It’s one of the biggest music awards shows: The VMA’s.

But, who won? More importantly, did they deserve to win?

The Video Music Awards held by MTV in late August (and this year hosted by Nicki Minaj, Jack Harlow, and LL Cool J) not only recognizes artists for professional aspects in their music videos but also allows fans to vote for their favorite celebrities! On top of these awards, artists are also offered opportunities to perform live. This year, a few of the performers included Nicki Minaj, Jack Harlow, Lizzo, and Bad Bunny. But, for Mia Stamp, a junior at Elkhart High, Dove Cameron gave the best performance of the night. She claims the performance was very enjoyable and she loved both songs, Boyfriend and Breakfast that Dove performed. 

While everyone loves the performances, the awards are still the biggest hit of the night! Some of the most recognizable winners for the fan-voted categories include Artist of the Year: Bad Bunny, Album of the Year: Harry Styles, Song of the Year: Billie Eilish’s Happier Than Ever, and Group of the Year: BTS. While Styles winning Album of the Year was a surprise to Stamp, she still fully believes it was well deserved. “His album had just recently come out in May; it’s impressive how much and how fast it gained popularity.” Continuing, she adds, “Harry is one of the biggest artists right now, though, and he is very talented. So, this award was very deserved.” Stamp also expresses her hope that someone else would have won Artist of the Year in contrast to Bad Bunny. She isn’t very familiar with the artist and thought the other nominees were much better options.

While some of the winners for the professional categories include Best Cinematography: Harry Styles’ As it Was and Best Choreography: Doja Cat’s Woman, it was Lil Nas X & Jack Harlow’s INDUSTRY BABY that took home the award for Best Art Direction. While on the topic of Jack Harlow, he was also the opening performance of the night. The VMA’s kicked off with his debut song First Class. Stamp exclaims how this performance was a surprise. “I really loved how it was performed in the set-up of an Airplane…quite fitting! And, the feature of Fergie was a shock!” 

As the night progresses, and more awards are won, the final award is still the most anticipated. Video of the Year is the biggest award that the celebrities have the opportunity to win. This year’s winner?  Taylor Swift’s All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) Short Film. Not only is this a huge success, but it’s also Swift’s third year in a row winning this award, making her the first artist ever to achieve this feat!

Near the end of Swift’s acceptance speech, she expressed her thanks to her fans by taking the stage to announce her new album! Stamp claims that this was the ”highlight of the night!” She elaborates on her love for Swift by explaining how well deserves of this award. “Taylor put a lot of work into this short film, and it tells a beautiful but heartbreaking story.” Concluding, she adds, “She was also the director, so that adds even greater achievement!” This will be her 10th studio album, releasing on Oct. 21.  This was a huge shock, and Swift carried on the motto of the VMA’s that “Anything can happen!”