Lady Gaga Honored as Artist of the Year, Ariana Grande Wins Video of the Year at 2025 VMAs: Full Winners List

Lady Gaga Dominates 2025 MTV VMAs with Multiple Awards

Lady Gaga proved once again why she is a music icon. Fifteen years after her unforgettable meat dress performance at the MTV VMAs, she took home the Artist of the Year award at the 2025 ceremony. Her collaboration with Bruno Mars, "Die With a Smile," won Best Collaboration, and she ended up with four awards in total, making her the standout winner of the night.

Gaga dedicated her Artist of the Year win to her loyal fanbase, the Little Monsters. “The way you move through your life is iconic and rare. It is entirely yours,” she said. “You very much deserve a stage to shine on, and I give you all my applause.”

After the ceremony, she traveled from New York’s UBS Arena to Madison Square Garden for her Mayhem Ball concert. Later that evening, she performed "Abracadabra" and her new track "The Dead Dance" from Wednesday at MSG.

Ariana Grande collected three awards for her song "Brighter Days Ahead," including Video of the Year, Best Pop, and Long-Form Video. She thanked her therapists and the LGBTQ+ community, saying, “I love you.”

Song of the Year went to Bruno Mars and Rosé for their hit "Apt." Mars was not present at the event, but Rosé accepted the award on his behalf and dedicated it to her younger self.

Sabrina Carpenter also earned three awards, including Best Pop Artist and Best Album for Short n’ Sweet. She called herself “the luckiest girl in the world” after the wins.

Firsts and Honors at the VMAs

This year’s VMAs were full of firsts. Ricky Martin received the inaugural Latin Icon Award. Before accepting the trophy, he performed a medley of his hits, including "Livin' la Vida Loca," "Shake Your Bon-Bon," "Vente Pa' Ca," "María," and "La Copa de la Vida."

Busta Rhymes was honored with the first-ever Rock the Bells Visionary Award. He performed tracks like "Gimme Some More," "As I Come Back," "Touch It," and "Pass the Courvoisier Part II," and gave credit to LL Cool J as an inspiration.

Ariana Grande introduced Mariah Carey for the Video Vanguard Award, praising her for providing a soundtrack to people's lives. Carey responded with renditions of "Sugar Sweet," "Fantasy," "Heartbreaker," "Obsessed," "It's Like That," and "We Belong Together." She also added some humor, saying, “I can't believe I'm getting my first VMA tonight. I just have one question: What in the Sam Hell were you waiting for?”

Alex Warren made history as the latest TikTok star to transition into mainstream music. His hit "Ordinary" earned him the Best New Artist award. He later performed "Ordinary" and "Eternity" on stage.

Tate McRae won the Moon Person for "Just Keep Watching" from F1 the Movie, settling the debate over the song of the summer.

Other Notable Winners

Blackpink won Best Group, while Lisa took home Best K-Pop for "Born Again" (featuring Doja Cat and Raye). Katseye won the MTV Push Performance of the Year for "Touch." Sombr won Best Alternative for "Back to Friends," and Megan Moroney took home Best Country for "Am I Okay?"

The event kicked off with performances by Doja Cat and special guest Kenny G. Other performers included Jelly Roll, Sabrina Carpenter, Post Malone, J Balvin, and Tate McRae. Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Yungblud, and Nuno Bettencourt honored late rock legend Ozzy Osbourne.

For the first time ever, the VMAs aired live on CBS, simulcast on MTV, and streamed on Paramount+. This marked a major expansion for the iconic awards show.

A Night of Big Nominations

Gaga entered the night with 12 nominations, followed closely by Bruno Mars with 11 and Kendrick Lamar with 10. The ceremony saw a wide range of winners across various categories.

