On September 12, 2023, the annual MTV Video Music Awards was held in New Jersey. This year’s host was rapper and singer-songwriter Nicki Minaj. The night started with the opening act Lil Wayne with a tribute to the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, shortly followed by Olivia Rodrigo as she took over the stage for a unique and, to some, confusing act. The 20-year-old pop artist opened with her new hit song “Vampire.” In the middle of the song, an apparent “stage malfunction” occurred, which was later identified as a part of the performance. This glitch in the show frightened many, including Selena Gomez, who had a very startled look as this was happening. Gomez later came out in a comment section on Instagram and stated, “I heard a loud noise and it scared me.” Rodrigo then ended the performance with song “Get Him Back!” Both songs from her performance are from her new, second #1 album, GUTS.
The first award presenters of the night were the iconic 90s band NSYNC, who had a reunion at the show. The award went to Taylor Swift for best pop song. Lance Bass, a member of the band, handed Swift friendship bracelets as she was receiving her award. Swift excitedly shouted, “I had your dolls!”
Swift was nominated for 11 awards and won 9 of them overall for Video of the Year, artist of the Year, Best Pop Song, Song of the Year, Best Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Collaboration, Best Editing, and Best Visual Effects, making her the second artist with the most VMA wins. This was the 33-year-old singer-songwriter’s fourth time winning Artist of the Year. They couldn’t keep the camera off of her as she was seen many times through the night singing and dancing to every song with fellow “Karma” singer Ice Spice.
Many other artists performed that night such as Demi Lovato, Doja Cat, Nicki Minaj, Shakira, Fall Out Boy, Kelsea Ballerini, and more. Each and every one of the performers was unique, whether it was their outfits, songs, or performance overall. Taylor Swift wasn’t the only award winner that night. Many other artists experienced the feeling of success on the VMA stage.
- Best New Artist- Ice Spice
- Best Hip Hop- Nicki Minaj
- Best Editing- Olivia Rodrigo
- Push Performance of the Year- TommorrowxTogether
- The best collaboration- Karol G and Shakira
- Best R&B- SZA
- Best Alternative- Lana Del Rey and John Batiste
- Best Rock- Måneskin
- Best Latin- Anitta
- Best K-pop- Stray Kids
- Best AfroBeats- Rema and Selena Gomez
- Video For Good- Dove Cameron
- Best Choreography- Blackpink
- Best Art Direction- Doja Cat
- Group of the Year- Blackpink
- Song of the Summer- Junk Kook and Latto
- Video Vanugraurd- Shakira
- Global Icon- Diddy
- Album of the Year- Taylor Swift
- Show of the Summer- Taylor Swift
- Best Visual Effects- Taylor Swift
- Best cinematography- Taylor Swift
- Best Direction- Taylor Swift
- Best Pop- Taylor Swift
- Song of the Year- Taylor Swift
- Artist of the Year- Taylor Swift
- Video of the Year- Taylor Swift
