Presenting the Winners of the 2021 MTV VMAs

The MTV Video Music Awards kicked off in NYC on Sunday night, and it’s already a star-studded event. Artists like Lil Nas X, Kacey Musgraves, and more joined together on the red carpet as they got ready to celebrate some of the biggest songs and music videos from this past year. While there are sure to be some showstopping moments – especially since the performers list includes stars like Normani and Justin Bieber – we are looking forward to who will take home a moon person. Olivia Rodrigo kicked off the night by taking home push performance of the year on the red carpet. Get a refresher on the nominees list ahead, and be sure to check back for the official list of winners as they’re announced.

VIDEO OF THE YEAR
“WAP” by Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion
“Popstar” by DJ Khaled ft. Drake
“Kiss Me More” by Doja Cat ft. SZA
“Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran
WINNER: “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” by Lil Nas X
“Save Your Tears” by The Weeknd

ARTIST OF THE YEAR
Ariana Grande
Doja Cat
WINNER: Justin Bieber
Megan Thee Stallion
Olivia Rodrigo
Taylor Swift

GROUP OF THE YEAR
WINNER: BTS
Blackpink
CNCO
Foo Fighters
Jonas Brothers
Maroon 5
Silk Sonic
Twenty One Pilots

SONG OF THE YEAR
“Mood” by 24kGoldn ft. Iann Dior
“Leave the Door Open” by Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic
“Dynamite” by BTS
“WAP” by Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion
“Levitating” by Dua Lipa
WINNER: “Drivers License” by Olivia Rodrigo

BEST NEW ARTIST
24kGoldn
Giveon
The Kid Laroi
WINNER: Olivia Rodrigo
Polo G
Saweetie

PUSH PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
WINNER: May 2021: “Drivers License” by Olivia Rodrigo
September 2020: “Are You Bored Yet?” by Wallows
October 2020: “Daisy” by Ashnikko
November 2020: “Gorgeous” by Saint Jhn
December 2020: “Coco” by 24kGoldn
January 2021: “Break My Heart” by JC Stewart
February 2021: “Sex Lies” by Latto
March 2021: “Selfish” by Madison Beer
April 2021: “Without You” by The Kid Laroi
June 2021: “Serotonin” by girl in red
July 2021: “My Slime” by Fousheé
August 2021: “Think About Me” by Jxdn

BEST COLLABORATION
“Mood” by 24kGoldn ft. Iann Dior
“WAP” by Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion
WINNER: “Kiss Me More” by Doja Cat ft. SZA
“Laugh Now Cry Later” by Drake ft. Lil Durk
“Peaches” by Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon
“Prisoner” by Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa

BEST POP
“Positions” by Ariana Grande
“Therefore I Am” by Billie Eilish
“Butter” by BTS
“Treat People With Kindness” by Harry Styles
WINNER: “Peaches” by Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon
“Good 4 U” by Olivia Rodrigo
“Wonder” by Shawn Mendes
“Willow” by Taylor Swift

BEST HIP-HOP
“WAP” by Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion
“Laugh Now Cry Later” by Drake ft. Lil Durk
“On Me (Remix)” by Lil Baby ft. Megan Thee Stallion
“Said Sum” by Moneybagg Yo
“Rapstar” by Polo G
WINNER: “Franchise” by Travis Scott ft. Young Thug, M.I.A.

BEST ROCK
“Use My Voice” by Evanescence
“Shame Shame” by Foo Fighters
WINNER: “Last Train Home” by John Mayer
“My Own Soul’s Warning” by The Killers
“The Bandit” by Kings of Leon
“Raise Vibration” by Lenny Kravitz

BEST ALTERNATIVE
“Stop Making This Hurt” by Bleachers
“Heat Waves” by Glass Animals
“Follow You” by Imagine Dragons
WINNER: “my ex’s best friend” by Machine Gun Kelly ft. blackbear
“Shy Away” by twenty one pilots
“Transparent Soul” by Willow ft. Travis Barker

BEST LATIN
“Dákiti” by Bad Bunny, Jhay Cortez
WINNER: “Lo Vas a Olvidar” by Billie Eilish, Rosalía
“Girl Like Me” by Black Eyed Peas, Shakira
“Un Dia (One Day)” by J. Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny, Tainy
“Bichota” by Karol G
“Hawái” by Maluma

