VMAs 2026 best dressed! Taylor Swift dazzles in shimmering gown as she leads the red carpet fashion parade alongside leggy Paris Hilton and scantily clad JoJo
Music’s biggest stars took over the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday night for the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).
The VMAs red carpet is legendary for its daring fashion, and this year was no exception, with A-listers like Taylor Swift, Paris Hilton and JoJo stepping out in head-turning ensembles.
Swift, 36, commanded the red carpet in a figure-hugging Tamara Ralph Couture ensemble as she arrived at the event without her NFL star husband Travis Kelce, 36, who had a Chiefs game against the Dolphins in Miami earlier in the day.
Her glamorous look boasted a halter neck black top with a showstopping sheer back, seamlessly paired with a sparkly silver skirt.
On top of sweeping nine nominations, Swift is set to collect the inaugural Artist Director Honors during the ceremony.
Her appearance follows Friday’s release of The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, the deluxe edition of her 12th studio album.
Taylor Swift, 36, commanded the red carpet at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday
She turned heads in a figure-hugging Tamara Ralph Couture ensemble
Paris Hilton, 45, and JoJo, 35, also joined the fashion parade
Hilton, 45, shimmered in a silver mini dress by The Blonds as she posed alongside sister Nicky Hilton, 42.
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JoJo, 35, kicked off the red carpet in a very revealing look by Nué, showing off her toned midriff in a tiny bra top and a sweeping long skirt. She accessorized the daring outfit with chunky silver jewelry and styled her long locks into soft waves.
Meanwhile, Beyonce’s protégée Chloe Bailey, 28, had all eyes on her in a bedazzled silver gown.
Oscar nominee Teyana Taylor, 35, looked nothing short of sensational in a sultry, plunging black lace gown by Zuhair Murad Couture.
Elsewhere on the red carpet Normani sent temperatures soaring in a jaw-dropping dark metallic Robert Wun Couture gown, complete with an intricate floral embellishment.
Charli XCX showed off her impressive abs in a tiny black top and matching long skirt by Saint Laurent.
Other early red carpet arrivals included model Haley Kalil, who was a vision in a shimmering silver Marc Bouwer gown that highlighted her toned arms.
British singer-songwriter Raye 28, sparkled in a plunging Georges Hobeika Couture gown.
Bebe Rexha stepped out in a daring black lace mini dress and lace up high heel boots.
Love Island USA beauty Olandria had all eyes on her in a lace-up brown leather gown.
Swift arrived at the event without her NFL star husband Travis Kelce, 36, who had a Chiefs game against the Dolphins in Miami earlier in the day
Her glamorous look boasted a halter neck black top with a showstopping sheer back
It was seamlessly paired with a sparkly silver skirt
On top of sweeping nine nominations, Swift is set to collect the inaugural Artist Director Honors during the ceremony
Her appearance follows Friday’s release of The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, the deluxe edition of her 12th studio album
She flashed her massive engagement ring
The singer accessorized with flowing earrings
The outfit featured a lace-up back
Hilton, who wore a shimmering mini dress by The Blonds, posed alongside sister Nicky, who wore a matching sparkling look
Nicky wore delicate glam for the occasion
JoJo flashed the flesh in a Nué look at the star-studded event
Oscar nominee Teyana Taylor, 35, looked nothing short of sensational in a sultry, plunging black lace gown by Zuhair Murad Couture
Her sheer gown featured feather details
Beyonce’s protégée Chloe Bailey, 28, had all eyes on her in a bedazzled silver gown
Normani sent temperatures soaring in a jaw-dropping dark metallic Robert Wun Couture gown, complete with an intricate floral embellishment
Charli XCX showed off her impressive abs in a tiny black top and matching long skirt by Saint Laurent
British singer-songwriter Raye 28, sparkled in a plunging Georges Hobeika Couture gown
Model Haley Kalil was a vision in a shimmering silver Marc Bouwer gown that highlighted her toned arms
Love Island USA beauty Olandria had all eyes on her in a lace-up brown leather gown
Bebe Rexha stepped out in a daring black lace mini dress by the brand Dreaming Eli, and lace up high heel boots
Yellowstone bombshell Hassie Harrison looked chic in a floor-length black dress
She was joined by co-star Brandon Sklenar
Reality TV star Chanel West Coast paired a cheetah lace dress with a cowboy hat
She was joined by fiancé Dom Fenison
Summer House star Ciara Miller sizzled in an Aidan Euan look, featuring a brown bra and lather lace-up pants
