The 2021 MTV VMAs are almost upon us! It’s time for fans to celebrate the hottest names in music and the best music videos of the year.
With the highly-anticipated event just a few days away, Celeb Secrets is dishing on who we think will take home the win in ALL of the categories!
Justin Bieber leads the pack with the most chances to win a moon person at the 2021 MTV VMAs, as he is up for seven awards come this Sunday. Grammy Award-Winning rapper Megan Thee Stallion isn’t too far behind with six, closely followed by Billie Eilish, BTS, Doja Cat, Drake, Giveon, Lil Nas X and Olivia Rodrigo who are nominated for 5 awards each.
2021 MTV VMAs: Complete Coverage
As previously announced, Camila Cabello, Chlöe, Doja Cat, Justin Bieber, Kacey Musgraves, Lil Nas X, Machine Gun Kelly, Shawn Mendes, Olivia Rodrigo Jack Harlow, The Kid LAROI, Ozuna, Tainy and Twenty One Pilots are all confirmed to take the stage at the VMAs, with special performances from Kim Petras, Swedish House Mafia and Polo G during the 2021 “VMAs” Pre-Show.
In addition, global superstars Foo Fighters will receive the first-ever MTV VMAs Global Icon Award at this year’s show with a special performance, marking their return to the VMAs stage for the first time since 2007.
Hosted by Doja Cat, the 2021 MTV VMAs air LIVE from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York this Sunday, September 12th @ 8PM ET/5PM PT on MTV. But before it all goes down let’s take a peak at the evening’s nominees, shall we?
Check out our winner predictions below and let us know yours by sending us a tweet at @celebsecrets.
Video of the Year
Nominees: Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion (“WAP”), DJ Khaled ft. Drake (“Popstar”), Doja Cat ft. SZA ( “Kiss Me More”), Ed Sheeran (“Bad Habits”), Lil Nas X (“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”), The Weeknd (“Save Your Tears”).
Who We Think Will Win: This category is jam-packed with incredible nominees. Although it is tough to pick just one, our money is on Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion for “Wap.” Featuring both queens of Hip-Hop and Kylie Jenner, this video took the world by storm!
Artist of the Year
Nominees: Ariana Grande, Doja Cat, Justin Bieber, Megan Thee Stallion, Olivia Rodrigo, Taylor Swift.
Who We Think Will Win: Our very own host for the evening is who we believe will be taking home the win! From collabs to hot singles, Doja Cat has released smash hit after hit this year.
Best New Artist, Presented by Facebook
Nominees: 24kGoldn, Giveon, The Kid LAROI, Olivia Rodrigo, Polo G, Saweetie.
Who We Think Will Win: One of the best things to come out of 2021 was Olivia Rodrigo’s music. We are certain that the “drivers license” singer will be hitting the stage not just to perform but to claim this award.
Push Performance of the Year
Nominees: September 2020: Wallows (“Are You Bored Yet?”), October 2020: Ashnikko (“Daisy”), November 2020: SAINt JHN ( “Gorgeous”) , December 2020: 24kGoldn (“Coco”), January 2021: JC Stewart (“Break My Heart”), February 2021: Latto (“Sex Lies”), March 2021: Madison Beer (“Selfish”), April 2021: The Kid LAROI (“Without You”), May 2021: Olivia Rodrigo (“drivers license”) June 2021: girl in red (“Serotonin”), July 2021: Fousheé (“my slime”), August 2021: jxdn (“Think About Me”)
Who We Think Will Win: This year The Kid LAROI really proved to be a one-to-watch artist. As possibly the most addictive song this year, we think “Without You” will easily take home the win for this coveted category.
Best Collaboration
Nominees: 24kGoldn ft. Iann Dior (“Mood”), Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion (“WAP”), Doja Cat ft. SZA (“Kiss Me More”), Drake ft. Lil Durk ( “Laugh Now Cry Later”), Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon (“Peaches”), Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa (“Prisoner”).
Who We Think Will Win: This is one of the toughest categories. All of these collaborations are fire. But we are going to have to pick “Peaches,” as the single has been playing EVERYWHERE this summer!
Best Pop
Nominees: Ariana Grande (“Positions”), Billie Eilish (“Therefore I Am”), BTS (“Butter”), Harry Styles (“Treat People With Kindness”), Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon (“Peaches”), Olivia Rodrigo – (“Good 4 U”), Shawn Mendes – (“Wonder”), Taylor Swift – (“Willow”).
