2025 MTV VMAs: Lady Gaga Dominates With 12 Nominations

Lady Gaga has sprinted to the forefront of the upcoming MTV VMAs with 12 nominations. They come in the wake of her critically and commercially lauded Mayhem, seen by fans and critics as a return to form after an experimental series of detours across ARTPOP, Joanne and Chromatica.

MTV announced the nominations Tuesday, August 5, with Bruno Mars trailing behind Gaga with 11 nominations and Kendrick Lamar not far behind at 10. Other nominees are Ariana Grande, Charli xcx, Doechii, Sabrina Carpenter, Miley Cyrus, Rosé and more. Even Tate McRae and Gracie Abrams made it on the list.

The ceremony will take place on September 7 at the USB Arena in New York City. Fans can also watch it live on CBS and MTV, with streaming available on Paramount+. See the full list of nominees below:

VIDEO OF THE YEAR

• Ariana Grande – “Brighter Days Ahead”
• Billie Eilish – “Billie Eilish – “Birds of a Feather”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Die with a Smile”
• Rosé & Bruno Mars – “Apt.”
• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild"
• The Weeknd, Playboi Carti – “Timeless”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”

SONG OF THE YEAR

• Alex Warren – “Ordinary”
• Billie Eilish – “Birds of a Feather”
• Doechii – “Anxiety”
• Ed Sheeran – “Sapphire”
• Gracie Abrams – “I Love You, I’m Sorry”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Die with a Smile”
• Lorde – “What Was That”
• Rosé & Bruno Mars – “Apt.”
• Tate McRae – “Sports Car”
• The Weeknd, Playboi Carti – “Timeless”

Best Pop Artist

• Ariana Grande
• Charli xcx
• Justin Bieber
• Lorde
• Miley Cyrus
• Sabrina Carpenter
• Tate McRae

MTV PUSH PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR

• August 2024 – Shaboozey – “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
• September 2024 – Ayra Starr – “Last Heartbreak Song”
• October 2024 – Mark Ambor – “Belong Together”
• November 2024 – Lay Bankz – “Graveyard”
• December 2024 – Dasha – “Bye Bye Bye”
• January 2025 – Katseye – “Touch”
• February 2025 – Jordan Adetunji – “Kehlani”
• March 2025 – Leon Thomas – “Yes It Is”
• April 2025 – Livingston – “Shadow”
• May 2025 – Damiano David – “Next Summer”
• June 2025 – Gigi Perez – “Sailor Song”
• July 2025 – Role Model – “Sally, When the Wine Runs Out”

BEST POP

• Alex Warren – “Ordinary”
• Ariana Grande – “Brighter Days Ahead”
• Ed Sheeran – “Sapphire”
• Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars – “Die with a Smile”
• Rosé & Bruno Mars – “Apt.”
• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”

BEST HIP-HOP

• Doechii – “Anxiety”
• Drake – “Nokia”
• Eminem ft. Jelly Roll – “Somebody Save Me”
• GloRilla ft. Sexyy Red – “Whatchu Kno About Me”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
• LL Cool J ft. Eminem – “Murdergram Deux”
• Travis Scott – “4X4” – Cactus Jack/Epic Records

BEST R&B

• Chris Brown – “Residuals”
• Leon Thomas & Freddie Gibbs – “Mutt (Remix)”
• Mariah Carey – “Type Dangerous”
• Partynextdoor – “N o C h i l l”
• Summer Walker – “Heart of a Woman”
• SZA – “Drive”
• The Weeknd, Playboi Carti – “Timeless”

BEST ALTERNATIVE

• Gigi Perez – “Sailor Song”
• Imagine Dragons – “Wake Up”
• Lola Young – “Messy”
• MGK & Jelly Roll – “Lonely Road”
• Sombr – “Back to Friends”
• The Marías – “Back to Me”

