2025 VMA Nominations: Lady Gaga, Kendrick Lamar Dominate

The nominations for the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards look like a Little Monster takeover. Lady Gaga leads the pack with a whopping 12 nominations – more than any other artist this year. Her blockbuster duet with Bruno Mars, “Die With a Smile,” is up for Video of the Year, Song of the Year, Best Collaboration, and Best Pop Video, among other categories. On top of that, Gaga’s own solo work from her Mayhem album has swept the technical fields – her high-concept video “Abracadabra” scored nods for Best Direction, Best Choreography, Best Visual Effects, and more. She even snagged a nomination for the VMAs’ new Best Album category for Mayhem. It’s an impressive haul that has industry watchers predicting Gaga could clean up on awards night, marking a major VMAs comeback for the pop icon.

Bruno Mars isn’t far behind in the nomination tally. The retro-pop superstar finds himself at the center of multiple nominated projects, largely thanks to two massive collaborations. As Gaga’s duet partner, Mars shares in the four nominations for “Die With a Smile,” he’s also a driving force behind “APT.”, his team-up with BLACKPINK’s Rosé. “APT.” on its own pulled in seven nominations – including the coveted Video and Song of the Year slots – making it one of the most-recognized videos of the year alongside Gaga’s. Between these two songs, Bruno Mars is effectively nominated across a spectrum of top categories (from Best Pop to Best Collaboration) multiple times over. Notably, Rosé’s involvement also signals K-pop’s growing influence: with “APT.” scoring major category nods, Rosé becomes one of the few K-pop stars to break out of the strictly “Best K-Pop” category and contend for general awards at the VMAs.

Rapper Kendrick Lamar is another name making waves on the nominations list. The hip-hop visionary earned several nominations on the strength of his hit “Not Like Us,” a blistering track widely noted for its no-holds-barred disses aimed at Drake. The song’s buzz and its culturally significant music video have translated into VMA nods – including a likely spot in Best Hip-Hop Video – and even a potential Artist of the Year nomination for Lamar. It’s been a big year for him (he recently led the AMA nominations with “Not Like Us” as well), so the VMAs are adding to his awards-season momentum. Lamar also teamed up with R&B star SZA for the soulful duet “Luther,” which picked up a nomination for Best Collaboration (marking another cross-genre highlight on the list). With these, Kendrick is set up to possibly take home his first Moon Person trophy since his 2018 sweep.

Pop breakout Sabrina Carpenter continues her rise with multiple nominations, signaling that last year’s VMA success was no one-off. The young singer-songwriter landed in the Video of the Year lineup for her tongue-in-cheek single “Manchild,” a notable achievement that pits her against industry heavyweights. This comes after she won Song of the Year at the 2024 VMAs for her hit “Espresso” – and her 2025 nods suggest she’s keeping that momentum. Carpenter’s visuals and storytelling resonate with fans and critics, earning her additional nods in categories like Best Pop and Best Editing. In a field often dominated by veterans, her presence in top categories is a fresh change. Fellow pop star Billie Eilish also earned key nominations, including Video of the Year for her hit “Birds of a Feather.”

This year’s nominations also highlight the breadth of music being honored. Genre-specific categories like Best Latin, Best Afrobeats, and Best K-Pop will see global artists take the spotlight, reflecting the diversity of 2025’s biggest hits. In the technical fields, it’s a battle of ambition: Lady Gaga’s avant-garde “Abracadabra” video will face off against high-budget spectacles like Ariana Grande’s sci-fi themed “Brighter Days Ahead” for awards such as Best Visual Effects. It’s clear that artists spared no expense in creating visual feasts – from elaborate choreography to cutting-edge CGI – and the VMAs are recognizing those efforts. There’s even a “Best Album” prize up for grabs now, signaling MTV’s broader scope beyond individual videos. (Gaga’s Mayhem will contend with other blockbuster albums in that category, adding an interesting album-versus-album showdown to a traditionally video-centric awards show.) These changes show how the VMAs are evolving with the times – much like the recently introduced Song of the Year category, the Album category underlines that the VMAs aren’t just about flashy videos anymore, but the total impact of an artist’s era.

With all these nominations, the big question is who will take home the Moon Person trophies on the night. Predictors are already buzzing that Lady Gaga could sweep – she’s heavily favored in technical categories due to the sheer volume of her nods, and “Die With a Smile” is a frontrunner for both Video and Song of the Year given its cultural impact. However, Gaga’s dominance is not guaranteed. Bruno Mars and Rosé’s “APT.” has been a juggernaut on the charts and could very well upset in Video of the Year or Collaboration categories (its seven nominations show broad academy support). Observers note that voters might split between Gaga’s two big videos: some awards could go to “Abracadabra” for its visuals while “APT.” or even an underdog like Billie Eilish’s or Sabrina Carpenter’s clips could snag the top video prize. In the Artist of the Year contest, Gaga will likely face stiff competition from the likes of Kendrick Lamar – a win for Kendrick would crown his crossover year in a big way. And don’t count out Sabrina Carpenter in Song of the Year; her knack for catchy yet personal pop might resonate enough to pull an upset. In short, there are a lot of close races despite one artist leading in nominations. The VMAs have a history of surprises, and with such a varied pool of talent this year, the winners’ list could be more spread out than the noms suggest.

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