Lady Gaga was named Artist of the Year as she collected four awards at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).
She beat competition including Taylor Swift, Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar to the award, which she dedicated to her "Little Monster" fans and fiancé Michael Polansky.
Sabrina Carpenter and Ariana Grande picked up three awards each on a night when the prizes were largely spread out.
Collecting the Artist of the Year award at the ceremony, Lady Gaga said: "I cannot begin to tell you what this means to me.
"Being an artist is an attempt to connect the souls of people all over the world. Being an artist is a discipline, a craft meant for reaching into someone's heart, where it grows its roots, and reminding them to dream.
"Being an artist is a responsibility to make the audience smile, dance, cry, release… It is a method of building understanding and celebrating community."
She left the UBS Arena in Long Island after collecting the award, but the show later returned to Gaga during her concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden where she performed Abracadabra and The Dead Dance, which featured in the Netflix series Wednesday.
Gaga, who received 12 nominations, also won the Best Direction and Art Direction awards for Abracadabra, as well as landing the Best Collaboration category for Die With A Smile alongside Bruno Mars.
Mars also paired up with Blackpink singer Rose to claim song of the year for APT, while Blackpink were named Best Group.
Gaga’s victory as Artist of the Year means Swift and Beyoncé – who were only nominated in that category – remain tied on 30 with the most VMA successes.
By contrast, Mariah Carey collected her first award with victory in the R&B award for Type Dangerous before landing a second when she was awarded the Video Vanguard award.
"This is amazing MTV, I don’t know why it took you so long!" she joked in a video message ahead of performing later in the show.
New achievement awards went to Ricky Martin, who performed a medley kicking off with Livin’ La Vida Loca, with the Latin icon award, and rapper Busta Rhymes, who received the Rock The Bells Visionary Award.
Accepting his award from Jessica Simpson, Martin said: "We just want to break boundaries, and we just want to keep music alive."
The awards also honoured former Black Sabbath singer Ozzy Osbourne, who died in July aged 76, with a performance introduced by a video message from his son Jack and his children.
British singer Yungblud joined Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, together with Extreme guitarist Nuno Bettencourt to perform hits including Crazy Train, Changes and Mama, I’m Coming Home.
Grande picked up the Video of the Year, Long-Form Video and Best Pop Video awards for Brighter Days Ahead, thanking her father for his cameo.
Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet was named Album of the Year, while she was named Best Pop Artist and took home the Visual Effects award for Manchild.
Other multiple award winners were Doechii, who won the Hip-Hop award and Choreography for Anxiety, and Tate McRae who picked up the Editing award and Song of the Summer for Just Keep Watching from the F1 movie.
Coldplay won the Rock category for All My Love with Sombr collecting the Alternative award for Back To Friends and Shakira taking the Latin prize for Soltera.
Carpenter, Sombr, McRae, Best New Artist Alex Warren and Katseye, who won Performance of the Year, were among those who performed at the ceremony, while Post Malone performed from Germany alongside Jelly Roll.
The live show ended with a number of awards not presented, which were announced after it had finished on X.
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 & Playboi Carti – Timeless
Best Pop Artist
Winner: Sabrina Carpenter
Ariana Grande
Charli XCX
Justin Bieber
Lorde
Miley Cyrus
Tate McRae
Best Hip-Hop
Winner: Doechii – Anxiety
Drake – Noki
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 – 4×4
Best Rock
Winner: Coldplay – All My Love
Evanescence – Afterlife
Green Day – One Eyed Bastard
Lenny Kravitz – Honey
Linkin Park – The Emptiness Machine
Twenty One Pilots – The Contract
Best Latin
Winner: Shakira – Soltera
Bad Bunny – Baile Inolvidable
J Balvin – Rio
Karol G – Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido
Peso Pluma – La Patrulla
Rauw Alejandro & Romeo Santos – Khé?
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
Winner: Charli XCX – Guess ft. Billie Eilish
Burna Boy – Higher
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
Winner: Lady Gaga – Abracadabra
Ariana Grande – Brighter Days Ahead
Charli XCX – Guess ft. Billie Eilish
Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us
Rosé & Bruno Mars – Apt.
Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
Best Art Direction
Winner: Lady Gaga – Abracadabra
Charli XCX – Guess ft. Billie Eilish
Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us
Lorde – Man of the Year
Miley Cyrus – End of the World
Rosé & Bruno Mars – Apt.
