Ariana Grande won the MTV Video Music Awards’ top honor on Sunday, taking home Video of the Year for “Brighter Days Ahead”, which also claimed Best Pop Song at the ceremony near New York City.
Visibly emotional while accepting the evening’s most prestigious award, the 32-year-old singer-songwriter and actor delivered an extended thank you to her fans, whom she described as “fiercely loving and supportive.”
“Thank you for growing with me and being so supportive of me as a human being,” said Grande, who thanked her “therapist and gay people” while accepting her first prize earlier in the night.
Lady Gaga emerged as another major winner, beating out industry heavyweights including Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar, Taylor Swift and The Weeknd for the top artist honor.
The 39-year-old interrupted her concert series to accept the Artist of the Year award on stage and also won Best Collaboration with Bruno Mars for “Die with a Smile”.
Rose, who is pursuing a solo career after rising to fame with K-pop group Blackpink, received Song of the Year for “APT”, also co-written with Bruno Mars.
Sabrina Carpenter won Best Album of the Year for “Short n’ Sweet”.
The evening featured a nostalgic aesthetic with performances by veteran artists including Mariah Carey, Busta Rhymes and Ricky Martin, while newer performers like Doja Cat and Tate McRae incorporated choreography heavily borrowed from the 1980s and 1990s.
Notably, rapper Kendrick Lamar, who dominated the recent Grammy Awards with five wins, left empty-handed despite multiple nominations.
Unlike last year’s ceremony, which occurred during election season and saw winner Taylor Swift urge fans to vote for Kamala Harris, this year’s event appeared to carefully avoid political messaging.