Who We Think Will Win: Once again, Miss Olivia Rodrigo will shine on the stage to take this well-deserved award. There have been plenty of young pop phenoms over the years, but never one like Rogrido, Good 4 Her!
Best Hip-Hop
Nominees: Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion (“WAP”), Drake ft. Lil Durk (“Laugh Now Cry Later”), Lil Baby ft. Megan Thee Stallion (“On Me (remix)”), Moneybagg Yo (“Said Sum”), Polo G (“RAPSTAR”), Travis Scott ft. Young Thug & M.I.A. (“Franchise”).
Who We Think Will Win: This category is a slam dunk for Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP.” This is the most talked single of the year and we are confident the smash hit isn’t done making headlines in 2021!
Best Rock
Nominees: Evanescence (“Use My Voice”), Foo Fighters (“Shame Shame”), John Mayer (“Last Train Home”), The Killers (“My Own Soul’s Warning”), Kings Of Leon (“The Bandit”), Lenny Kravitz (“Raise Vibration”).
Who We Think Will Win: We are debating between John Mayer and Foo Fighters since those are two best known names on the list, let see which fandom shows more love.
Best Alternative
Nominees: Bleachers (“Stop Making This Hurt”), Glass Animals (“Heat Waves”), Imagine Dragons (“Follow You”), Machine Gun Kelly ft. Blackbear (“My Ex’s Best Friend”), Twenty One Pilots (“Shy Away”), Willow ft. Travis Barker (“Transparent Soul”).
Who We Think Will Win: Definitely Willow’s “Transparent Soul” featuring Travis Barker! This song was a TikTok hit, and Willow being the only woman nominated could also help her stand out and get those votes.
Best Latin
Nominees: Bad Bunny x Jhay Cortez (“Dákiti”), Billie Eilish & ROSALÍA (“Lo Vas A Olvidar”), Black Eyed Peas and Shakira (“Girl Like Me”), J. Balvin, Dua Lipa, Bad Bunny, Tainy (“Un Dia”), Karol G (“Bichota”), Maluma (“Hawái”).
Who We Think Will Win: So many amazing options here, but you can’t go wrong with Bad Bunny and his big hit “Dakiti.”
Best R&B
Nominees: Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid (“Brown Skin Girl”), Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic (“Leave the Door Open”), Chris Brown and Young Thug (“Go Crazy”), Giveon (“Heartbreak Anniversary”), H.E.R. ft. Chris Brown (“Come Through”), SZA ( “Good Days”).
Who We Think Will Win: All of these names are literal awards magnets, so it is hard to predict. But H.E.R. is well known not only for HER music but always picking up the awards.
Best K-POP
Nominees:(G)I-DLE (“DUMDi DUMDi”), BLACKPINK and Selena Gomez “Ice Cream”, BTS (“Butter”), Monsta X (“Gambler”), SEVENTEEN (“Ready to love”) TWICE (“Alcohol-Free”).
Who We Think Will Win: If BTS is nominated, BTS will most likely win! The popular group has been holding this nomination since two years ago and “Butter” is no exception as another major hit in the charts.
Video For Good
Nominees: Billie Eilish (“Your Power”), Demi Lovato (“Dancing With the Devil”), H.E.R. (“Fight For You”), Kane Brown (“Worldwide Beautiful”), Lil Nas X (“Montero” (Call Me By Your Name”),Pharrell Williams ft. Jay-Z ( “Entrepreneur”).
Who We Think Will Win: It’s not a secret that “Montero” is the most talked about popular music video of the year! The epic video made waves as it received not only a huge amount of love but also a bunch of controversy, so we are going with Lil Nas X.
Best Direction
Nominees: Billie Eilish (“Your Power”) Directed by: Billie Eilish, DJ Khaled ft. Drake (“Popstar”) by: Julien Christian Lutz aka Director X, Lil Nas X (“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”) by: Lil Nas X and Tanu Muino, Taylor Swift (“Willow”) by: Taylor Swift, Travis Scott ft. Young Thug & M.I.A (“Franchise”) by: Travis Scott, Tyler, The Creator (“Lumberjack”) by: Wolf Haley.
Who We Think Will Win: Billie Eilish always impresses her fans with her unique, thoughtful and sometimes intense music videos. The visuals to accompany her hits always do an award-worthy job at reflecting the vibes of her songs!
