Do you want to talk about Madonna at the VMAs? Because that’s all there is to talk about. The ceremony pivoted so much around her that it almost feels as if MTV staged a two-and-a-half-hour show just to justify those eight minutes of performance. And, in a way, they pulled it off. Madonna was by far the most memorable thing about the night and also the most alive.
Her performance was generally very good, though it wasn’t perfect either. There were some fairly obvious synchronization issues and a production mistake that exposed the playback. At one moment, as Madonna was climbing a staircase, her voice could be heard while she hadn’t yet started singing. Things happen, but for a performance this meticulously prepared it’s noticeable.
The first part with Sabrina Carpenter was stranger. The opening, with Sabrina seated at the piano pretending to play, had its charm, but then they both went up onto a platform and didn’t make much of it. For a while, not much was happening. The act started to lift off when Charli XCX came in for ‘Danceteria Afterhours’ and threw her cigarette to the floor with that disgusted face we love. That’s when everything got a lot livelier, with the graffiti-filled bathroom and the cameos by Julia Garner—who’s dressed like Madonna for three years—Debi Mazar, Sombr for some reason, Seth Rogen for some reason, Tony Ward, Andrew Watt dressed as Keith Haring, and Fab 5 Freddy. The rave moment of ‘Danceteria’ was the big climax and the best moment of the entire show. That, and the camera work sweeping over the stage in stiletto heels. Slay.
madonna’s cameraman wearing red bottoms is lowkey funny and iconic at the same time 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/gnd8ZJfLJr
— ryan (@beforethefevers) September 28, 2026
Wow, what a coincidence that the best part of the VMAs turned out to be an eight-minute performance by an artist who started with 13 nominations and ended up taking home seven awards, including Artist of the Year, Best Dance, and Best Album. The whole show gave the impression of being designed around Madonna. After 23 years away from performing, perhaps it was the only feasible option.
Even her talking segments were funnier than many of the performances. Madonna was playful recounting how Sabrina’s team took almost a full week to respond and how she ended up writing directly to Sabrina herself. Later, alongside Troye Sivan and Charli, she was again very at ease talking about her beginnings and joking around. It almost became more entertaining to listen to her tell stories than to watch many of the younger artists who passed through the stage. The laser joke pulled from the backside was less well understood. Sorry, Madonna, we didn’t get that one from the outside either.
Madonna performing with Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX at the #VMAs pic.twitter.com/v6eGcXA3mC
— SEXED UP! Singers (@SexedUpSingers) September 28, 2026
Taylor Swift also had her moment in the spotlight. She wasn’t the most nominated, but she took Video of the Year for ‘The Fate of Ophelia’, premiered ‘Patient Zero’, and received the first Artist Director Honors. The award recognizes artists who direct their own videos, and it seems like a category created with Taylor in mind. MTV announced it before the ceremony, and Swift was one of the major figures who could claim the prize. It isn’t far-fetched to think it was created ad hoc with the sole aim of bringing Taylor to the ceremony. That’s the rumor that’s been circulating, in fact.
Because aside from Madonna and Taylor, who else was really here? Ariana Grande is on hiatus until further notice, Bad Bunny didn’t attend, BTS didn’t attend, Shakira understandably is in Madrid, Drake didn’t attend, Cardi B didn’t attend, Dua Lipa didn’t attend, Tate McRae didn’t attend… And of course Doechii would have appeared to present ‘Runway’, which was nominated, but Lady Gaga is inactive. There were plenty of nominees, though few with enough star power to sustain a VMAs show beyond Madonna, Taylor, and yes, Sabrina and Charli, who solo know how to mount a big show and have proven it.
The performances didn’t help, to the point that it’s hardly worth ranking them from best to worst. LISA gave a decent homage to Thailand, but the GENER8ION and Yung Lean number was basically bringing the ‘STORM’ video to the stage, so there wasn’t much surprise there. And Bruno Mars sending a pre-recorded performance from his tour came off as pretty cheap. If one of your most-nominated artists is on tour, then he’s on tour, but sending a video from the concert gives a rather poor impression at the VMAs.
@varietymagazine #KaceyMusgraves pays tribute to #DollyParton at the #VMas ♬ original sound – Variety
Kacey Musgraves did, however, have a nice moment paying tribute to Dolly Parton. There, at least, there was a clear link, because the two have collaborated and Kacey performed the tribute accompanied by images of Dolly. The George Michael tribute was another matter. RAYE, Sombr and Teddy Swims performed George Michael songs and Adam Lambert also participated, but the selection is hard to understand.
It isn’t necessary that a George Michael tribute be performed by a gay singer. But it should recall, in one way or another, that Michael made some of the best videos in history, like ‘Freak’, ‘Too Funky’, or ‘Outside’. It wasn’t just ‘Father Figure’, ‘Careless Whisper’, and ‘Faith’. There was a lot of material there to assemble something really good, and in the end it turned out to be just another number on the show. George Michael offered so much more.
And then there are the new names who were supposed to bring some life to the show. Among Sombr, Tyla, Yung Lean, and PinkPantheress they don’t add even a hint of charisma. PinkPantheress, however, did have one of the few genuinely funny moments of the night, posing with a cutout of Zara Larsson. The absence of Zara, who is quite the show-woman, was noticeable, of course, and we hope she isn’t missing next year. Sienna Spiro was charming, performing on top of a vinyl, at least. It was also nice to see MNEK or Slayyyter giving interviews there, but they’re small details in a fairly flat night overall.
In fact, one of the videos that’s being shared the most, with Charli XCX exposing her usual face of nausea while Taylor Swift is giving a speech, is actually a fake. Charli’s reaction actually belongs to Nirvana’s speech. The idea that the most entertaining moment of the VMAs is a montage tells us everything we need to know about the quality of the show.
charlie xcx’s face while taylor swift was presenting at the vmas…. 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/pFie7DpKvH
— lex (@petaltrin) September 28, 2026
The Nirvana moment was also a bit of a letdown. That a group that has been inactive for decades receives the Video Vanguard Award may have all the historical sense in the world, but was there really no one else who could have appeared to give the ceremony a bit more life? The VMAs have historically thrived on bringing together people you wouldn’t expect to see together, and here that precisely fell short. Moreover, this year there weren’t even rock categories. Make it make sense.
In the end, Madonna was the big winner with seven Moon Persons and Taylor took home three, including the night’s top prize and that new recognition of her directing work. The show ended up feeling like it was built around those two.
It isn’t mandatory for everyone to deliver a historic performance, but not long ago we had several memorable moments and this year very few. Not even the speeches left great moments. And perhaps the CBS broadcast has something to do with it. These VMAs carried a much more generalist vibe than usual, to the point that there were presenters you could hardly recognize. That may explain part of the lack of stars, but it also leaves the VMAs looking rather unrecognizable.
Only Madonna gave us something. And her performance, with its synchronization flaws and a first half that was quite improvable, has been by far the only thing we’ll remember. The rest, including RAYE, which is high time to let ‘Where Is My Husband!’ rest and promote something else, was fairly forgettable.
They were a very washed-out VMAs, and the final feeling is that MTV put Madonna at the center and trusted that would be enough. She was superb overall, so much so that her performance resonated throughout the rest of the show. It seems no one dared to do it better or worse.