Full List of 2025 MTV VMAs Winners

VIDEO OF THE YEAR
[winner] Ariana Grande - "Brighter Days Ahead"
Billie Eilish - "Birds of a Feather"
Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars - "Die With a Smile"
Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."
Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"
The Weeknd, Playboy Carti - "Timeless"

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Bad Bunny
Beyoncé
Kendrick Lamar
[winner] Lady Gaga
Morgan Wallen
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd

SONG OF THE YEAR
Alex Warren - "Ordinary"
Billie Eilish - "Birds of a Feather"
Doechii - "Anxiety"
Ed Sheeran - "Sapphire"
Gracie Abrams - "I Love You, I'm Sorry"
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars - "Die With a Smile"
Lorde - "What Was That"
[winner] Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."
Tate McRae - "Sports Car"
The Weeknd, Playboi Carti - "Timeless"

BEST NEW ARTIST
[winner] Alex Warren
Ella Langley
Gigi Perez
Lola Young
Sombr
The María

BEST POP ARTIST
Ariana Grande
Justin Bieber
Lorde
Miley Cyrus
[winner] Sabrina Carpenter
Tate McRae

MTV PUSH PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
August 2024 - Shaboozey - "A Bar Song (Tipsy)"
October 2024 - Mark Ambor - "Belong Together"
November 2024 - Lay Bankz - "Graveyard"
December 2024 - Dasha - "Bye Bye Bye"
[winner] January 2025 - Katseye - "Touch"
February 2025 - Jordan Adetunji - "Kehlani"
March 2025 - Leon Thomas - "Yes It Is"
April 2025 - Livingston - "Shadow"
May 2025 - Damiano David - "Next Summer"
June 2025 - Gigi Perez - "Sailor Song"
July 2025 - Role Model - "Sally, When the Wine Runs Out"

BEST COLLABORATION
Bailey Zimmerman with Luke Combs - "Backup Plan (Stagecoach Official Music Video)"
Kendrick Lamar & SZA - "Luther"
[winner] Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars - "Die With a Smile"
Post Malone featuring Blake Shelton - "Pour Me a Drink"
Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."
Selena Gomez, benny blanco - "Sunset Blvd"

BEST POP
Alex Warren - "Ordinary"
[winner] Ariana Grande - "Brighter Days Ahead"
Ed Sheeran - "Sapphire"
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars - "Die With a Smile"
Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."
Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"

BEST HIP-HOP
[winner] Doechii - "Anxiety"
Eminem featuring Jelly Roll - "Somebody Save Me"
GloRilla featuring Sexyy Red - "Whatchu Kno About Me"
Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
LL Cool J featuring Eminem - "Murdergram Deux"
Travis Scott - "4X4"

BEST R&B
Chris Brown - "Residuals"
Leon Thomas & Freddie Gibbs - "Mutt (Remix)"
[winner] Mariah Carey - "Type Dangerous"
PartyNextDoor - "No Chill"
Summer Walker - "Heart of a Woman"
SZA - "Drive"
The Weeknd, Playboi Carti - "Timeless"

BEST ALTERNATIVE
Gigi Perez - "Sailor Song"
Imagine Dragons - "Wake Up"
Lola Young - "Messy"
MGK & Jelly Roll - "Lonely Road"
[winner] Sombr - "Back to Friends"
The Marías - "Back to Me"

BEST ROCK
[winner] Coldplay - "All My Love"
Evanescence - "Afterlife (From the Netflix Series Devil May Cry)"
Green Day - "One Eyed Bastard"
Lenny Kravitz - "Honey"
Linkin Park - "The Emptiness Machine"
Twenty One Pilots - "The Contract"

BEST LATIN
Bad Bunny - "Baile Inolvidable"
J Balvin - "Rio"
Karol G - "Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido"
Peso Pluma - "La Patrulla "
Rauw Alejandro & Romeo Santos - "Khé?"
[winner] Shakira - "Soltera"

BEST K-POP
Aespa - "Whiplash"
Jennie - "Like Jennie"
Jimin - "Who"
Jisoo - "Earthquake"
[winner] Lisa featuring Doja Cat & Raye - "Born Again"
Stray Kids - "Chk Chk Boom"
Rosé - "Toxic Till the End"

