MTV VMA Nods Revealed: Which Country Artists Made the Cut?
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The nominations for the 2026 MTV VMAs are here, and these country artists have the chance to take home a trophy.
The MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) were created in 1984 as an alternative to the Grammy Awards, specifically to honor the art of music videos. The annual celebration recognizes music and production from all genres, and winners walk away with a coveted “Moon Person” statuette.
Taylor Swift and Beyoncé lead all-time VMA wins, with 30 Moon Person trophies each.
The 2026 ceremony will air live from the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on September 27th at 7:30 p.m. ET on CBS, MTV, and streaming via Paramount+.
Nominations Announced For The 2026 MTV VMAs
Nominees for the 2026 VMAs were announced on Tuesday, August 18th.
Ella Langley, Shaboozey, and newcomer Stella Lefty lead for country artists with two nominations each for the upcoming VMAs. Morgan Wallen, Kacey Musgraves, Lainey Wilson, Luke Combs, and Tucker Wetmore each received one nod.
Ella Langley’s record-breaking hit, “Choosin’ Texas,” was nominated for both Best Country Video and Song of the Year. The video features a star-studded cast including Miranda Lambert, Yellowstone and Marshals actors Luke Grimes, country singer Kaitlin Butts, champion bull rider JB Mauney, and Reese Witherspoon’s daughter, Ava Phillippe.
Similarly, Shaboozey’s “Cowgirl” received two nominations. One for the Country Video and one for Best Cinematography. The singer co-directed the music video, which stars Ciara Miller from Bravo’s “Summer House.”
Stella Lefty earned a nod for Best New Artist as well as Best Country Video for her breakout hit, “Boston.” To see who these country stars are up against, take a look at the full list of nominees for any VMA category that includes a country artist below!
Best Country Video
- Ella Langley – “Choosin’ Texas” – Columbia Records
- Kacey Musgraves – “Dry Spell” – Lost Highway/Interscope Records
- Lainey Wilson – “Somewhere Over Laredo” – Broken Bow Records
- Luke Combs – “Back in the Saddle” – Columbia Nashville
- Shaboozey – “Cowgirl” – American Dogwood/EMPIRE
- Stella Lefty – “Boston” – Sandlot/Atlantic Outpost
- Tucker Wetmore – “Brunette” – Back Blocks Music/Mercury Records
Artist of the Year
- Ariana Grande – Republic Records
- Bruno Mars – Atlantic Records
- Madonna – Warner Records
- Morgan Wallen – Big Loud/Mercury Records
- Sabrina Carpenter – Island
- Taylor Swift – Republic Records
Song of the Year
- BTS – “Swim” – BIGHIT MUSIC
- Ella Langley – “Choosin’ Texas” – Columbia Records
- HUNTR/X: EJAE, Audrey Nuna, REI AMI – “Golden” – Republic Records/Visva Records
- Madonna & Sabrina Carpenter – “Bring Your Love” – Warner Records
- Olivia Dean – “Man I Need” – Island
- PinkPantheress + Zara Larsson – “Stateside” – Warner Records UK/Atlantic Records
- RAYE – “WHERE IS MY HUSBAND!” – Human Re Sources
Best New Artist
- Bella Kay – Atlantic Records
- CORTIS – BIGHIT MUSIC
- Magnus Ferrell -Visva Records/Republic Records
- Malcolm Todd – Columbia Records
- Myles Smith – RCA Records
- Sienna Spiro – Capitol Records
- Stella Lefty – Sandlot/Atlantic Outpost
Best Cinematography
- A$AP Rocky – “PUNK ROCKY” – A$AP Worldwide/RCA Records
- Ariana Grande – “hate that i made you love me” – Republic Records
- LISA – “Dream feat. Kentaro Sakaguchi” – Lloud Co./ RCA Records
- Madonna – “Confessions II – The Film” – Warner Records
- Shaboozey – “Cowgirl” – American Dogwood/EMPIRE
- Taylor Swift – “The Fate of Ophelia” – Republic Records
