The 2021 VMAs are right around the corner! With new announcements almost daily releasing nominees, performances and special awards, we’re excited to see what’s going to happen at one of music’s biggest nights.
How to Watch the 2021 VMAs
Streaming live from New York City’s Barclay’s Center, the 2021 VMAs are streaming on Sunday, September 12 at 8PM ET/PT.
Can I Vote for the 2021 VMas
Yes! This year’s fan-voted, gender-neutral categories are available here.
Who’s Performing at the 2021 VMAs
- Olivia Rodrigo
- Machine Gun Kelly
- Lil Nas X
- Camila Cabello
- Lorde
- …more to be announced soon!
2021 VMAs Nominees
Video of the Year
- Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – “WAP”
- DJ Khaled ft. Drake – “POPSTAR” (Starring Justin Bieber)
- Doja Cat ft. SZA – “Kiss Me More”
- Ed Sheeran – “Bad Habits”
- Lil Nas X – “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)”
- The Weeknd – “Save Your Tears”
Artist of the Year at the 2021 VMAs
- Ariana Grande
- Doja Cat
- Justin Bieber
- Megan Thee Stallion
- Olivia Rodrigo
- Taylor Swift
2021 VMAs Song of the Year
- 24kGoldn ft. iann dior – “Mood”
- Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic – “Leave The Door Open”
- BTS – “Dynamite”
- Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – “WAP”
- Dua Lipa – “Levitating”
- Olivia Rodrigo – “drivers license”
Best New Artist, Presented by Facebook
- 24kGoldn
- Giveon
- The Kid LAROI
- Olivia Rodrigo
- Polo G
- Saweetie
Push Performance of the Year
- September 2020: Wallows – “Are You Bored Yet?”
- October 2020: Ashnikko – “Daisy”
- November 2020: SAINt JHN – “Gorgeous”
- December 2020: 24kGoldn – “Coco”
- January 2021: JC Stewart – “Break My Heart”
- February 2021: Latto – “Sex Lies”
- March 2021: Madison Beer – “Selfish”
- April 2021: The Kid LAROI – “WITHOUT YOU”
- May 2021: Olivia Rodrigo – “drivers license”
- June 2021: girl in red “Serotonin”
- July 2021: Fousheé – “my slime”
- August 2021: jxdn – “Think About Me”
Best Collaboration
- 24kGoldn ft. iann dior – “Mood”
- Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – “WAP”
- Doja Cat ft. SZA – “Kiss Me More”
- Drake ft. Lil Durk – “Laugh Now Cry Later”
- Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon – “Peaches”
- Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa – “Prisoner”
Best Pop
- Ariana Grande – “positions”
- Billie Eilish – “Therefore I Am”
- BTS – “Butter”
- Harry Styles – “Treat People With Kindness”
- Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon – “Peaches”
- Olivia Rodrigo – “good 4 u”
- Shawn Mendes – “Wonder”
- Taylor Swift – “willow”
Best Hip-Hop
- Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – “WAP”
- Drake ft. Lil Durk – “Laugh Now Cry Later”
- Lil Baby ft. Megan Thee Stallion – “On Me (remix)”
- Moneybagg Yo – “Said Sum”
- Polo G – “RAPSTAR”
- Travis Scott ft. Young Thug & M.I.A. – “FRANCHISE”
Best Rock
- Evanescence – “Use My Voice”
- Foo Fighters – “Shame Shame”
- John Mayer – “Last Train Home”
- The Killers – “My Own Soul’s Warning”
- Kings Of Leon – “The Bandit”
- Lenny Kravitz – “Raise Vibration”
Best Alternative
- Bleachers – “Stop Making This Hurt”
- Glass Animals – “Heat Waves”
- Imagine Dragons – “Follow You”
- Machine Gun Kelly ft. blackbear Records
- twenty one pilots – “Shy Away”
- WILLOW ft. Travis Barker – “t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l”
Best Latin
- Bad Bunny x Jhay Cortez – “Dákiti”
- Billie Eilish & ROSALÍA – “Lo Vas A Olvidar”
- Black Eyed Peas and Shakira – “GIRL LIKE ME”
- Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny, Tainy – “UN DIA (ONE DAY)”
- Karol G – “Bichota”
- Maluma – “Hawái”
Best R&B
- Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid – “BROWN SKIN GIRL”
- Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic – “Leave The Door Open”
- Chris Brown and Young Thug – “Go Crazy”
- Giveon – “HEARTBREAK ANNIVERSARY”
- H.E.R. ft. Chris Brown – “Come Through”
- SZA – “Good Days”
Best K-Pop
- (G)I-DLE – “DUMDi DUMDi”
- BLACKPINK and Selena Gomez – “Ice Cream”
- BTS – “Butter” – BIGHIT MUSIC Monsta X – “Gambler” –
- SEVENTEEN – “Ready to love”
- TWICE – “Alcohol-Free”
Video for Good
- Billie Eilish – “Your Power”
- Demi Lovato – “Dancing With The Devil”
- H.E.R. – “Fight For You”
- Kane Brown – “Worldwide Beautiful”
- Lil Nas X – “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)”
- Pharrell Williams ft. JAY-Z – “Entrepreneur”
Best Direction
- Billie Eilish – “Your Power” – Darkroom / Interscope Records – Directed by: Billie Eilish
