The 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, held at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, balanced tributes, debuts, and career milestones. Lady Gaga turned her evening into a cross-town performance piece, the late Ozzy Osbourne was remembered with a rock-heavy salute, Sabrina Carpenter and Sombr marked turning points in their careers, Ariana Grande and Rosé claimed top honors, and Ricky Martin became the first recipient of MTV’s Latin Icon Award.

Lady Gaga Dances With Her Latest VMAs During ‘Perfect Celebrity’ at MSG Show

Lady Gaga left the UBS Arena after the opening portion of the show, where she collected Artist of the Year along with Best Direction and Best Art Direction, and traveled straight to Madison Square Garden to launch another stop of her Mayhem Ball tour.

Onstage, she folded her three new Moon Person trophies into the performance of “Perfect Celebrity,” the segment of the set where she moves inside a sand-filled box. Thrusting one of the statues toward the camera, she underscored the track’s critique of fame. With this year’s wins, Gaga now holds 22 VMAs across 53 nominations. Earlier this year, she released her sixth studio album, Mayhem.

Ozzy Osbourne VMAs Tribute: Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, and Yungblud Bark at the Moon Person

MTV staged a tribute to Ozzy Osbourne, who died on July 22. The performance featured Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Yungblud, guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, and keyboardist Adam Wakeman, a longtime Osbourne collaborator.

Yungblud opened with the signature “All aboard” that precedes “Crazy Train,” while Bettencourt delivered Randy Rhoads’ guitar solo with precision. Wakeman then shifted the pace with a piano-driven “Changes,” with Yungblud on vocals. The segment closed with “Mama, I’m Coming Home,” beginning with Bettencourt on acoustic guitar before Tyler and Perry joined to close the number, with Yungblud handling the final chorus.

The tribute echoed Osbourne’s Back to the Beginning farewell concert in Birmingham weeks before his death, where Yungblud and Bettencourt also performed.

Sabrina Carpenter Gets Wet (in the Rain!) During 2025 VMAs ‘Tears’ Performance

Sabrina Carpenter presented “Tears,” from her newly released album Man’s Best Friend, in a staging designed like a city street. She emerged from a manhole to begin the number, joined by dancers that included RuPaul’s Drag Race alumni Symone, Willam, Denali, Laganja Estranja, and Lexi Love, as well as ballroom star Honey Balenciaga.

The performance ended under simulated rainfall. Man’s Best Friend arrived in late August, nearly one year after Short n’ Sweet, and was created with her frequent collaborators Amy Allen, Jack Antonoff, and John Ryan.

Ariana Grande Thanks ‘My Therapists and Gay People’ During VMAs Video of the Year Speech

Ariana Grande claimed Video of the Year for Brighter Days Ahead, a 26-minute short film she co-directed with Christian Breslauer. The project also won Best Pop and Best Long Form Video, and Grande was awarded Best Pop Artist.

In her speech, she reflected on art as a constant refuge and thanked her fans for following her across different creative outlets, from music to theater to acting. With humor, she concluded: “I’d like to thank my therapists and gay people.” Grande had seven nominations this year; although Brighter Days Ahead was cited in technical categories like Best Direction, it did not win there.

Sombr Finds His Inner Heartthrob During VMAs Main Stage Debut

Sombr, age 20, made his main-stage VMA debut with a medley of “Back to Friends” and “12 to 12,” marking a high point in his breakout year. He was nominated for Best New Artist alongside Ella Langley, Gigi Perez, Lola Young, Alex Warren, and The Marías.

He won Best Alternative for “Back to Friends,” while “12 to 12” was nominated for Song of the Summer but lost to Tate McRae.

Rosé Thanks Bruno Mars, Blackpink, Herself for Song of the Year Win at VMAs

Rosé of Blackpink accepted Song of the Year for “Apt.,” her collaboration with Bruno Mars. The award was presented by Paris Hilton, who walked onstage to her own 2006 single “Stars Are Blind.”

Rosé thanked Mars, her Blackpink bandmates (in both English and Korean), her family, and her team. Before leaving the stage, she added a note of self-acknowledgment: “As my therapist tells me every day, I’d like to thank myself for not giving up, even in the toughest of times. Always remember you’ve got you.”

Ricky Martin Accepts Inaugural Latin Icon VMA, Tells Crowd ‘We Just Want to Unite Countries’

MTV introduced a new honor, the Latin Icon Award, presenting it to Ricky Martin. The singer performed a career-spanning medley, from his Menudo years to “Livin’ La Vida Loca.”

It was Martin’s first VMA victory since 1999, when “Livin’ La Vida Loca” earned five trophies, including Best Pop Video, Best Dance Video, and three International Viewers’ Choice awards. In his remarks, Martin emphasized music’s role in building connections. “We just want to unite countries,” he told the crowd, thanking fans for more than four decades of support. Martin has not released new music since 2023, though his last project, Play, came out in 2022.