Who won VMA Best New Artist?

The MTV and Taco Bell Best New Artist Award is one of the most sought after honors for emerging talent in the industry — a tradition MTV Video Music Awards has continued for 33 years. But is there a correlation between winning and going on to become a major name in the industry? Viacom’s Audience Science team decided to test this theory by building an interactive data visualization that explores the history of VMA Best New Artist winners. The result? The team was able to determine that on average, artists who have won this title at the VMAs were on the Billboard Hot 100 chart 18 times longer than before their win.

Credit it to the discerning ear of voters at home or MTV’s ability to accurately predict the next big thing and drive additional buzz—either way, almost everyone from Lady Gaga to Fetty Wap has gone on to own the charts and make a significant cultural impact on everything from what we watch to what we wear.

Standout Breakouts

Biggest Mover: Maroon 5

Zero weeks on the charts before their VMA Best New Artist win in 2004 for “This Love,” Maroon 5 was on the Billboard charts for an astounding 328 weeks after. Since then, the band has gone on to win three Grammys, three American Music Awards, four Billboard Music Awards, and even made a special return trip to the MTV VMAs in 2014 to perform for the first time ever.

Rap God: Eminem

At the 1999 VMA’s, Britney Spears made an inaugural appearance, Jennifer Lopez and Diddy were the “It” couple of the moment, and Eminem took home Best New Artist for “My Name Is,” earning him a spot on the charts for an astounding 393 weeks after. Twelve VMAs and one Academy Award later, he’s made music history: He’s the first artist in Nielsen SoundScan history with two year-end bestselling albums and ranks as one of an elite group of artists who’ve held the No. 1 spot on the charts the longest.

The Young Gun: Justin Bieber

Justin Bieber was not only the youngest Best New Artist winner at 16 for “Baby,” he’s also the only artist ever on Billboard to own the top three bestselling singles in America at the same time. Earning his first No. 1 in 2015 for “What Do You Mean,” it was his 2015 VMA performance of this same exact song that suddenly became “the meme heard ’round the world” when the singer broke down in tears afterward. (He later explained it was because of the overwhelming positive response of the crowd following a very tough year.)

The Game Changer: Lady Gaga

In six short years, Lady Gaga has managed to reach the top-tier of MTV Video Music Awards royalty. Along with Beyoncé and Madonna, she’s among the most-winning MTV VMA female artists of all time scoring Best New Artist in 2009 for “Poker Face.”

Thankfully, Gaga has since proven it doesn’t matter if you dress like a man or wear a meat dress to the main event—just as long as you accessorize your outfit with an MTV moonperson.

More VMA Best New Artist Insights

Viacom’s Audience Science team was also able to develop interactive data visualizations that explored the gender breakdown of artists, the most popular musical genre, and the median age of previous MTV VMA Best New Artist winners.

Interested in learning more? Head over to Viacom’s Science Central for more details

The 2022 MTV Video Music Awards — hosted by LL Cool J, Nicki Minaj, and Jack Harlow — took place at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., on Sunday night, where the biggest names in music were celebrated and some even got to leave with an iconic Moon Person trophy. But the festivities proved to be relatively tame compared to previous years.

Viewers were treated to performances from Anitta, Blackpink, Lizzo, Maneskin, Jack Harlow, J Balvin, Marshmello x Khalid, Panic! at the Disco, and Kane Brown, who made history as the first male country singer to ever perform at the VMAs. There was also a super trippy and wild collaboration between Eminem and Snoop Dogg, who gave a multiverse performance of their song, "From the D 2 the LBC."

One of the evening's highlights was when Minaj received the coveted Video Vanguard Award. The rapper, who has received 17 VMA nominations over the course of her career, began by performing a mash-up of her hits that included everything from "Super Bass" to her newest single, "Super Freaky Girl." After receiving the award, she gave a heartfelt speech about how she wished Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson could be there to celebrate with her. "I wish people took mental health seriously, even for those who seem to have perfect lives," she said of the late music superstars.

One of the weirder moments of the night came when Johnny Depp appeared as a Moonman, hovering above the stage as an augmented reality visual, randomly floating in and out throughout the ceremony.

But the moment that's sure to keep everyone talking came at the very end of the ceremony, when Taylor Swift won Video of the Year. After accepting her Moon Person trophy, she revealed that she has a new album coming out on Oct. 21 and would be providing more details at midnight.

Check out the full list of winners below:

Nicki Minaj accepts the Best Hip-Hop award for ‘Do We Have a Problem?’ onstage at the 2022 MTV VMAs at Prudential Center on August 28, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images); Lil Nas X accepts the Best Collaboration award for ‘Industry Baby’ at the 2022 MTV VMAs at Prudential Center on August 28, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images for MTV/Paramount Global); Taylor Swift accepts an award onstage at the 2022 MTV VMAs at Prudential Center on August 28, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for MTV/Paramount Global)

Honoree: Red Hot Chili Peppers

Doja Cat – "Woman"Drake ft. Future & Young Thug – "Way 2 Sexy"Ed Sheeran – "Shivers"Harry Styles – "As It Was"Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"Olivia Rodrigo – "Brutal"

WINNER: Taylor Swift – "All Too Well" (10-minute version) (Taylor's version)