BEST R&B
“Brown Skin Girl” by Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, Saint Jhn, WizKid
WINNER: “Leave the Door Open” by Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic
“Go Crazy” by Chris Brown, Young Thug
“Heartbreak Anniversary” by Giveon
“Come Through” by H.E.R. ft. Chris Brown
“Good Days” by SZA

BEST K-POP
WINNER: “Butter” by BTS
“Dumdi Dumdi” by (G)I-dle
“Ice Cream” by Blackpink, Selena Gomez
“Ready to love” by Seventeen
“Alcohol-Free” by Twice

VIDEO FOR GOOD
WINNER: “Your Power” by Billie Eilish
“Dancing With the Devil” by Demi Lovato
“Fight For You” by H.E.R.
“Worldwide Beautiful” by Kane Brown
“Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” by Lil Nas X
“Entrepreneur” by Pharrell Williams ft. JAY-Z

BEST DIRECTION
“Your Power” by Billie Eilish, directed by Billie Eilish
“Popstar” by DJ Khaled ft. Drake, directed by Julien Christian Lutz aka Director X
WINNER: “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” by Lil Nas X, directed by Lil Nas X, Tanu Muino
“Willow” by Taylor Swift, directed by Taylor Swift
“Franchise” by Travis Scott ft. Young Thug, M.I.A, directed by Travis Scott
“Lumberjack” by Tyler, the Creator, directed by Wolf Haley

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
WINNER: “Brown Skin Girl” by Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, Saint Jhn, WizKid, cinematography by Benoit Soler, Malik H. Sayeed, Mohammaed Atta Ahmed, Santiago Gonzalez, Ryan Helfant
“Therefore I Am” by Billie Eilish, cinematography by Rob Witt
“Shame Shame” by Foo Fighters, cinematography by Santiago Gonzalez
“Holy” by Justin Bieber ft. Chance The Rapper, cinematography by Elias Talbot
“911” by Lady Gaga, cinematography by Jeff Cronenweth
“Solar Power” by Lorde, cinematography by Andrew Stroud

BEST ART DIRECTION
“Already” by Beyoncé, Shatta Wale, Major Lazer, art direction by Susan Linns, Gerard Santos
“Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran, art direction by Alison Dominitz
“911” by Lady Gaga, art direction by Tom Foden, Peter Andrus
WINNER: “Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” by Lil Nas X, art direction by John Richoux
“Best Friend” by Saweetie ft. Doja Cat, art direction by Art Haynes
“Willow” by Taylor Swift, art direction by Ethan Tobman, Regina Fernandez

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
“Build a Bitch” by Bella Poarch, visual effects by Andrew Donoho, Denhov Visuals, Denis Strahhov, Rein Jakobson, Vahur Kuusk, Tatjana Pavlik, Yekaterina Vetrova
“Higher Power” by Coldplay, visual effects by Mathematic
“You Right” by Doja Cat, The Weeknd, 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
“Tangerine” by Glass Animals, visual effects by Ronan Fourreau
“Montero (Call Me by Your Name)” by Lil Nas X, visual effects by Mathematic
“All I Know So Far” by Pink, visual effects by Dave Meyers, Freenjoy Inc

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
“34+35” by Ariana Grande, choreography by Brian Nicholson, Scott Nicholson
“Butter” by BTS, choreography by Son Sung Deuk with BHM Performance Directing Team
“Bad Habits” by Ed Sheeran, choreography by Natricia Bernard
“Shame Shame” by Foo Fighters, choreography by Nina McNeely
WINNER: “Treat People With Kindness” by Harry Styles, choreography by Paul Roberts
“Be Kind” by Marshmello, Halsey, choreography by Dani Vitale

BEST EDITING
“Leave the Door Open” by Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic, editing by Troy Charbonnet
“Butter” by BTS, editing by Yong Seok Choi from Lumpens
“What’s Next” by Drake, editing by Noah Kendal
“Treat People With Kindness” by Harry Styles, editing by Claudia Wass
“Peaches” by Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon, editing by Mark Mayr, Vinnie Hobbs
“Prisoner” by Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa