MTV VMAs 2024 Recap: Highlights & Highlights

Over the years, award shows have lost interest among viewers, but surprisingly, the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards were worth watching.

Here are the best moments from Wednesday night's event, broadcast live from UBS Arena in Belmont Park, New York

SHOW OF THE EVENING

Benson Boone's backflips were so impressive that we need to send him to the 2028 Olympics. If he doesn't join the gymnastics team, at least he can sing at the world event.

The rising star had the performance of the night, kicking off “Beautiful Things” on piano and working the stage like a seasoned pro in the shimmering navy blue number. Her squeaky voice was top-notch, and she had audience members singing along to the TikTok pop-rock hit, including Sabrina Carpenter. She also won Best Alternative.

The performance worthy of honor goes to newcomer Teddy Swims. Although he didn't get a regular slot to perform, he showed up three times in short performances that impressed each time.

STRONG AND STEADY LIKE ESPRESSO

Carpenter had the entire VMAs crowd singing along with her bops, proving why she's this year's pop princess. Her performance was wacky, sexy, and fun, and there were even aliens and astronauts.

She started in the air on a swing while singing a soft version of “Please Please Please.” She was followed by dancers dressed as aliens and astronauts who performed alongside her during “Taste.” She closed with her hit “Espresso” and we're still hungry for more.

TAYLOR IS THE “T” OF MTV

We've lost count of how many VMAs Swift has won over the course of her career, and on Wednesday the pop star cleared the slate, taking home seven Moonperson honors, including Video of the Year for “Fortnight.”

Swift, who directed the clip, said that while the video may seem sad, she loved making it. After finishing a take, she said she “always heard someone cheering… on the other side of the studio where we were shooting, and that person was my boyfriend, Travis.”

“Everything this man touches turns into happiness, fun and magic, so I want to thank him for adding all of that to our photoshoot because I will always remember it,” she continued.

A day after endorsing Kamala Harris, Swift also thanked her fans for voting for “Fortnight” to win the night’s top award, adding, “And if you’re over 18, please register to vote for something else that’s really important.”

Swift also used her first speech of the night, when she won the award for best collaboration with Post Malone, to honor the victims of 9/11. “Waking up this morning in New York on 9/11, I thought about what happened 23 years ago: everyone who lost a loved one and everyone we've lost. And that's the most important thing today. And everything that happens tonight is secondary,” she said.

SPEECH OF THE NIGHT

Chappell Roan entered the VMAs with pride and enthusiasm, using her Best New Artist speech to inspire the LGBTQ community.

“I dedicate this to all the drag artists who inspire me. And I dedicate this to the queer and trans people who fuel pop all over the world, to the gay people who dedicate my songs to someone they love or hate,” said Roan, who performed his hit “Good Luck, Babe!” at the start of the show.

“Thank you to the people who are fans, who listen to me, who hear me when I share my joy and my fears. Thank you for listening. To all the queer kids in the Midwest watching right now, I see you, I understand you, because I am one of you. And don't ever let anyone tell you that you can't be exactly who you want to be.”

Tyla, who won Best Afrobeats for “Water,” also shared some wise words on stage, letting the crowd know that while Afrobeats is booming, African artists shouldn’t be pigeonholed into one genre.

“It’s very special, but also bittersweet, because I know there’s a tendency to lump all African artists under the Afrobeats category,” he said.

“Even though Afrobeats has dominated things and opened so many doors for us, African music is so diverse. It’s more than just Afrobeats,” he said before shouting out African stars like Tems, Ayra Starr, Burna Boy, Rema, Wizkid and Lojay.

FIREWORKS, REALLY

Katy Perry gave a show-stopping performance during the Super Bowl halftime show, accepting the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award.

The singer, who released her debut album in 2008, floated through the air, even stepping on top of her dancers in one jaw-dropping moment. It felt like magic.

She performed a number of her hits, including “California Gurls,” “Dark Horse,” “E.T.,” “Teenage Dream,” “I Kissed a Girl” and “Firework,” as well as material from her upcoming album, 143.

Her fiancé Orlando Bloom was there to present her the honor, and they kissed onstage after her performance. “I did all of this on the first day of my period. Can you believe it?” Perry said after performing her 10-song medley. “Thank you so much to MTV for believing in my weirdness from day one and for helping artists expand their worlds beyond a song.”

“There are so many things that have to align to have a long and successful career as an artist. There are no accidents that last decades,” Perry added, pausing later to let the crowd and viewers at home absorb her words.

THE TRIPLE THREAT

MTV may want to keep Megan Thee Stallion on board for the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards.

The rapper didn't just host the show, she also gave an emotional performance and even won the award for Best Art Direction for “BOA.”

She kicked off the show in a VMA-themed jumpsuit as the crowd chanted her name. “I’m representing Team VMA” — calling it the Voluptuous Megan Award.

“I deserve a gold medal for being a bad bitch,” she said between laughs.

She continued to dress like Britney Spears during the 2001 VMAs, when she performed with an albino Burmese python coiled behind her. “Come get this snake,” she said. “I tried to hold it down for Britney.”

And during her performance, she moved with ease around the UBS Arena, moving around the venue while rapping hits like “Hiss” and “Mamushi,” even bringing Japanese rapper Yuki Chiba along for the ride.

She really is a star, star, star, star.