Madonna leads the field for the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards with 11 nominations, including artist of the year and video of the year. Taylor Swift received the second-highest total with nine nominations, followed by Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter with seven each.
The nominations were announced ahead of the ceremony scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The event will be broadcast live on CBS and MTV, and will be available for streaming on Paramount+. Fan voting for 13 categories opened online Tuesday and is set to conclude on Sept. 25.
Madonna’s nominations include video, artist, and song of the year, as well as several technical categories such as direction and choreography. If she wins all 11 awards, she would reach a total of 30 VMA wins, tying the current record held by Beyoncé and Taylor Swift. Swift, who currently has 30 wins, would become the most-awarded artist in the show's history if she wins any of her nine nominated categories.
The 2026 awards feature 26 first-time nominees, including K-pop group CORTIS and singer Stella Lefty. The "best dance" category has also returned to the program for the first time in seven years. Other artists with multiple nominations include Bruno Mars, PinkPantheress, and Zara Larsson, who each received five nods.
Viewers and fans across the United States will notice changes in how they can access the ceremony and participate in the results. Online voting is open to the public until Sept. 25 at 6 p.m. Eastern, allowing fans to determine winners in 13 specific categories, including Best New Artist, which remains open through the live broadcast. The two-hour event will be accessible to households with basic cable via MTV or broadcast television via CBS, starting at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on Sept. 27. Subscribers to Paramount+ will also be able to stream the event live or on-demand the following day.
The broadcast marks a continuation of music programming for CBS, which currently airs the Tony Awards and American Music Awards. While CBS has aired the Grammys since 1973, that event is scheduled to move to ABC in 2027. This year's ceremony at the Peacock Theater will also serve as a platform for 26 new artists receiving their first VMA recognition, potentially impacting their commercial visibility and market reach within the music industry. Following the conclusion of fan voting on Sept. 25, the winners will be announced during the live broadcast on Sept. 27.