On Aug.28, the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards took place featuring appearances from celebrities such as Lizzo, J Balvin, and even Taylor Swift. 

     Swift set a new record, becoming the first person to win Video of The Year three times. She won in 2015 for her Bad Blood music video and in 2019 for her You Need To Calm Down music video before winning this year for her All Too Well short film. Aside from winning Video of the Year, Swift also won Best Long Form Video and Best Direction, both for her All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) making her one of the big winners of the night. Along with winning big, Swift also announced her brand new album ‘Midnights’ that will be released on Oct. 21. 

     Nicki Minaj also became the most recent Video Vanguard Award winner. This award is an achievement award given to artists for an “outstanding impact” that they have had on the industry. Minaj has been rapping since she was just 12 years old, however her first album was released in 2010. The award was first awarded in 1984, and continued being awarded until 2019. It was not awarded in 2020 or 2021 but the award is finally being given out again with Nicki Minaj being the recipient. Throughout her career, Minaj has released many albums and countless singles. She also became the rapper with the most number one songs on US iTunes in history with 29 songs. Along with the Vanguard Award, Minaj also won Best hip-hop for her song “Do We Have a Problem”.

     This year, not only did the VMAs recognise in person performances, but they also started recognizing digital performances with the new award ‘Best Metaverse Performance’ going to BLACKPINK. This addition of Metaverse to the award show may be an effort from the show to keep it up to date and keep the younger generation interested. 

    Many different artists won for their performances over the year such as Harry Styles for best pop, Lizzo for the Video For Good award, and even The Red Hot Chili Peppers won for Best rock.