BEST AFROBEATS
Asake & Travis Scott - "Active"
Burna Boy featuring Travis Scott - "TaTaTa"
Moliy, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea - "Shake It to the Max (FLY) (Remix)"
Rema - "Baby (Is It a Crime)"
Tems featuring Asake - "Get It Right"
[winner] Tyla - "Push 2 Start"
Wizkid featuring Brent Faiyaz - "Piece of My Heart"

BEST COUNTRY
Chris Stapleton - "Think I'm in Love with You"
Cody Johnson with Carrie Underwood - "I'm Gonna Love You"
Jelly Roll - "Liar"
Lainey Wilson - "4x4xU"
[winner] Megan Moroney - "Am I Okay?"
Morgan Wallen - "Smile"

BEST ALBUM
Bad Bunny - Debí Tirar Más Fotos
Kendrick Lamar - GNX
Lady Gaga - Mayhem
Morgan Wallen - I'm the Problem
[winner] Sabrina Carpenter - Short n’ Sweet
The Weeknd - Hurry Up Tomorrow

BEST LONG-FORM VIDEO
[winner] Ariana Grande - "Brighter Days Ahead"
Bad Bunny - "Debí Tirar Más Fotos (Short Film)"
Damiano David - "Funny Little Stories"
Mac Miller - "Balloonerism"
Miley Cyrus - "Something Beautiful"
The Weeknd - "Hurry Up Tomorrow"

VIDEO FOR GOOD
Burna Boy - "Higher"
[winner] Charli xcx - "Guess featuring Billie Eilish"
Doechii - "Anxiety"
Eminem featuring Jelly Roll - "Somebody Save Me"
Selena Gomez, Benny Blanco - "Younger and Hotter Than Me"
Zach Hood featuring Sasha Alex Sloan - "Sleepwalking"

BEST DIRECTION
Ariana Grande - "Brighter Days Ahead"
Charli xcx - "Guess featuring Billie Eilish"
Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
[winner] Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."
Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"

BEST ART DIRECTION
Charli xcx - "Guess featuring Billie Eilish"
Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
[winner] Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
Lorde - "Man of the Year"
Miley Cyrus - "End of the World"
Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Ariana Grande - "Brighter Days Ahead"
Ed Sheeran - "Sapphire"
[winner] Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
Miley Cyrus - "Easy Lover"
Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"

BEST EDITING
Charli xcx - "Guess featuring Billie Eilish"
Ed Sheeran - "Sapphire"
Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"
[winner] Tate McRae - "Just Keep Watching (from F1 the Movie)"

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
[winner] Doechii - "Anxiety"
FKA twigs - "Eusexua"
Kendrick Lamar - "Not Like Us"
Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
Tyla - "Push 2 Start"
Zara Larsson - "Pretty Ugly"

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Ariana Grande - "Brighter Days Ahead"
Lady Gaga - "Abracadabra"
Rosé & Bruno Mars - "Apt."
[winner] Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"
Tate McRae - "Just Keep Watching (from F1 the Movie)"
The Weeknd - "Hurry Up Tomorrow"

SOCIAL CATEGORIES
Best Group
Aespa
All Time Low
Backstreet Boys
[winner] Blackpink
Coldplay
Evanescence
Fuerza Regida
Grupo Frontera
Imagine Dragons
Jonas Brothers
Katseye
My Chemical Romance
Seventeen
Stray Kids
The Marías
Twenty One Pilots

Song of the Summer
Addison Rae - "Headphones On"
Alex Warren - "Ordinary"
Benson Boone - "Mystical Magical"
BigXthaPlug fearuting Bailey Zimmerman - "All the Way"
Chappell Roan - "The Subway"
Demi Lovato - "Fast"
Doja Cat - "Jealous Type"
Huntr/X: Ejae, Audrey Nuna & Rei Ami - "Golden"
Jessie Murph - "Blue Strips"
Justin Bieber - "Daisies"
Moliy, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea - "Shake It to the Max (Fly) (Remix)"
Morgan Wallen featuring Tate McRae - "What I Want"
Ravyn Lenae featuring Rex Orange County - "Love Me Not"
Sabrina Carpenter - "Manchild"
Sombr - "12 to 12"
[winner] Tate McRae - "Just Keep Watching (From F1 the Movie)"