She was joined by Dancing with the Stars partner Brandon Armstrong
Baby Spice Emma Bunton, 50, wore a sleek black dress by Annie’s Ibiza, boosting her frame with towering heels
Blu DeTiger opted for a white mini dress and metallic heels
Dracula: A Love Tale star Zoe Bleu Arquette was joined by Swedish rapper partner Yung Lean
Model Madisin Rian brought a serious dose of high fashion to the event in a dramatic cow-print ensemble complete with a matching wide-brim hat
Keltie Knight was among the early arrivals and rocked a cheetah print mini dress with over-the-knee boots
Juliet Schroder showed off her legs in a silver mini dress. Eva Gutowski opted for a gothic corset ensemble
Alyssa Smith opted for a pop of color in a bright green gown and matching heels
Influencer Sofia Santino wowed in an iridescent dress and mermaid waves
Allison Moses was a vision in a deep purple gown with side cut-outs
Brittany Carel-Breslauer wore a delicate lilac dress. Lauren-Ashley Beck arrived in a fun multi-color look
Stella Quaresma, Jorja Douglas and Renee Downer of FLO matched in low-cut beige dresses
British singer-songwriter PinkPantheress brought whimsy to the event in a frilly romantic red dress
Ordinary hitmaker Alex Warren was joined by glamorous wife Kouvr Annon for the occasion
Mr. Irrelevant co-stars Isabel May and David Corenswet made a dynamic duo at the event
Tori Deal sizzles in a busty gown, while Off Campus star Ella Bright brought gothic glamour to the red carpet, oozing siren energy in a sultry black corset dress
Baby Spice Emma Bunton, 50, wore a sleek black dress by Annie’s Ibiza, boosting her frame with towering heels.
Summer House star Ciara Miller sizzled in an Aidan Euan look, featuring a brown bra and lather lace-up pants.
Dracula: A Love Tale star Zoe Bleu Arquette was joined by Swedish rapper partner Yung Lean.
Country star Shaboozey rocked a black leather Chrome Hearts look.
Model Madisin Rian brought a serious dose of high fashion to the event in a dramatic cow-print ensemble complete with a matching wide-brim hat.
Keltie Knight rocked a cheetah print mini dress with over-the-knee studded boots.
Reality TV star Chanel West Coast paired a cheetah lace dress with a cowboy hat.
Rock royalty Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear of Nirvana reunited on the red carpet. Grohl’s wife Jordyn Blum made a rare appearance at the event. The couple’s marriage was rocked after he confirmed he had fathered a baby with another woman in September 2024.
Meanwhile, Alyssa Smith opted for a pop of color in a bright green gown and matching heels.
Off Campus star Ella Bright brought gothic glamour to the red carpet, oozing siren energy in a sultry black corset dress.
Juliet Schroder showed off her legs in a silver mini dress while Eva Gutowski stunned in a gothic corset ensemble.
Country star Shaboozey rocked a black leather Chrome Hearts look
Harry Jowsey and Magnus Paulin Ferrell showed off two completely different takes on menswear at the event
Rock royalty Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic and Pat Smear of Nirvana reunited on the red carpet
Grohl’s wife Jordyn Blum made a rare appearance at the event. The couple’s marriage was rocked after he confirmed he had fathered a baby with another woman in September 2024
Rapper Kevin Gates looked dapper in a white and black tuxedo
Rappers Chuck D and Flavor Flav had a blast on the red carpet
Teddy Swims showed off his effortless style in a Balenciaga shirt and Giorgio Armani pants
Music producer Andrew Watt rocked a Lou Reed t-shirt
Inasmuch as Beyonce has no nominations this year, Swift will become the sole reigning record-holder.
The MTV VMA Artist Director Honors celebrates a sustained and influential body of work from artists who have pushed creative boundaries and developed a clear directorial voice.
Swift has utilized music videos as an extension of her songwriting as she has directed the visuals for her tracks: The Fate of Ophelia, Opalite, The Man, cardigan, willow, All Too Well: The Short Film, Anti-Hero, Bejeweled, Fortnight (feat. Post Malone), I Can See You (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault), Karma (feat. Ice Spice) and Lavender Haze.
No doubt diehard Swifties will be watching the event with plenty of scrutiny as she released deluxe album The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore along with new single Patient Zero on Friday.
Meanwhile, nominees were unveiled last month and it was Madonna who emerged as the artist with the most nods.
Madonna, 68, is in competition for a staggering 11 prizes, narrowly beating out Swift, who has nods in nine categories.
They will be vying against each other for the evening’s top honor, video of the year, with Swift up for The Fate of Ophelia and Madonna for Confessions II (The Film).
