The 2025 MTV VMAs: The Wildest, Weirdest, and Most WTF Moments You Missed—And the Stars Who Just Couldn’t Behave
Added on September 8, 2025 inMusic News Cards
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Ever wonder what happens when Mercury goes retrograde and Mariah Carey, Ricky Martin, AND Busta Rhymes all end up in the same room—drenched in enough stardust and sequins to send Jupiter into planetary FOMO? Well, welcome to the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, a neon-blasted fever dream where icons finally conquer overdue accolades, fresh chart-toppers dance their fears away, saxophones steal stages from pop powerhouses, and, yes, even the celestial bodies above pause to take glamorous selfies. Was it the full moon’s wicked mischief, or is it just that a Mariah Carey acceptance speech feels like the ultimate cosmic justice after so many years? With LL Cool J steering this star-stacked ship—and the kind of jaw-dropping performances that have astrologers and entertainment junkies alike scrambling for a new zodiac sign—last night’s VMAs didn’t just make history; they made a swirling, fabulous mess of it . Ready to relive every euphoric, emotional, and downright bizarre moment? It’s written in the stars—just scroll down. LEARN MORE.
The 2025 Video Music Awards took place Sunday night, airing on CBS, MTV, Paramount+ and other platforms, with LL Cool J hosting. The show featured a slew of performances, and several awards were handed out. See below for highlights from the show.
Doja Cat kicked off the VMAs with a performance of “Jealous Type.” While the VMAs‘ host LL Cool J finished his opening monologue, Doja Cat appeared in a Max Headroom-influenced video. The singer then performed her new track “Jealous Type” with a heavily-influenced ’80s-sounding pop vibe, including a memorable saxophone intro to the song by Kenny G. Doja danced all over the stage in a white crop top and black pants, interacting with fans and encouraging them to sing the lyrics back. The background of her performance emphasized the retro feel with bright lights of pink and blue. Read more. — Lexi Carson
Ricky Martin gave a high-energy performance before accepting the Latin Icon Award at the 2025 Video Music Awards. The singer performed and accepted the inaugural honor, which celebrates his “four-decade career that launched Latin music and culture into the mainstream,” per MTV. Over the course of his career, Martin has sold more than 70 million albums worldwide and nabbed numerous awards for his music, acting and humanitarian work. J Balvin took the stage to introduce Martin ahead of his Latin-flavored performance, which kicked off with Martin’s massive hit “Livin’ La Vida Loca” before he launched into a medley of songs. Martin brought the energy as he performed in the audience and onstage. Read more. — Kimberly Nordyke
Just meet Rosé at the VMAs stage. The 28-year-old K-pop star, a member of supergroup Blackpink, took home the song of the year trophy for her hit song “APT,” featuring Bruno Mars. The song has spent 45 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. Rosé, sporting a butter yellow gown, seemed ecstatic to win the award during her journey to the stage. She took the opportunity to thank her collaborator, promising to call Mars after she got off the stage. During her speech, the pop star thanked several people — from her team at her Korean agency The Black Label to her U.S. label Atlantic Records — but the most important person the singer shouted out was herself. She noted that one of her fears was that she might let down her 16-year-old self throughout her journey to global stardom. Read more. — Nicole Fell
Busta Rhymes gave a memorable performance of several of his hit songs before he accepted the inaugural Rock the Bells Visionary Award. Joined onstage by dancers dressed in red, Rhymes gave a memorable, high-energy performance that included his hits “Gimme Some More,” “Scenario,” “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See” and “Pass the Courvoisier, Part II.” He was also joined by Joyner Lucas, Papoose and GloRilla as they helped perform several of the songs with him. After he performed the songs, Rhymes took a moment to talk to the crowd while accepting the Visionary Award. “I know I usually do these long speeches. I’m not gonna do one today,” he began. “But next time y’all take 35 years to give me one of these, they’re gonna let me talk as long as I want.” Read more. — Katherine Schaffstall
