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Celebrity

Madonna named Artist of the Year, Taylor Swift takes Video of the Year as 2026 VMAs unfold in Los Angeles

Madonna took Artist of the Year and Taylor Swift won Video of the Year at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles, with the ceremony still in progress at the time of publication.

By Maya Lindqvist · · 2 min read

The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards aired on Sunday night from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, hosted by Snoop Dogg, with major categories falling as the ceremony played out (People, Entertainment Weekly, Page Six).

Madonna was named Artist of the Year — her first live VMAs performance in 23 years opened the show — and she went on to become the night’s most-awarded artist so far, adding Best Collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter for “Bring Your Love” and Best Dance for “Confessions II – The Film” (USA Today, EW, Page Six, TheWrap, People, JustJared).

Taylor Swift won Video of the Year for “The Fate of Ophelia”, dedicating the award to Dolly Parton, whom she called “the ultimate showgirl” (EW, TheWrap). She also received the inaugural MTV VMA Artist Director Honor, presented by Dakota Johnson, and premiered her new video “Patient Zero” starring Johnson and Colin Farrell (JustJared, EW, TheWrap, People).

LISA won Best Pop for “Dream feat. Kentaro Sakaguchi”, becoming the first Asian solo act to win the category in its 42-year history (TheWrap, USA Today, EW, People). Sienna Spiro took Best New Artist (EW, Page Six, TheWrap), and the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award went to Nirvana (JustJared, EW, TheWrap, People).

Tributes during the night honoured George Michael — performed by Teddy Swims, Sombr and RAYE — and Dolly Parton, performed by Kacey Musgraves (EW, TheWrap).

Note: the ceremony was still in progress at the time of publication; categories including Song of the Year, Album of the Year, Best Hip-Hop, Best R&B and Best K-Pop had not yet been announced. This list will be updated as winners are confirmed.

Sources

  • Entertainment Weekly — 2026 VMAs winners list
  • People — VMAs ceremony coverage
  • TheWrap — Swift’s acceptance speech and “Patient Zero” premiere
  • USA Today — Artist of the Year, Best Collaboration, Best Dance
  • Page Six — Artist of the Year, Best New Artist
  • JustJared — Artist Director Honor, Vanguard Award

More on this topic: all Celebrity stories

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