Madonna leads 2026 MTV VMA nominations with 11 nods
Madonna is the top nominee at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, earning a personal-best 11 nominations — including Video of the Year for her 14-minute short film Confessions II – The Film. It marks the first time the Queen of Pop has led the VMA nominations since 1998, edging out Taylor Swift's nine nods.
Key Takeaways
- Madonna earned 11 nominations — a personal best — making her the leading nominee at the 2026 VMAs.
- Taylor Swift follows with nine nominations; Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter each earned seven.
- Seven of the eight most-nominated artists this year are women.
- The VMAs air live from the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, Sept. 27, on CBS and MTV.
- Fan voting is open at vote.MTV.com through Sept. 25.
Why is Madonna leading the 2026 VMA nominations?
Madonna's dominance stems from her 14-minute cinematic project Confessions II – The Film, which swept across nearly every major category. The film is nominated for Video of the Year, Artist of the Year, Best Dance, Best Direction, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Choreography, and Best Visual Effects, among others. It is only the third time a longer-form piece has contended for Video of the Year, following Taylor Swift's All Too Well: The Short Film (winner, 2022) and Ariana Grande's Brighter Days Ahead (winner, 2025).
Madonna also previously led VMA nominations in 1990 and 1998 — both times with nine nods. Her 11 nominations in 2026 set a new personal record for the iconic artist.
How does Taylor Swift compare this year?
Swift, who holds a record 30 Moon Persons, is the second-highest nominated artist with nine nods. She is up for Video of the Year with The Fate of Ophelia and Artist of the Year — her fifth nomination in that category. Grande (seven nods), Sabrina Carpenter (seven nods), Bruno Mars (five), PinkPantheress (five), and Zara Larsson (five) round out the upper tier of nominees. Notably, for the first time since the Artist of the Year category launched in 2017, no hip-hop artists received a nomination in that field.
When and where are the 2026 MTV VMAs?
The ceremony will broadcast live from the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles on Sunday, September 27, from 7:30–9:30 p.m. ET on CBS, with a simulcast on MTV and streaming on Paramount+. It is the first time Los Angeles has hosted the VMAs since 2017 and the first time the show has been held in the fall. Full nominations were confirmed by Billboard. For more celebrity award season coverage, visit our Celebrity Breaking News hub.