Recipients
2010s
2020s
| Year [lower-alpha 2] | Winner(s) | Video | Nominees | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | H.E.R. | "I Can't Breathe" |
| [9] |
| 2021 | Billie Eilish | "Your Power" |
| [10] |
| 2022 | Lizzo | "About Damn Time" |
| [11] |
| 2023 | Dove Cameron | "Breakfast" |
| [12] |
| MTV Video Music Award for Video for Good | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Music songs |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | MTV |
| First awarded | 2011 |
| Currently held by | Dove Cameron – "Breakfast" (2023) |
| Most awards | John Legend & Big Sean (2) |
| Most nominations | Demi Lovato (4) |
| Website | VMA website |
The MTV Video Music Award for Video for Good is an award handed out at the yearly MTV Video Music Awards, first introduced at the 2011 ceremony. Originally named Best Video with a Message, the word "Social" was added to its name in 2013.
For the 2017 ceremony, the award was renamed Best Fight Against the System while still being known for awarding videos that address current social and political subjects. In 2018, the award's name became Video with a Message, and in 2019, it was changed to its current title.
The first winner of the category was Lady Gaga. As of 2023, John Legend and Big Sean are the biggest winners of the category with two wins, and Demi Lovato is the most nominated artist with four in this category.
| Year [lower-alpha 2] | Winner(s) | Video | Nominees | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | H.E.R. | "I Can't Breathe" |
| [9] |
| 2021 | Billie Eilish | "Your Power" |
| [10] |
| 2022 | Lizzo | "About Damn Time" |
| [11] |
| 2023 | Dove Cameron | "Breakfast" |
| [12] |
The MTV Video Music Awards is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards, the annual MTV Video Music Awards ceremony has often been called the "Super Bowl for youth", an acknowledgment of the VMA ceremony's ability to draw millions of youth from teens to 20-somethings each year. By 2001, the VMA had become a coveted award.
The MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year is the most prestigious competitive award and the final award presented at the annual MTV Video Music Awards. The award was created by the U.S. network MTV to honor artists with the best music videos. At the first MTV Video Music Awards ceremony in 1984, the Video of the Year honor was presented to The Cars for the video "You Might Think". Originally, all winners were determined by a special panel of music video directors, producers, and record company executives. Since the 2006 awards, winners of major categories are determined by viewers' votes through MTV's website, while the jury decides in the technical categories.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist has been given out since the first annual MTV Video Music Awards in 1984. Until 2006, the award was named Best New Artist in a Video. In 2007 its name was changed to Best New Artist, as the category underwent a format change to recognize the artist's body of work for the full year rather than a specific video. For the 2008 ceremony, the award retained its 2007 name but returned to the format of awarding a specific video rather than the artist's full body of work.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Direction is an award given to the artist, the artist's manager, and the director of the music video. From 1984 to 2006, the full name of the award was Best Direction in a Video, and in 2007, it was briefly renamed Best Director. The category acquired its current name with the 2008 awards.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Visual Effects is a craft award given to the artist, the artist's manager, and the visual effects artists and/or visual effects company of the music video. From 1984 to 2006, the award's full name was Best Special Effects in a Video, and after a brief removal in 2007, its name was shortened to Best Special Effects between 2008 and 2011. In 2012, the category acquired its current name.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Art Direction is a craft award given to both the artist as well as the art director of the music video. From 1984 to 2006, the award's full name was Best Art Direction in a Video, and after a brief removal in 2007, its name was shortened to its current form starting in 2008. The biggest winners are K. K. Barrett and Jan Houllevigue, both of whom won this award twice.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Cinematography is a craft award given to both the artist as well as the cinematographer/director of photography of the music video.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best R&B was first awarded in 1993 under the name Best R&B Video, and it was given every year until 2006. The following year MTV revamped the VMAs and eliminated all the genre categories. However, in 2008, when MTV returned the Video Music Awards to their previous format, Best R&B Video did not return despite four other genre awards doing so. It was only in 2019 that the R&B award returned to the VMAs, now under the shorter name of Best R&B.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Hip Hop was first given out at the 1999 MTV Video Music Awards. The award, according to MTV, was originally intended for hip hop-inspired songs, not necessarily actual hip hop music videos. This explains the recognition of non-hip hop songs such as "Thong Song" and "I'm Real (Remix)".
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock was first given out in 1989, one of the four original genre categories added to the VMAs that year. In its first year, the award was called Best Heavy Metal Video, and from 1990 to 1995, it was renamed Best Metal/Hard Rock Video. The category underwent a third, brief name change in 1996, when it was renamed Best Hard Rock Video. In 1997, the award acquired its most enduring name, Best Rock Video, which it retained until 2016. The following year, the word "Video" was removed from all genre categories at the VMAs, giving this award its current name: Best Rock.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Pop was first given out in 1999 under the name of Best Pop Video, as MTV began to put several teen pop acts in heavy rotation. Nominations, however, were not just limited to pop acts, as dance, R&B, pop/rock, and reggaeton artists have also received nominations throughout the award's history.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Collaboration was first introduced to the MTV Video Music Awards in 2007 under the name Most Earthshattering Collaboration, as the VMAs were revamped and a few new categories were added to the show. When MTV brought the VMAs back to their old format in 2008, this category did not return. It was not until 2010 that the category was reintroduced under the name Best Collaboration.
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Latin was first introduced to the MTV Video Music Awards in 2010 under the name Best Latino Artist. The award was created to replace the Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica, which closed in 2009.
The 2015 MTV Video Music Awards were held on August 30, 2015. The 32nd installment of the event was held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California, and hosted by Miley Cyrus. Taylor Swift led the nominations with a total of ten, followed by Ed Sheeran, who had six, bringing his total number of mentions to 13. Swift's "Wildest Dreams" music video premiered during the pre-show. Cyrus also announced and released her studio album Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz, right after her performance at the end of the show. During his acceptance speech, Kanye West announced that he would be running in the 2020 United States presidential election. Taylor Swift won the most awards with four, including Video of the Year and Best Female Video. The VMA trophies were redesigned by Jeremy Scott.
The 2017 MTV Video Music Awards were held on August 27, 2017 at The Forum in Inglewood, California, honoring music videos released between June 25, 2016 and June 23, 2017. It was hosted by Katy Perry. The 34th annual award show aired live from the venue for the second time in its history. The music video for Taylor Swift's song "Look What You Made Me Do" premiered during the broadcast. Lil Yachty co-hosted the pre-show with Terrence J, Charlamagne Tha God, and MTV News' Gaby Wilson, while Gabbie Hanna hosted backstage for the show. It was broadcast across various Viacom networks and their related apps.
The 2019 MTV Video Music Awards were held on August 26, 2019, at the Prudential Center in Newark, being the first VMA ceremony to be held in New Jersey. Sebastian Maniscalco hosted the 36th annual ceremony. Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift, and Billie Eilish were the most awarded with three each. Missy Elliott became the first female rapper to win the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. The show was broadcast on a variety of Viacom-owned networks, as well as their respective websites, and apps through TV Everywhere authentication. 2019 MTV Video Music Awards won the 2020 Webby Award for Events in the category Social.
The MTV Video Music Award for Song of the Year is one of the biggest awards given at the annual MTV Video Music Awards. It was first introduced at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards.