Historic VMA Record Broken
Taylor Swift surpasses Beyoncé's VMA record by receiving the inaugural Artist Director honor.
Anonymous
The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards were held Sept. 27 at Los Angeles’ Peacock Theater, with Snoop Dogg as host. Taylor Swift received the inaugural Artist Director honor, bringing her career total to 31 VMAs and putting her ahead of Beyoncé’s 30; she entered the ceremony with 11 competitive nominations and the chance to extend her records for most VMAs and most Video of the Year wins. Madonna won Artist of the Year, and her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter, “Bring Your Love,” won Best Collaboration. Nirvana received the Video Vanguard Award, and Madonna opened the show with a performance joined by Charli xcx, Sabrina Carpenter and others.
Key Points
1
The 2026 ceremony marked the VMAs’ return to the West Coast for the first time since 2017.
2
Madonna’s show-opening performance also featured Seth Rogen, in addition to Charli xcx and Sabrina Carpenter.
3
Taylor Swift could have won as many as 12 awards at the ceremony, potentially challenging Peter Gabriel’s single-night record of 10 wins, set in 1987.
4
A win for “The Fate of Ophelia” would have given Swift a sixth Video of the Year award; she was also in reach of taking sole possession of the Best Pop wins record, which she shared with Ariana Grande at three each.
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