Madonna to open 2026 VMAs for first time in 23 years, leading field with 11 nominations

Twenty-three years after she kissed Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera in one of the most replayed moments in awards-show history, Madonna will open the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards on September 27 — and this time she arrives as the night's most-nominated artist, riding a No. 1 album and a run of surprise performances that have kept her at the center of pop conversation all year.

MTV and CBS confirmed the booking on September 16. The ceremony airs live at 7:30 p.m. ET from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, broadcast on CBS, simulcast on MTV, and streamed on Paramount+. Rapper Snoop Dogg will host.

Madonna leads this year's nominees with 11 nods — including Video of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Song of the Year — all tied to her '80s nightlife-inspired album Confessions II, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in July, according to Deadline. Taylor Swift follows with nine nominations; Ariana Grande and Sabrina Carpenter each have seven; Bruno Mars, PinkPantheress, and Zara Larsson each have five.

According to Pitchfork, this is the third time Madonna has led the VMA nominations — she previously topped the field with nine nods for 'Ray of Light' and 'Frozen' in 1998, and nine for 'Vogue' in 1990.

Her last VMA performance was the 2003 opener, a medley that included 'Like a Virgin' and 'Hollywood' alongside Spears, Aguilera, and Missy Elliott, capped by the onstage kisses that became a fixture of pop-culture shorthand. Before that, her VMA stage history reads like a catalog of defining moments: the inaugural 1984 show, where she performed 'Like a Virgin' on the floor wearing a belt that read 'BOY TOY'; a 1990 'Vogue' set staged as an 18th-century French tableau; and an 'Express Yourself' performance that, according to The Wrap, has equally been cemented in VMA history.

The 2026 booking follows a year of deliberate re-emergence. According to The Wrap, Madonna performed pop-up shows this spring — including a Times Square Pride performance — and made a surprise cameo during Sabrina Carpenter's Coachella headliner set. Confessions II, described by Pitchfork as '80s nightlife-inspired,' provided the commercial and critical platform for the VMA return.

Elsewhere on the show, Nirvana will receive the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award, an honor announced September 9. Fan voting across 13 categories is open through September 25 at 6:00 p.m. ET, with Best New Artist remaining open through the broadcast. The VMAs are produced by Gunpowder & Sky; Jesse Ignjatovic, Barb Bialkowski, and Bruce Gillmer will executive produce alongside Barry Barclay and Floris Bauer.

What Madonna actually performs — whether she leans into Confessions II, revisits her VMA back catalog, or does both — remains unannounced. Given the 23-year gap and the weight of expectation, the opening slot is the most anticipated booking of the night.

Why it matters — Madonna's return to the VMA stage — backed by a chart-topping album and the most nominations of any artist this year — tests whether a 40-year pop career can still command the night's biggest moment.

Reported by variety.com, people.com, en.wikipedia.org, hollywoodreporter.com, pitchfork.com, deadline.com, rollingstone.com, billboard.com, thewrap.com