Singer Taylor Swift won seven trophies at the 2024 VMAs, reaching a record 30 trophies to date.

At the VMAs on September 11 (local time), Taylor Swift received the most important award – Video of the Year – for the MV Fortnight . The 35-year-old singer is the first artist to be honored in this category five times. In previous years, she won with the songs Bad Blood (2015), You Need to Calm Down (2019), All Too Well: The Short Film (2022) and Anti-Hero (2023). At the same time, Taylor Swift is the only name to win this title for three consecutive years.

The Fortnight singer also won Best Artist and Best Pop Song this year. She now has 30 Moonman statues (VMAs trophies shaped like astronauts on the moon), breaking Beyoncé’s record of 25.

Taylor Swift received the “Video of the Year” award. Photo: AFP

In her acceptance speech for Best Collaboration with Post Malone, Taylor Swift recalled the pain of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. She said: “When I woke up this morning, I thought about what happened 23 years ago. The most important people today are the families who lost loved ones, the victims who died. Everything that happened tonight is behind us. But it’s great to have the opportunity to thank and honor the production team who worked so hard with me.”

MV “Fortnight” won Video of the Year at the 2024 VMAs. Video: YouTube Taylor Swift

In addition to thanking the crew, she thanked singer Post Malone – who performed with her in Fortnight . Taylor Swift commented that he is talented, down-to-earth and always polite to her. The singer was grateful to fans for supporting her album The Tortured Poet’s Department and the Eras Tour . She also talked about her boyfriend Travis Kelce, saying that he once cheered her on at the music video set. Before leaving the stage, Taylor Swift reminded the audience to vote for the upcoming presidential election.

The singer leads the pack this year with 12 nominations, including the three main awards for video, artist and song of the year. She was initially nominated for 10 but was later nominated for two additional categories: Song of the Summer (Fortnight) and Iconic Performance for You Belong With Me (2009). The award honors the most memorable VMAs performances from 1984-2013 in celebration of the show’s 40th anniversary. Katy Perry’s 2013 performance of Roar won this category.

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Taylor Swift , 35, is an American singer-songwriter who rose to fame with her country music in 2006. After 10 albums, Taylor has received 14 Grammy Awards and 29 Billboard Awards. In December 2023, Guinness recognized The Eras Tour as the highest-grossing tour of all time, reaching over $1 billion. The singer’s net worth is approximately $1.1 billion.

Taylor Swift tells the story of her boyfriend behind the scenes of filming the MV “Fortnight” on stage to receive the Video of the Year award. Video: MTV

This year’s awards show also featured a few other notable faces. Sabrina Carpenter won Song of the Year for Espresso , which was released in April. This is the 25-year-old’s first year competing for a VMAs trophy. Lisa, 27, of the girl group Blackpink, won Best K-pop Song for her single Rockstar. She called the project her “meaningful comeback” of the year.

Chappell Roan, 26, won her first VMAs trophy for Best New Artist. On stage, she thanked the LGBTQ+ community and drag queens for inspiring her creativity. “I dedicate this award to the gay and transgender people who are driving pop music,” she added. “To the queer kids out there watching, I understand you because I’m one of them.”

Katy Perry was honored with the MTV Michael Jackson Video Vanguard award. The award honors artists who have made significant contributions to the music industry. She said in her acceptance speech: “I just want to say with all my heart: Do whatever it takes to be yourself, to maintain your personal identity while making art. Turn off social media, protect your mental health, stop life for a while and enjoy nature.” Last year, this title belonged to Shakira.

Katy Perry takes a photo with the Mooman statue. Photo: AFP

The MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) were first held in 1984, founded by MTV. This year’s event took place on September 11 at the UBS Arena in New York, hosted by rapper Megan Thee Stallion.