BEST ROCK

• Coldplay – “All My Love”
• Evanescence – “Afterlife (From the Netflix Series ‘Devil May Cry’)”
• Green Day – “One Eyed Bastard”
• Lenny Kravitz – “Honey” – Roxie Records
• Linkin Park – “The Emptiness Machine”
• Twenty One Pilots – “The Contract”

BEST LATIN

• Bad Bunny – “Baile Inolvidable”
• J Balvin – “Rio”
• Karol G – “Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido”
• Peso Pluma – “La Patrulla”
• Rauw Alejandro & Romeo Santos – “Khé?”
• Shakira – “Soltera“

BEST K-POP

• Aespa – “Whiplash”
• Jennie – “Like Jennie ”
• Jimin – “Who”
• Jisoo – “Earthquake”
• Lisa ft. Doja Cat & Raye – “Born Again”
• Stray Kids – “Chk Chk Boom”
• Rosé – “Toxic Till the End”

BEST AFROBEATS

• Asake & Travis Scott – “Active”
• Burna Boy ft. Travis Scott – “TaTaTa”
• Moliy, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea – “Shake It to the Max (Fly) (Remix)”
• Rema – “Baby (Is It a Crime)”
• Tems ft. Asake – “Get It Right”
• Tyla – “Push 2 Start”
• Wizkid ft. Brent Faiyaz – “Piece of My Heart”

BEST COUNTRY

• Chris Stapleton – “Think I’m in Love With You”
• Cody Johnson with Carrie Underwood – “I’m Gonna Love You”
• Jelly Roll – “Liar”
• Lainey Wilson – “4x4xU”
• Megan Moroney – “Am I Okay?”
• Morgan Wallen – “Smile”

BEST DIRECTION

• Ariana Grande – “Brighter Days Ahead”
• Charli xcx – “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”
• Rosé & Bruno Mars – “Apt.”
• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”

BEST ART DIRECTION

• Charli xcx – “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”
• Lorde – “Man Of The Year”
• Miley Cyrus – “End of the World”
• Rosé & Bruno Mars – “Apt.”

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

• Ariana Grande – “Brighter Days Ahead”
• Ed Sheeran – “Sapphire”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”
• Miley Cyrus – “Easy Lover”
• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”

BEST LONG FORM VIDEO

• Ariana Grande – “Brighter Days Ahead”
• Bad Bunny – “Debí Tirar Más Fotos (Short Film)”
• Damiano David – “Funny Little Stories”
• Mac Miller – “Balloonerism”
• Miley Cyrus – “Something Beautiful”
• The Weeknd – “Hurry Up Tomorrow”

VIDEO FOR GOOD

• Burna Boy – “Higher”
• Charli xcx – “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
• Doechii – “Anxiety”
• Eminem ft. Jelly Roll – “Somebody Save Me”
• Selena Gomez, Benny Blanco – “Younger and Hotter Than Me”
• Zach Hood ft. Sasha Alex Sloan – “Sleepwalking”

VIDEO FOR GOOD

• Burna Boy – “Higher”
• Charli xcx – “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
• Doechii – “Anxiety”
• Eminem ft. Jelly Roll – “Somebody Save Me”
• Selena Gomez, Benny Blanco – “Younger and Hotter Than Me”
• Zach Hood ft. Sasha Alex Sloan – “Sleepwalking”

BEST EDITING

• Charli xcx – “Guess featuring Billie Eilish”
• Ed Sheeran – “Sapphire”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”
• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”
• Tate McRae – “Just Keep Watching (From ‘F1 The Movie’)”

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

• Doechii – “Anxiety”
• FKA Twigs – “Eusexua”
• Kendrick Lamar – “Not Like Us”
• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”
• Tyla – “Push 2 Start”
• Zara Larsson – “Pretty Ugly”

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

• Ariana Grande – “Brighter Days Ahead”
• Lady Gaga – “Abracadabra”
• Rosé & Bruno Mars – “Apt.”
• Sabrina Carpenter – “Manchild”
• Tate McRae – “Just Keep Watching” (From ‘F1 The Movie’)
• The Weeknd – “Hurry Up Tomorrow”

Image via Getty