Taylor Swift follows with nine nominations, while Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, Bruno Mars, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson rank among the year’s leading contenders.
Madonna enters the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards at the front of the field, earning 11 nominations and extending a four-decade relationship with an awards show that helped define the modern music-video era. Taylor Swift follows with nine nominations as the VMAs prepare to broadcast live from Los Angeles on Sunday, September 27.
Madonna’s “Confessions II – The Film” is nominated for Video of the Year and appears throughout the ceremony’s creative categories, including Best Direction, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Choreography and Best Visual Effects.
She is also nominated for Artist of the Year, while “Bring Your Love,” her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter, competes for Song of the Year and Best Collaboration. With 19 competitive VMA wins already to her name, Madonna has the opportunity to add another chapter to one of the ceremony’s defining legacies.
Swift’s nine nominations are anchored by “The Fate of Ophelia,” which is up for Video of the Year, Best Pop, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Choreography and Best Visual Effects. She is also nominated for Artist of the Year, while “Opalite” is recognized for Best Direction. Swift currently holds 30 Moon Person trophies.
The Leading Nominees
- Madonna – 11 nominations
- Taylor Swift – 9 nominations
- Ariana Grande – 7 nominations
- Sabrina Carpenter – 7 nominations
- Bruno Mars – 5 nominations
- PinkPantheress – 5 nominations
- Zara Larsson – 5 nominations
- LISA – 4 nominations
- Shakira – 3 nominations
- Tate McRae – 3 nominations
Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter each receive seven nominations. Bruno Mars, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson follow with five apiece, while LISA earns four. Shakira and Tate McRae each collect three nominations, reflecting a slate that moves across pop, R&B, Latin music, K-pop, hip-hop, country, dance and alternative music.
The Video of the Year race brings together Ariana Grande’s “hate that i made you love me,” Bruno Mars’ “I Just Might,” GENER8ION’s “STORM starring Yung Lean,” Madonna’s “Confessions II – The Film,” Sabrina Carpenter’s “Tears” and Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia.”
Artist of the Year features Grande, Mars, Madonna, Morgan Wallen, Carpenter and Swift.
A New Class Enters the VMA Conversation
This year’s nominations also create space for a new class of contenders. CORTIS, Don Toliver, Kali Uchis, Noah Kahan, Olivia Dean, Sienna Spiro and Yung Lean are among 26 first-time nominees.
GENER8ION and Yung Lean earn three nominations each, while CORTIS and Stella Lefty receive two apiece.
Best Dance returns to the VMAs for the first time in seven years. The category includes Bebe Rexha and Faithless, Harry Styles, Lady Gaga and Doechii, Madonna, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson, Slayyyter, and Tate McRae. Its return places performance, movement and club culture back within the show’s main competitive lineup.
When and Where to Watch
Hosted by Snoop Dogg, the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards will air live from Los Angeles on Sunday, September 27, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. ET and 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. PT on CBS.
The ceremony will be simulcast on MTV and streamed on Paramount+ in the United States, with global availability on Paramount+ and MTV the following day. Paramount+ Premium subscribers can watch live through their local CBS affiliate feed, while Essential subscribers will have on-demand access the next day.
Fan voting is open in 13 categories at vote.mtv.com through September 25 at 6:00 p.m. ET. Voting for Best New Artist remains open into the show. A daily Power Hour, running from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. ET through September 24, gives fans double votes per category.
The nominations position the 2026 VMAs as both a celebration of established cultural influence and a snapshot of where music’s visual language is moving next. With Madonna and Swift leading a field that spans generations, markets and genres, the Los Angeles ceremony is set to place image, performance and global fandom at the center of the conversation.
