The MTV Video Music Awards was back with a star-studded audience and a wide variety of big winners.
Justin Bieber, who led the way with seven nominations heading into the 2021 VMAs, ended up earning two wins, including Artist of the Year. He also got support from wife Hailey Bieber during the show's opening performance, marking his first time performing at the event since 2015.
The biggest winners were Lil Nas X, Olivia Rodrigo and BTS, who all took home three prizes. Lil Nas X grabbed the coveted Video of the Year trophy for "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)," while Olivia grabbed Best Song and Best New Artist, and BTS' "Butter" was honored as "Song of Summer."
In addition, Billie Eilish and Silk Sonic also won multiple awards.
After last year's version didn't involve an in-person ceremony due to the pandemic, the 2021 event brought an array of performances, winners and unexpected moments. Among the performers at Sunday's show were Justin, Olivia, Lil Nas X, Camila Cabello and Kacey Musgraves, in addition to Machine Gun Kelly with Travis Barker.
The event took place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., featuring "Kiss Me More" rapper Doja Cat as host. This year's VMAs marked the first time that a nominee for the coveted Video of the Year prize was also the host.
Continue reading to see the full list of winners and nominees.
Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – "WAP"
DJ Khaled ft. Drake – "POPSTAR" (Starring Justin Bieber)
Doja Cat ft. SZA – "Kiss Me More"
Ed Sheeran – "Bad Habits"
WINNER: Lil Nas X – "MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)"
The Weeknd – "Save Your Tears"
24kGoldn ft. iann dior – "Mood"
Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic – "Leave The Door Open"
BTS – "Dynamite"
Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – "WAP"
Dua Lipa – "Levitating"
WINNER: Olivia Rodrigo – "drivers license"
Ariana Grande – "positions"
Billie Eilish – "Therefore I Am"
BTS – "Butter"
Harry Styles – "Treat People With Kindness"
WINNER: Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon – "Peaches"
Olivia Rodrigo – "good 4 u"
Shawn Mendes – "Wonder"
Taylor Swift – "willow"
WINNER: Billie Eilish – "Your Power"
Demi Lovato – "Dancing With The Devil"
H.E.R. – "Fight For You"
Kane Brown – "Worldwide Beautiful"
Lil Nas X – "MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)"
Pharrell Williams ft. JAY-Z – "Entrepreneur"
Ariana Grande
Doja Cat
WINNER: Justin Bieber
Megan Thee Stallion
Olivia Rodrigo
Taylor Swift
Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – "WAP"
Drake ft. Lil Durk – "Laugh Now Cry Later"
Lil Baby ft. Megan Thee Stallion – "On Me (remix)"
Moneybagg Yo – "Said Sum"
Polo G – "RAPSTAR"
WINNER: Travis Scott ft. Young Thug & M.I.A. – "FRANCHISE"
24kGoldn ft. iann dior – "Mood"
Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion – "WAP"
WINNER: Doja Cat ft. SZA – "Kiss Me More"
Drake ft. Lil Durk – "Laugh Now Cry Later"
Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon – "Peaches"
Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa – "Prisoner"
(G)I-dle – "Dumdi Dumdi"
BLACKPINK and Selena Gomez – "Ice Cream"
WINNER: BTS – "Butter"
SEVENTEEN – "Ready to love"
TWICE – "Alcohol-Free"
Bleachers – "Stop Making This Hurt"
Glass Animals – "Heat Waves"
Imagine Dragons – "Follow You"
WINNER: Machine Gun Kelly ft. blackbear – "my ex's best friend"
twenty one pilots – "Shy Away"
WILLOW ft. Travis Barker – "t r a n s p a r e n t s o u l"
24kGoldn
Giveon
The Kid LAROI
WINNER: Olivia Rodrigo
Polo G
Saweetie
Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid – "Brown Skin Girl"
WINNER: Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic – "Leave The Door Open"
Chris Brown and Young Thug – "Go Crazy"
Giveon – "Heartbreak Anniversary"
H.E.R. ft. Chris Brown – "Come Through"
SZA – "Good Days"
Evanescence – "Use My Voice"
Foo Fighters – "Shame Shame"
WINNER: John Mayer – "Last Train Home"
The Killers – "My Own Soul's Warning"
Kings Of Leon – "The Bandit"
Lenny Kravitz – "Raise Vibration"
Bad Bunny x Jhay Cortez – "Dákiti"
WINNER: Billie Eilish & ROSALÍA – "Lo Vas A Olvidar"
Black Eyed Peas and Shakira – "GIRL LIKE ME"
J. Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny, Tainy – "UN DIA (ONE DAY)"
Karol G – "Bichota"
Maluma – "Hawái"
Best Cinematography
WINNER: Beyoncé, Blue Ivy Carter, Saint Jhn, and Wizkid – "Brown Skin Girl" (Directors of Photography: Benoit Soler, Malik H. Sayeed, Mohammaed Atta Ahmed, Santiago Gonzalez, Ryan Helfant)
Billie Eilish – "Therefore I Am" (Director of Photography: Rob Witt)
Foo Fighters – "Shame Shame" (Director of Photography: Santiago Gonzalez)
Justin Bieber (featuring Chance the Rapper) – "Holy" (Director of Photography: Elias Talbot)
Lady Gaga – "911" (Director of Photography: Jeff Cronenweth)
Lorde – "Solar Power" (Director of Photography: Andrew Stroud)
Group of the Year
Blackpink
WINNER: BTS
CNCO
Foo Fighters
Jonas Brothers
Maroon 5
Silk Sonic
Twenty One Pilots
Song of Summer
Billie Eilish – "Happier Than Ever"
WINNER: BTS – "Butter"
Camila Cabello – "Don't Go Yet"
DJ Khaled (featuring Lil Baby and Lil Durk) – "Every Chance I Get"
Doja Cat – "Need to Know"
Dua Lipa – "Levitating"
Ed Sheeran – "Bad Habits"
Giveon – "Heartbreak Anniversary"
Justin Bieber (featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon) – "Peaches"
The Kid Laroi and Justin Bieber – "Stay"
Lil Nas X and Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"
Lizzo (featuring Cardi B) – "Rumors"
Megan Thee Stallion – "Thot Shit"
Normani (featuring Cardi B) – "Wild Side"
Olivia Rodrigo – "Good 4 U"
Shawn Mendes and Tainy – "Summer of Love"
Best Choreography
Ariana Grande – "34+35" (Choreographers: Brian Nicholson and Scott Nicholson)
BTS – "Butter" (Choreographers: Son Sung with BHM Performance Directing Team)
Ed Sheeran – "Bad Habits" (Choreographer: Natricia Bernard)
Foo Fighters – "Shame Shame" (Choreographer: Nina McNeely)
WINNER: Harry Styles – "Treat People with Kindness" (Choreographer: Paul Roberts)
Marshmello and Halsey – "Be Kind" (Choreographer: Dani Vitale)
Best Direction
Billie Eilish – "Your Power" (Director: Billie Eilish)
DJ Khaled (featuring Drake) – "Popstar" (starring Justin Bieber) (Director: Julien Christian Lutz aka Director X)
WINNER: Lil Nas X – "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" (Director: Lil Nas X and Tanu Muino)
Taylor Swift – "Willow" (Director: Taylor Swift)
Travis Scott (featuring Young Thug and M.I.A.) – "Franchise" (Director: Travis Scott)
Tyler, the Creator – "Lumberjack" (Director: Wolf Haley)
Best Visual Effects
Bella Poarch – "Build a Bitch" (Visual Effects: Andrew Donoho, Denhov Visuals, Denis Strahhov, Rein Jakobson, Vahur Kuusk, Tatjana Pavlik, Yekaterina Vetrova)
Coldplay – "Higher Power" (Visual Effects: Mathematic)
Doja Cat and the Weeknd – "You Right" (Visual Effects: La Pac, Anthony Lestremau, Julien Missaire, Petr Shkolniy, Alexi Bailla, Micha Sher, Antoine Hache, Mikros MPC, Nicolas Huget, Guillaume Ho Tsong Fang, Benjamin Lenfant, Stephane Pivron, MPC Bangalore, Chanakya Chander, Raju Ganesh, David Rouxel)
Glass Animals – "Tangerine" (Visual Effects: YSF Studio Paris)
WINNER: Lil Nas X – "Montero (Call Me by Your Name)" (Visual Effects: Mathematic)
Pink – "All I Know So Far" (Visual Effects: BUF, VFX Supervisors: Dominique Vidal and Geoffrey Niquet, VFX Producers: Annabelle Zoellin and Camille Gibrat)
Best Editing
BTS – "Butter" (Editor: Yong Seok Choi from Lumpens)
Drake – "What's Next" (Editor: Noah Kendal)
Harry Styles – "Treat People with Kindness" (Editor: Claudia Wass)
Justin Bieber (featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon) – "Peaches" (Editor: Mark Mayr, Vinnie Hobbs)
Miley Cyrus (featuring Dua Lipa) – "Prisoner"
WINNER: Silk Sonic, Bruno Mars, and Anderson .Paak – "Leave the Door Open" (Editor: Troy Charbonnet)
Push Performance of the Year
September 2020: Wallows, "Are You Bored Yet?"
October 2020: Ashnikko, "Daisy"
November 2020: SAINt JHN, "Gorgeous"
December 2020: 24kGoldn, "Coco"
January 2021: JC Stewart, "Break My Heart"
February 2021: Latto, "Sex Lies"
March 2021: Madison Beer, "Selfish"
April 2021: The Kid LAROI, "WITHOUT YOU"
WINNER: May 2021: Olivia Rodrigo, "drivers license"
June 2021: girl in red, "Serotonin"
July 2021: Fousheé, "my slime"
August 2021: jxdn, "Think About Me"
The MTV VMAs were the No. 1 social telecast of 2021 with 38 million interactions, beating the Super Bowl, Grammys and Oscars.