The 37thAnnual MTV VMA awards went ahead on Sunday 30th August after a number of last minute u turns ahead of the event which until August 7th was scheduled to be hosted at the Barclays Centerin Brooklyn, New York with either a limited or no audience.

However, organisers decided that an outdoor event would be “safer than an indoor event” and as a result a collection of pre-recorded performances and acceptance speeches were screened.

Despite the restrictions of the event, it was energetically hosted by actress and singer Keke Palmer who tied everything together as smoothly as possible despite the challenges of presenting in this way.

The highlights of the night were performances from Miley Cyrus, K-Pop boyband BTS and the nine minute performance medley from Lady Gaga showcasing a collection of songs from her latest album, Chromatica.

In fact, Gaga mania was the theme of the night as she collected four awards in total including Best Collaboration for the single “Rain on Me” with Ariana Grande, and Artist of the Year. Both Gaga’s performances and acceptance speeches sent one strong message, to wear a mask, as the singer sported a stunningly crafted couture masks with each costume change and performance.

Some new awards were also added to this year’s list to reflect the pandemic which saw the likes of “Best Quarantine Performance” and “Best Music Video from Home”being awarded amongst others.

Though not usually an overly political event, the awards did address the Black Lives Matter movement andan award for Best Video for Good went to H.E.R. for “I Can’t Breathe” as well as paying tribute to the recent death of Marvel’s Black Panther actor, Chadwick Boseman.

Full list of nominees and winners below:  (Winner in Red)

Artist of the Year:

Lady Gaga

DaBaby

Justin Bieber

Megan Thee Stallion

Post Malone

The Weeknd