Madonna leads 2026 MTV VMAs with 11 nominations; Swift close behind

Pop icon Madonna is leading the pack for the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, securing an impressive 11 nominations. Her nods span across prestigious categories including video of the year, artist of the year, and song of the year, alongside awards for best collaboration, dance, direction, art direction, cinematography, editing, choreography, and visual effects. Madonna, a consistent presence at the VMAs since the 1980s, has already amassed 19 competitive wins and was the first solo female artist to receive the Video Vanguard Award in 1986. Should she win all 11 awards, she would tie Beyoncé and Taylor Swift, who each hold 30 VMA wins, for the most-awarded musician in VMA history. Eminem currently holds the record for the most VMAs by a male artist with 15 wins. Taylor Swift is a close second in nominations with nine. If Swift clinches even a single award, she will surpass all previous artists to become the most-awarded individual in VMA history. Her nominations include video and artist of the year, as well as best pop, direction, art direction, cinematography, editing, choreography, and visual effects. Other artists recognized with multiple nominations include Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter with seven nods each. Bruno Mars, PinkPantheress, and Zara Larsson garnered five nominations, while Blackpink's LISA received four. Shakira, Tate McRae, GENER8ION, and Yung Lean are tied with three nominations each. The nominees for artist of the year also feature Grande, Mars, Carpenter, and Morgan Wallen, alongside Madonna and Swift. The coveted video of the year award will see Swift's "The Fate of Ophelia" compete against Madonna's "Confessions II, The Film," Grande's "Hate That I Made You Love Me," Mars' "I Just Might," Carpenter's "Tear," and GENER8ION's "Storm" featuring Yung Lean. The two-hour ceremony is scheduled to broadcast live on CBS on Sunday, September 27, at 7:30 p.m. Eastern and 4:30 p.m. Pacific from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The show will also be simulcast on MTV and available for streaming on Paramount+ in the U.S., with global streaming available the following day on Paramount+ and MTV.

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Madonna, who has been nominated at the VMAs in every decade of her career, leads this year's field with 11 nominations, including the top 3 prizes.