “Dream.”
Other K-pop acts nominated during the ceremony included BLACKPINK, CORTIS, KATSEYE and LE SSERAFIM.
The results show that K-pop releases competed across both genre-specific and broader VMA categories.
Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter Also Take Home Awards
Ariana Grande won Best Visual Effects for “hate that i made you love me.”
She also appeared in several major categories, including Video of the Year, Artist of the Year, Best Pop, Best Direction and Best Cinematography.
Sabrina Carpenter won Best Editing for “House Tour.”
She also shared the Best Collaboration award with Madonna for “Bring Your Love.”
These wins added to an awards night that featured artists from pop, hip-hop, R&B, country, Latin and K-pop.
VMAs 2026: Important Moments From the Ceremony
The 2026 ceremony featured several performances and tributes.
Madonna opened the show, marking her return to the VMAs stage after more than two decades.
Kacey Musgraves led a tribute to Dolly Parton.
Snoop, RAYE and Teddy Swims took part in a tribute to George Michael.
LISA, RAYE, Sienna Spiro, Shaboozey, Gunna, GENER8ION and Yung Lean were also part of the performance lineup.
The event was hosted by Snoop Dogg and took place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
What Made the 2026 VMAs Different?
The 2026 VMAs introduced several changes and new elements.
The Artist Director Honors gave additional attention to artists who work behind the camera.
The Best Dance category also returned after a seven-year break. Paramount’s official announcement listed the category among the returning elements of this year’s ceremony.
The VMAs also continued to use fan voting for several major categories, while professional categories recognized creative work behind music videos.
This created a mix of awards based on fan votes and awards decided through the professional VMA process.
The 2026 VMAs Bring Together Different Generations of Music
The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards connected several generations of music artists.
Madonna returned to the VMA stage and collected multiple awards. Taylor Swift added new honors for both performance and directing. BTS and LISA represented K-pop in major categories, while newer artists such as Sienna Spiro received their first major VMA recognition.
The full winners list also shows how broad the VMAs have become. Pop, hip-hop, R&B, Latin, K-pop, country, alternative music, and music-video production all received dedicated categories.
With Taylor Swift taking Video of the Year, LISA winning Best Pop, BTS collecting major awards, and Madonna earning multiple trophies, the 2026 VMAs became another major night for music and music-video culture.