Rounding out the category are the music videos for Hate That I Made You Love Me by Ariana Grande, Tears by Sabrina Carpenter, I Just Might by Bruno Mars and Storm by GENER8ION (starring Yung Lean).
Members of US boy band JYT were also in attendance
A giant statue of the coveted Moon Person trophy towered over the arrivals on the red carpet
Madonna famously performed at the first-ever VMAs in 1984, bursting from a gigantic wedding cake while dressed in a bridal gown for a rendition of Like a Virgin.
She has emerged as a reliable engine of memorable moments at the extravaganza, where she ignited a fan frenzy in 2003 by kissing Britney Spears on the lips.
Over the course of her more than four-decade career, Madonna has earned a total of 19 VMAs, meaning that in order to equal Swift and Beyonce’s current record she will have to triumph in every category in which she is nominated this year.
Confessions II (The Film) is in the running to win best direction, best cinematography, best visual effects, best editing, best choreography, best art direction and dance video of the year.
Trailing Madonna and Swift, Grande and Carpenter are tied for third place with seven nominations apiece, while Mars, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson each have five.
The artist of the year category is a face-off between Madonna, Swift, Grande, Carpenter, Mars and country music heartthrob Morgan Wallen.
Madonna and Carpenter have landed a joint song of the year nomination for their duo Bring Your Love, the lead single of the former’s new album Confessions II.
Their rivals are Ella Langley for Choosin’ Texas, BTS for Swim, Raye for Where Is My Husband, Olivia Dean for Man I Need and HUNTR/X for their Oscar-winning number Golden from the streaming sensation KPop Demon Hunters.
No doubt the most anticipated moment of the night will be when Taylor Swift receives inaugural Artist Director Honors (Above, at the 2024 MTV VMAs in New York in September 2024)
Madonna, 68, is in competition for a staggering 11 prizes, narrowly beating out Swift, who has nods in nine categories (Above in New York in June)
Trailing Madonna and Swift, Ariana Grande (pictured in January) and Sabrina Carpenter are tied for third place with seven nominations apiece
Carpenter is pictured in her music video for Tears, which is up for video of the year against offerings by Madonna, Swift, Grande, Bruno Mars and GENER8ION (starring Yung Lean)
Madonna’s Confessions II (The Film) is up for dance video of the year, against such competition as Aperture by Harry Styles, Runway by Lady Gaga and Doechii and New Religion by Bebe Rexha and Faithless.
The other nominees in that category are Dance… by Slayyyter, Stateside by PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson and Nobody’s Girl by Tate McRae.
Madonna and Carpenter could also win best collaboration, for which they would have to beat out Clipse, Kendrick Lamar, Pusha T and Malice for Chains Whips as well as Shakira and Burna Boy for Dai Dai.
Also in that category are Teyana Taylor and Lucky Daye’s Hard Part, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson’s Stateside and French Montana and Max B’s Ever Since U Left Me.
Best pop video has emerged as a contest between Hate That I Made You Love Me, The Fate of Ophelia and Nobody’s Girl, as well as Dream by the Blackpink breakout Lisa, SS26 by Charli XCX, Drop Dead by Olivia Rodrigo and House Tour by Carpenter.
Madonna’s VMAs coup comes after she earned a burst of critical acclaim and fan adoration for her latest album Confessions II, which was released July 3 and serves as a sequel to her 2005 smash hit Confessions on a Dance Floor.
During the promotions for Confessions II, Madonna went viral for describing John F Kennedy Jr as one of the best lovers she ever had.
Madonna famously performed at the first-ever VMAs in 1984, bursting from a gigantic wedding cake while dressed in a bridal gown for a rendition of Like a Virgin
She has emerged as a reliable engine of memorable moments at the extravaganza, where she ignited a fan frenzy in 2003 by kissing Britney Spears on the lips
Madonna was asked to reveal her ‘best f***,’ and after insisting she would ‘only name dead people,’ whispered: ‘John Kennedy Jr.’
The Queen of Pop indulged in a dalliance with ‘America’s Prince’ in the 1980s, to the purported dismay of his mother Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
Madonna paid her compliments to JFK Jr’s bedroom skills while appearing in a video for the gay hookup app Grindr, with which she had launched a Pride month partnership as an advertisement for Confessions II.
Meanwhile, the fever-pitch publicity around Swift reached a zenith this summer with her Madison Square Garden wedding to NFL star Travis Kelce on July 3.