Tate McRae took a night off from her global Miss Possessive Tour to perform a medley of “Revolving Door” and “Sports Door” on Sunday night. McRae hit the stage in a white two-piece set to sing two of her hit songs off her third studio album, So Close to What. She began her performance with the track “Revolving Door” and walked out surrounded by her backup dancers, stripped down to only underwear. The performance also marks her first main-stage performance at the VMAs. Like in the music video for “Revolving Door,” the singer-dancer nailed the backbend leg extension, inspiring a viral trend of fans trying to replicate the move on TikTok. When it came to “Sports Car,” there was no shortage of splits made while fire emerged in the background. Read more. — Lexi Carson
Sabrina Carpenter used her debut performance of her song “Tears” during the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards to advocate for transgender rights Sunday night. The upbeat performance took place on an outdoor set that resembled the streets of ’90s New York City. She was joined by drag queens Honey Balenciaga, Symone, Dashaun Wesley, Richie Shazam, Jewels Sparkles, Lexi Love, Jonte’ Moaning and Denali as she took inspiration from the song’s music video, which features Colman Domingo dressed in drag. Additionally, she was joined by dancers in retro outfits and male dancers in police uniforms. As Carpenter and the performers danced on stage, many of the drag queens walked back and forth with picket signs that promoted trans rights. “Protect Trans Rights,” one sign read, while another stated, “In Trans We Trust.” Read more. — Katherine Schaffstall
The 2025 Video Music Awards paid tribute to Ozzy Osbourne on Sunday night, a little over a month after he died at age 76. Osbourne — nicknamed the Prince of Darkness — died July 22, just 17 days after playing his final show with Black Sabbath. Osbourne’s son, Jack, introduced the tribute along with his four daughters via a pretaped video, noting he was proud that the show was celebrating “my dad’s amazing musical journey.” “I know for sure it would make me incredibly happy to see these great musicians carry on his legacy and help inspire the next generation of rockers,” he said, giving a “special shout-out” to the four performers who took part in the tribute: Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler and guitarist Joe Perry, singer Yungblud and guitarist Nuno Bettencourt. Read more. — Kimberly Nordyke
Mariah Carey finally received her first MTV Video Music Award on Sunday night when the Grammy-winning superstar singer was honored with the Video Vanguard Award. Though she’d been nominated for eight VMAs over the years, Carey had yet to win a competitive prize even as she was recognized with the prestigious Video Vanguard honor. Taking the stage after a performance of a medley of her hits, Carey joked of her long-awaited award, “What in the Sam Hill took you so long?!” Prior to receiving her honor, Carey performed snippets of her many hits, highlighting singles that also had particularly memorable videos, including “Honey,” “Heartbreaker,” “Obsessed,” “It’s Like That,” “We Belong Together” and the remix of her hit “Fantasy,” complete with audio of the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s rap intro. Read more. — Hilary Lewis
The ladies of Huntrix have made it to the VMAs stage. Ejae, Rei Ami and Audrey Nuna, who voice the characters of Rumi, Zoey and Mira in the hit Netflix and Sony Animation movie KPop Demon Hunters, presented the album of the year award to Sabrina Carpenter for Short n’ Sweet. “These past few months have been crazy and amazing, such an incredible ride for us,” Ejae told the crowd when the trio walked onto the stage. The group, minus Ejae, who was under the weather, according to her social media posts, were at the Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend for a KPop Demon Hunters karaoke party. Read more. — Nicole Fell
Those who missed the chance to see Lady Gaga’s Mayhem Ball tour during its multi-night stint at New York’s Madison Square Garden were treated to part of the show during the 2025 MTV VMAs on Sunday night. The cable network, which aired this year’s show on CBS for the first time, aired Gaga’s performance of “Abracadabra” and her new single from Wednesday, season two, part two, “The Dead Dance,” from her concert at Madison Square Garden. Introduced by Rosé, who urged Gaga’s little monsters to put their “paws up,” Gaga, from the Manhattan arena stage, where she towered over a cage full of dancers atop a massive red ballgown, declared “the category is dance or die.” After “Abracadabra,” Gaga dropped down from the top of the dress into the cage and re-emerged from within the cage sporting her “Dead Dance” gray curls. After the cage opened like a gate, Gaga and her dancers moved down a long runway to the middle of the arena and then she ran back with her dancers as she sang, “Do the dead dance.” Read more. — Hilary Lewis
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