- DJ Khaled ft. Drake – “POPSTAR (Starring Justin Bieber)” – OVO / We The Best / Epic Records – Directed by: Julien Christian Lutz aka Director X
- Lil Nas X – “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” – Columbia Records – Directed by: Lil Nas X and Tanu Muino
- Taylor Swift – “willow” – Republic Records – Directed by: Taylor Swift
- Travis Scott ft. Young Thug & M.I.A – “Franchise” – Cactus Jack / Epic Records – Directed by: Travis Scott
- Tyler, The Creator – “LUMBERJACK” – Columbia Records – Directed by: Wolf Haley
Best Cinematography
- Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid – “BROWN SKIN GIRL” – Parkwood Entertainment / Columbia Records – Cinematography by: Benoit Soler, Malik H. Sayeed, MOHAMMAED ATTA AHMED, Santiago Gonzalez, Ryan Helfant
- Billie Eilish – “Therefore I Am” – Darkroom / Interscope Records – Cinematography by: Rob Witt
- Foo Fighters – “Shame Shame” – Roswell Records / RCA Records – Cinematography by: Santiago Gonzalez
- Justin Bieber ft. Chance The Rapper – “Holy” – RBMG/Def Jam – Cinematography by: Elias Talbot
- Lady Gaga – “911” – Interscope Records – Cinematography by: Jeff Cronenweth
- Lorde – “Solar Power” – Republic Records – Cinematography by: Andrew Stroud
Best Art Direction
- Beyoncé, Shatta Wale, Major Lazer – “ALREADY” – Parkwood Entertainment / Columbia Records – Art Direction by: Susan Linns, Gerard Santos
- Ed Sheeran – “Bad Habits” – Atlantic Records – Art Direction by: Alison Dominitz
- Lady Gaga – “911” – Interscope Records – Art Direction by: Tom Foden, Peter Andrus
- Lil Nas X – “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” – Columbia Records – Art Direction by: John Richoux
- Saweetie ft. Doja Cat – “Best Friend” – Warner Records – Art Direction by: Alec Contestabile
- Taylor Swift – “willow” – Republic Records – Art Direction by: Ethan Tobman, Regina Fernandez
Best Visual Effects
- Bella Poarch – “Build A Bitch” – Warner Records – Visual Effects by: Andrew Donoho, Denhov Visuals, Denis Strahhov, Rein Jakobson, Vahur Kuusk, Tatjana Pavlik, Yekaterina Vetrova
- Coldplay – “Higher Power” – Atlantic Records – Visual Effects by: Mathematic
- Doja Cat & The Weeknd – “You Right” – Kemosabe Records / RCA Records – Visual Effects by: La Pac, Anthony Lestremau, Julien Missaire, Petr Shkolniy, Alexi Bailla, Micha Sher, Antoine Hache, Mikros MPC, Nicolas Huget, Guillaume Ho Tsong Fang, Benjamin Lenfant, Stephane Pivron, MPC Bangalore, Chanakya Chander, Raju Ganesh, David Rouxel
- Glass Animals – “Tangerine” – Republic Records – Visual Effects by: Ronan Fourreau
- Lil Nas X – “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” – Columbia Records – Visual Effects by: Mathematic
- P!NK – “All I Know So Far” – RCA Records – Visual Effects by: BUF, VFX Supervisors: Dominique Vidal & Geoffrey Niquet, VFX Producers: Annabelle Zoellin & Camille Gibrat
Best Choreography
- Ariana Grande – “34+35” – Republic Records – Choreography by: Brian Nicholson & Scott Nicholson
- BTS – “Butter” – BIGHIT MUSIC – Choreography by: SON SUNG DEUK With BHM PERFORMANCE DIRECTING TEAM
- Ed Sheeran – “Bad Habits” – Atlantic Records – Choreography by: Natricia Bernard
- Foo Fighters – “Shame Shame” – Roswell Records / RCA Records – Choreography by: Nina McNeely
- Harry Styles – “Treat People With Kindness” – Columbia Records – Choreography by: Paul Roberts
- Marshmello & Halsey – “Be Kind” – Astralwerks / Capitol Records – Choreography by: Dani Vitale
Best Editing
- Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic – “Leave The Door Open” – Aftermath Entertainment/Atlantic Records – Editing by: Troy Charbonnet
- BTS – “Butter” – BIGHIT MUSIC – Editing by: Yong Seok Choi from Lumpens
- Drake – “What’s Next” – OVO/Republic Records – Editing by: Noah Kendal
- Harry Styles – “Treat People With Kindness” – Columbia Records – Editing by: Claudia Wass
- Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon – “Peaches” – Def Jam – Editing by: Mark Mayr, Vinnie Hobbs
- Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa – “Prisoner” – RCA Records
Are there any special awards at the 2021 VMAs?
Want to know more? Get updates from Beyond The Stage here.
Editor In Chief at Beyond The Stage Magazine
One of four founders of Beyond The Stage, Addie Whelan is the Editor In Chief of Beyond The Stage Magazine. With a passion for social media and digital trends, Addie can often be found on Reddit looking for the latest music and baking dark chocolate olive oil cookies.
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