Best Cinematography
Winner: Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us
Ariana Grande – Brighter Days Ahead
Ed Sheeran – Sapphire
Lady Gaga – Abracadabra
Miley Cyrus – Easy Lover
Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
Best Editing
Winner: Tate McRae – Just Keep Watching
Charli XCX – Guess ft. Billie Eilish
Ed Sheeran – Sapphire
Kendrick Lamar – Not Like Us
Lady Gaga – Abracadabra
Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
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
Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
Ariana Grande – Brighter Days Ahead
Lady Gaga – Abracadabra
Rosé & Bruno Mars – Apt.
Tate McRae – Just Keep Watching
The Weeknd – Hurry Up Tomorrow
Best Group
Winner: Blackpink
Aespa
All Time Low
Backstreet Boys
Coldplay
Evanescence
Fuerza Regida
Grupo Frontera
Imagine Dragons
Jonas Brothers
Katseye
The Marías
My Chemical Romance
Seventeen
Stray Kids
Twenty One Pilots
Best Collaboration
Winner: Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – Die With a Smile
Bailey Zimmerman & Luke Combs – Backup Plan (Stagecoach Official Music Video)
Kendrick Lamar & SZA – Luther
Post Malone Featuring Blake Shelton – Pour Me a Drink
Rosé & Bruno Mars – Apt.
Selena Gomez & Benny Blanco – Sunset Blvd
Best Pop
Winner: Ariana Grande – Brighter Days Ahead
Alex Warren – Ordinary
Ed Sheeran – Sapphire
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – Die With a Smile
Rosé & Bruno Mars – Apt.
Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
Best Album
Sabrina Carpenter – Short n' Sweet
Bad Bunny – Debí Tirar Más Fotos
Kendrick Lamar – GNX
Lady Gaga – Mayhem
Morgan Wallen – I’m the Problem
The Weeknd – Hurry Up Tomorrow
MTV Push Performance of the Year
Winner: Katseye – Touch
Ayra Starr – Last Heartbreak Song
Damiano David – Next Summer
Dasha – Bye Bye Bye
Gigi Perez – Sailor Song
Jordan Adetunji – Kehlani
Lay Bankz – Graveyard
Leon Thomas – Yes It Is
Livingston – Shadow
Mark Ambor – Belong Together
Role Model – Sally, When the Wine Runs Out
Shaboozey – A Bar Song (Tipsy)
Song of the Year
Winner: Rosé & Bruno Mars – Apt.
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
Tate McRae – Sports Car
The Weeknd & Playboi Carti – Timeless
Best Afrobeats
Tyla – Push 2 Start
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
Wizkid Featuring Brent Faiyaz – Piece of My Heart
Best K-Pop
Winner: Lisa Featuring Doja Cat & Raye – Born Again
Aespa – Whiplash
Jennie – Like Jennie
Jimin – Who
Jisoo – Earthquake
Stray Kids – Chk Chk Boom
Rosé – Toxic Till the End
Best Country
Winner: Megan Moroney – Am I Okay?
Chris Stapleton – Think I’m in Love With You
Cody Johnson & Carrie Underwood – I’m Gonna Love You
Jelly Roll – Liar
Lainey Wilson – 4x4xU
Morgan Wallen – Smile
Artist of the Year
Winner: Lady Gaga
Bad Bunny
Beyoncé
Kendrick Lamar
Morgan Wallen
Taylor Swift
The Weeknd
Song of the Summer
Winner: Tate McRae – Just Keep Watching
Addison Rae – Headphones On
Alex Warren – Ordinary
Benson Boone – Mystical Magical
BigXthaPlug & Bailey Zimmerman – All the Way
Chappell Roan – The Subway
Demi Lovato – Fast
Doja Cat – Jealous Type
Huntr/x – Golden
Jessie Murph – Blue Strips
Justin Bieber – Daisies
Moliy, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea – Shake It to the Max (Fly) (Remix)
Morgan Wallen & Tate McRae – What I Want
Ravyn Lenae Featuring Rex Orange County – Love Me Not
Sabrina Carpenter – Manchild
Sombr – 12 to 12
Best Alternative
Sombr – Back to Friends
Gigi Perez – Sailor Song
Imagine Dragons – Wake Up
Lola Young – Messy
MGK & Jelly Roll – Lonely Road
The Marías – Back to Me
Best R&B
Mariah Carey – Type Dangerous
Chris Brown – Residuals
Leon Thomas & Freddie Gibbs – Mutt (Remix)
PartyNextDoor – No Chill
Summer Walker – Heart of a Woman
SZA – Drive
The Weeknd & Playboi Carti – Timeless
Best New Artist
Alex Warren
Ella Langley
Gigi Perez
Lola Young
Sombr
The Marías
Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
Mariah Carey
Rock the Bells Visionary Award
Busta Rhymes
Latin Icon Award
Ricky Martin
