Daijiworld Media Network – Los Angeles
Los Angeles, Aug 19: Madonna has emerged as the leading nominee for the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, securing 11 nominations across major categories.
Madonna is in contention for Artist of the Year, while Confessions II - The Film has earned a Video of the Year nomination. Her collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter, Bring Your Love, is also nominated for Song of the Year.
Taylor Swift follows closely with nine nominations. Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter have seven nominations each, while Bruno Mars, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson have five apiece. Blackpink's Lisa has received four nominations, while Shakira and Tate McRae are nominated in three categories each.
Madonna, Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, Morgan Wallen and Sabrina Carpenter will compete for Artist of the Year.
Swift has also been nominated for Video of the Year with The Fate of Ophelia. Other nominees in the category include Grande's Hate That I Made You Love Me, Mars' I Just Might, Gener8ion's Storm featuring Young Lean and Carpenter's Tears.
The Song of the Year category features a mix of established stars and emerging artists. Nominees include BTS for Swim, Ella Langley for Choosin' Texas, Huntr/x for Golden, Madonna and Carpenter for Bring Your Love, Olivia Dean for Man I Need, PinkPantheress featuring Zara Larsson for Stateside + Zara Larsson and Raye for Where Is My Husband!.
The Best New Artist category features Bella Kay, Cortis, Magnus Ferrell, Malcolm Todd, Myles Smith, Sienna Spiro and Stella Lefty.
The Best K-pop category includes Blackpink's Jump, BTS' Swim, Cortis' Redred, Katseye's Pinky Up, Le Sserafim's Spaghetti featuring J-Hope of BTS and Lisa's Dream featuring Kentaro Sakaguchi.
The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards are scheduled to take place on September 27 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The ceremony will air at 7:30 pm ET on CBS and MTV and will also stream on Paramount+.
With Madonna leading the nominations and Swift close behind, the 2026 VMAs are set to bring together some of the biggest names in contemporary music.