Taylor Swift made a record of winning nine awards at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards, which were held at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. on Tuesday. That’s just one award off the single-night record. Peter Gabriel won 10 awards in 1987.
This brings Swift’s career VMAs tally to 23, second only to Beyoncé on the all-time VMAs leaderboard. Beyoncé has won 30 VMAs so far.
Swift’s Anti-Hero, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for eight weeks, a new personal best for the superstar, won Video of the Year. This was her fourth win in the category, extending her record for the most wins in the category. She previously won “Bad Blood” (with Kendrick Lamar, 2015), “You Need to Calm Down” (2019), and “All Too Well: The Short Film” (2022).
In addition to extending her record for most wins, no one else has won more than two Taylor is the first artist in VMA history to win back-to-back awards in this category.
She also won in a separate category – best direction – for “Anti-Hero.” It’s her third win in that category in the past four years. Swift is the third director to win three times in this category as well.
Taylor Swift’s other wins on the Night were Artist of the Year, Album of the Year (for Midnights), Show of the Summer, Best Cinematography, and Best Visual Effects.
Swift wasn’t the only artist who set records at the 2023 VMAs.
- Nicki Minaj won a record fifth award for best hip-hop for Super Freaky Girl.
- Ice Spice won Best New Artist
- Shakira won two awards – the Video Vanguard Award and Best Collaboration for TQG, on which she teamed with Karol G
- Blackpink won two awards – Group of the Year and Best Choreography for Pink Venom
- Seven by Jungkook featuring Latto won the song of Summer
- Calm Down by Rema and Selena Gomez was the inaugural winner in the new best Afrobeats category.
- Anitta won best Latin for the second year in a row.
- Stray Kids won the best K-pop for S-Class.
- Tomorrow X Together won Push Performance of the Year
- Måneskin won best rock for The Loneliest.
- Dove Cameron, last year’s winner for Best New Artist, won a video for Good for Breakfast.
- Lana Del Rey’s Candy Necklace (featuring Jon Batiste) won for best alternative.