Best Cinematography
Nominees: Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid (“Brown Skin Girl”) Cinematography by: Benoit Soler, Malik H. Sayeed, Mohammed Atta Ahmed, Santiago Gonzalez, Ryan Helfant, Billie Eilish (“Therefore I Am”) Cinematography by: Rob Witt, Foo Fighters (“Shame Shame”) Cinematography by: Santiago Gonzalez, Justin Bieber ft. Chance The Rapper (“Holy”) Cinematography by: Elias Talbot, Lady Gaga (“911”) Cinematography by: Jeff Cronenweth, Lorde (“Solar Power”) Cinematography by: Andrew Stroud.
Who We Think Will Win: Benoit Soler, Malik H. Sayeed, Mohammed Atta Ahmed, Santiago Gonzalez, Ryan Helfant Benoit Soler, Malik H. Sayeed, Mohammed Atta Ahmed, Santiago Gonzalez, Ryan Helfant, Beyonce Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid will be leaving the venue with a new award under their belts for “Brown Skin Girl.” The cinematography for this video was absolutely captivating from the varying shots to the varying use of color schemes.
Best Art Direction
Nominees: Beyoncé, Shatta Wale, Major Lazer (“Already”) Art Direction by: Susan Linns, Gerard Santos, Ed Sheeran (“Bad Habits”) Art Direction by: Alison Dominitz, Lady Gaga (“911”) Art Direction by: Tom Foden, Peter Andrus, Lil Nas X (“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)”) Art Direction by: John Richoux, Saweetie ft. Doja Cat (“Best Friend”) Art Direction by: Art Haynes, Taylor Swift (“willow”) Art Direction by: Ethan Tobman, Regina Fernandez
Who We Think Will Win: Our money is on “Montero” again! Lil Nas X and John Richoux truly deserve this award for the in-depth art direction that was executed in this video. Using a captivating historical narrative to convey a modern day message, a cinematic story was told just in the visuals alone!
Best Visual Effects
Nominees: Bella Poarch (“Build a B*tch”) Visual Effects by: Andrew Donoho, Denhov Visuals, Denis Strahhov, Rein Jakobson, Vahur Kuusk, Tatjana Pavlik, Yekaterina Vetrova, Coldplay (“Higher Power”) Visual Effects by: Mathematic, Doja Cat & The Weeknd (“You Right”) Visual Effects by: La Pac, Anthony Lestremau, Julien Missaire, Petr Shkolniy, Alexi Bailla, Micha Sher, Antoine Hache, Mikros MPC, Nicolas Huget, Guillaume Ho Tsong Fang, Benjamin Lenfant, Stephane Pivron, MPC Bangalore, Chanakya Chander, Raju Ganesh, David Rouxel, Glass Animals (“Tangerine”) Visual Effects by: Ronan Fourreau, Lil Nas X (“Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” Visual Effects by: Mathematic, P!NK (“All I Know So Far”) Visual Effects by: Dave Meyers, Freenjoy Inc
Who We Think Will Win: As Bella Poarch and Andrew Donoho teach us in this music video, you can’t build a b*tch but you sure can build a great music video with visual effects! The visual effects in “Build a B*tch” were simply unmatched. Not only were they a joy to watch but they helped execute the song’s empowering message.
Best Choreography
Nominees: Ariana Grande (“34+35”) Choreography by: Brian Nicholson & Scott Nicholson; BTS (“Butter”) Choreography by: Son Sung Deuk with BHM Performance Directing Team; Ed Sheeran (“Bad Habits”) Choreography by: Natricia Bernard; Foo Fighters (“Shame Shame”) Choreography by: Nina McNeely, Harry Styles (“Treat People With Kindness”) Choreography by: Paul Roberts, Marshmello & Halsey (“Be Kind”) Choreography by: Dani Vitale
Who We Think Will Win: Paul Roberts’ choreography for Harry Styles in “Treat People With Kindness” will be taking home the gold. This video uses such fun moves that give viewers a bit of historic nostalgia with a modern twist.
Best Editing
Nominees: Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak, Silk Sonic (“Leave This Door Open”) Editing by: Troy Charbonnet, BTS (“Butter”) Editing by: Yong Seok Choi from Lumpens, Drake (“What’s Next”) Editing by: Noah Kendal, Harry Styles (“Treat People With Kindness”) Editing by: Claudia Wass, Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar, Giveon (“Peaches”) Editing by: Mark Mayr, Vinnie Hobbs, Miley Cyrus ft. Dua Lipa (“Prisoner”) RCA Records
Who We Think Will Win: Like a kaleidoscope of colors, gore and icon-worthy scenes “Prisoner” will be taking home the win for its amazing editing. This video is simply not one to be missed as the fast paced visual changes keep viewers captivated from start to finish!
Written by Mary Filatova and Kelly Gilmore
