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The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards have added four fan-voted social categories to the ceremony’s nomination lineup, creating several more paths to a trophy for K-pop and K-pop-adjacent acts.
BTS, BLACKPINK, CORTIS and KATSEYE are among the eight contenders for Best Group. KATSEYE also appears in the 15-song Song of Summer field with “Hootie Frutti.” CBS and MTV announced the additional nominees on September 18, nine days before the awards ceremony in Los Angeles.
K-pop acts fill half of the Best Group bracket
Best Group brings together eight acts from different genres. The nominees are:
- BLACKPINK
- BTS
- CORTIS
- FLO
- Fuerza Regida
- Geese
- KATSEYE
- Twenty One Pilots
Voting will take place through MTV’s Instagram Story in a three-round, bracket-style contest. It is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. ET on September 21 and end at 11 a.m. ET on September 24.
KATSEYE has a second opportunity in Song of Summer, where “Hootie Frutti” is nominated alongside releases by Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, Charli xcx, Ella Langley, Latto featuring Doja Cat, Morgan Wallen, Olivia Dean, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter, Slayyyter, SOMBR, Stella Lefty, Tame Impala and JENNIE, and Taylor Swift.
Song of Summer voting is set for September 26 at 11 a.m. ET through September 27 at 11 a.m. ET.
The complete social category lineup
The other newly announced awards are Best Long Form Video and Best Album. Best Long Form Video has four nominees:
- Charli xcx — Music, Fashion, Film
- Ella Langley — “Choosin’ Texas”
- GENER8ION — “STORM starring Yung Lean”
- Madonna — Confessions II – The Film
Voting in that category runs from 11 a.m. ET on September 24 until the same time on September 25.
The six Best Album nominees are Drake’s Iceman, Madonna’s Confessions II, Olivia Dean’s The Art of Loving, Olivia Rodrigo’s You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love, Sabrina Carpenter’s Man’s Best Friend and Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl. Voting opens at 11 a.m. ET on September 25 and closes at 11 a.m. ET on September 26.
The additional nominations raised Madonna’s leading total to 13. Swift follows with 11, while Carpenter has nine and Grande has eight.
Background: BTS and BLACKPINK return to a familiar race
The Best Group contest extends an established VMA record for two of its K-pop nominees. BTS won the category in four consecutive years from 2019 through 2022. The group is now nominated in Best Group for the first time since the end of its hiatus.
BLACKPINK won the award in 2023 and again in 2025. The new bracket therefore places the two acts that won every presented Best Group trophy from 2019 through 2023, as well as the 2025 award, in the same fan vote.
BTS was already part of the main 2026 nomination announcement through “Swim,” which received nods for Song of the Year and Best K-pop. BLACKPINK’s “Jump,” CORTIS’ “RedRed” and KATSEYE’s “Pinky Up” were also nominated for Best K-pop. KATSEYE additionally received a choreography nomination for “Pinky Up.”
Why it matters for international fans
The social-category announcement changes the practical nomination picture by giving four acts connected to the Korean pop industry a second major shared contest outside Best K-pop. Instead of being separated into a genre-specific field, BTS, BLACKPINK, CORTIS and KATSEYE will compete against groups from pop, rock, regional Mexican music and other parts of the international market.
The voting format also places the outcome directly in fans’ hands and compresses the campaign into four days. Because Best Group uses successive bracket rounds rather than one extended ballot, supporters will need to return as the field narrows. KATSEYE’s Song of Summer nomination broadens that presence further by putting the group in an all-genre field with 14 other songs.
The 2026 VMAs will air live from Los Angeles on September 27 from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. ET on CBS, with an MTV simulcast and U.S. streaming through Paramount+ Premium. Song of Summer voting closes at 11 a.m. ET that same day.
Sources: Paramount Press Express; Billboard via SoCast Digital syndication; Los Angeles Times.
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