MTV Video Music Awards 2026 NOMINEES
VIDEO OF THE YEAR
Ariana Grande – Hate That I Made You Love Me
Bruno Mars – I Just Might
Gener8ion (starring Yung Lean – Storm
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
Sabrina Carpenter – Tears
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Ariana Grande
Bruno Mars
Madonna
Morgan Wallen
Sabrina Carpenter
Taylor Swift
Madonna has the most nominations of the year with 11
SONG OF THE YEAR
BTS – Swim
Ella Langley – Choosin’ Texas
Huntr/x – Golden
Madonna and Sabrina Carpenter – Bring Your Love
Olivia Dean – Man I Need
Raye – Where Is My Husband
BEST NEW ARTIST
Bella Kay
Cortis
Magnus Ferrell
Malcolm Todd
Myles Smith
Sienna Spiro
Stella Lefty
BEST COLLABORATION
Clipse, Kendrick Lamar, Pusha T and Malice – Chains Whips
French Montana and Max B – Ever Since U Left Me
Madonna and Sabrina Carpenter
PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson – Stateside
Shakira and Burna Boy – Dai Dai
Teyana Taylor and Lucky Daye – Hard Part
BEST POP
Ariana Grande – Hate That I Made You Love Me
Charli XCX – SS26
Lisa – Dream
Olivia Rodrigo – Drop Dead
Sabrina Carpenter – House Tour
Tate McRae – Nobody’s Girl
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
Taylor Swift is trailing just behind the Queen of Pop with nine nods to her name
BEST HIP-HOP
Cardi B featuring Kehlani – Safe
Don Toliver – E85
Drake – Janice STFU
Megan Thee Stallion – Lover Girl
Travis Scott – Dumbo
Tyler, The Creator – Sugar on My Tongue
BEST RB
Bruno Mars – I Just Might
Chris Brown – It Depends/Obvious
Dave Tems – Raindance
Justin Bieber – Yukon
Kehlani – Folded
Mariah The Scientist and Kali Uchis – Is It a Crime
BEST ALTERNATIVE
Geese – Taxes
MGK and Fred Durst – Fix Ur Face
Noah Kahan – The Great Divide
Olivia Rodrigo – The Cure
Sombr – Homewrecker
Tame Impala – Dracula
Twenty One Pilots – Drag Path
BEST DANCE
Bebe Rexha and Faithless – New Religion
Harry Styles – Aperture
Lady Gaga and Doechii – Runway
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson – Stateside
Slayyyter – Dance…
Tate McRae – Nobody’s Girl
BEST LATIN
Anitta and Shakira – Choka Choka
Bad Bunny – NUEVAYoL
Fuerza Regida – Tu Sancho
Karol G – Papasito
Rosalía – La Perla
Ryan Castro, Kapo and Gangsta – La Villa
Shakira and Burna Boy – Dai Dai
Ariana Grande has landed a total of seven nominations
BEST K-POP
Blackpink – Jump
BTS – Swim
Cortis – Redred
Katseye – Pinky Up
Le Sserafim – Spaghetti
Lisa – Dream
BEST COUNTRY
Ella Langley – Choosin’ Texas
Kacey Musgraves – Dry Spell
Lainey Wilson – Somewhere over Laredo
Luke Combs – Back in the Saddle
Shaboozey – Cowgirl
Stella Lefty – Boston
Tucker Wetmore – Brunette
BEST DIRECTION
Ariana Grande – Hate That I Made You Love me
Bruno Mars – I Just Might
Gener8ion – Storm
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
Sabrina Carpenter – House Tour
Taylor Swift – Opalite
Sabrina Carpenter is tied with Grande, having scored seven nods
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Ariana Grande – Hate That I Made You Love Me
A$AP Rocky – Punk Rocky
Lisa – Dream
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
Shaboozey – Cowgirl
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
BEST EDITING
Ariana Grande – Hate That I Made You Love Me
Bruno Mars – I Just Might
Lisa – Dream
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
Sabrina Carpenter – House Tour
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
Gener8ion – Storm
Harry Styles – Dance No More
Katseye – Pinky Up
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
Tate McRae – Nobody’s Girl
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Ariana Grande – Hate That I Made You Love Me
Jisoo and Zayn – Eyes Closed
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson – Stateside
Raye – Click Clack Symphony
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
BEST ART DIRECTION
Charli XCX – SS26
Lady Gaga and Doechii – Runway
Madonna – Confessions II (The Film)
PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson – Stateside
Sombr – My Body Isn’t Ready
Taylor Swift – The Fate of Ophelia
Swift has a chance this year to break her dead heat with Beyonce, with whom she is tied for most VMAs ever at 30
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