ARTIST OF THE YEAR

WINNER: Bad BunnyDrakeEd SheeranHarry StylesJack HarlowLil Nas X

Lizzo

SONG OF THE YEAR

Adele – "Easy on Me"
WINNER: Billie Eilish – "Happier Than Ever"Doja Cat – "Woman"Elton John & Dua Lipa – "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)"Lizzo – "About Damn Time"

The Kid Laroi & Justin Bieber – "Stay"

BEST NEW ARTIST

Baby Keem
WINNER: Dove Cameron GayleLattoMåneskin

Seventeen

PUSH PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR

September 2021: Griff — "One Night"October 2021: Remi Wolf – "Sexy Villain"November 2021: Nessa Barrett – "i hope ur miserable until ur dead"

WINNER: December 2021: Seventeen – "Rock With You"

January 2021: Mae Muller – "Better Days"February 2022: Gayle – "abcdefu"March 2022: Sheneesa – "R U That"April 2022: Omar Apollo – "Tamagotchi"May 2022: Wet Leg – "Chaise Longue"June 2022: Muni Long – "Baby Boo"

July 2022: Doechii – "Persuasive"

BEST COLLABORATION

Drake ft. Future & Young Thug – "Way 2 Sexy"Elton John & Dua Lipa – "Cold Heart (PNAU Remix)"

WINNER: Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"

Megan Thee Stallion & Dua Lipa – "Sweetest Pie"Post Malone & The Weeknd – "One Right Now" Rosalía ft. The Weeknd – "La Fama"

The Kid Laroi & Justin Bieber – "Stay"

BEST POP

Billie Eilish – "Happier Than Ever"Doja Cat – "Woman"Ed Sheeran – "Shivers"

WINNER: Harry Styles – "As It Was"

Lizzo – "About Damn Time"

Olivia Rodrigo – "Traitor"

BEST HIP-HOP

Eminem & Snoop Dogg – "From the D 2 the LBC"Future ft. Drake, Tems – "Wait for U"Kendrick Lamar – "N95"Latto – "Big Energy"

WINNER: Nicki Minaj ft. Lil Baby – "Do We Have a Problem?"

Pusha T – "Diet Coke"

BEST ROCK

Foo Fighters – "Love Dies Young"Jack White – "Taking Me Back"Muse – "Won't Stand Down"

WINNER: Red Hot Chili Peppers – "Black Summer"

Shinedown – "Planet Zero"

Three Days Grace – "So Called Life"

BEST ALTERNATIVE

Avril Lavigne ft. Blackbear - "Love It When You Hate Me"Imagine Dragons x JID – "Enemy"Machine Gun Kelly ft. Willow – "emo girl"

WINNER: Måneskin – "I Wanna Be Your Slave"

Panic! at the Disco – "Viva Las Vengeance"Twenty One Pilots – "Saturday"

Willow, Avril Lavigne ft. Travis Barker – "Grow"

BEST LATIN

WINNER: Anitta – "Envolver"Bad Bunny – "Tití Me Preguntó"Becky G x Karol G – "Mamiii"Daddy Yankee – "Remix"Farruko – "Pepas"

J Balvin & Skrillex – "In Da Getto"

BEST R&B

Alicia Keys – "City of Gods (Part II)"Chlöe – "Have Mercy"H.E.R. – "For Anyone"Normani ft. Cardi B – "Wild Side"Summer Walker, SZA & Cardi B - "No Love (extended version)"

WINNER: The Weeknd – "Out of Time"

BEST K-POP

BTS – "Yet to Come (The Most Beautiful Moment)"Itzy – "Loco"

WINNER: Lisa – "Lalisa"

Seventeen – "Hot"Stray Kids – "Maniac"

Twice – "The Feels"

VIDEO FOR GOOD

Kendrick Lamar – "The Heart Part 5"Latto – "P*ssy"

WINNER: Lizzo – "About Damn Time"

Rina Sawayama – "This Hell"

Stromae – "Fils de joie"

BEST METAVERSE PERFORMANCE

Twenty One Pilots Concert Experience | Roblox

BEST LONGFORM VIDEO

Billie Eilish – Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles
Foo Fighters – Studio 666
Kacey Musgraves – Star-Crossed
Madonna – Madame X
Olivia Rodrigo – Driving Home 2 U
WINNER: Taylor Swift – All Too Well (10-minute version) (Taylor's version)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Baby Keem & Kendrick Lamar – "Family Ties"Camila Cabello ft. Ed Sheeran – "Bam Bam"

WINNER: Harry Styles – "As It Was"

Kendrick Lamar – "N95"Normani ft. Cardi B – "Wild Side"

Taylor Swift – "All Too Well" (10-minute version) (Taylor's version)

BEST DIRECTION

Baby Keem & Kendrick Lamar – "Family Ties"Billie Eilish – "Happier Than Ever"Ed Sheeran – "Shivers"Harry Styles – "As It Was"Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"

WINNER: Taylor Swift – "All Too Well" (10-minute version) (Taylor's version)

BEST ART DIRECTION

Adele – "Oh My God"Doja Cat – "Get Into It (Yuh)"Drake ft. Future & Young Thug – "Way 2 Sexy"Kacey Musgraves – "Simple Times"

WINNER: Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"

Megan Thee Stallion ft. Dua Lipa – "Sweetest Pie"

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Billie Eilish – "Happier Than Ever"Coldplay x BTS – "My Universe"Kendrick Lamar – "The Heart Part 5"

WINNER: Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"

Megan Thee Stallion & Dua Lipa – "Sweetest Pie"

The Kid Laroi & Justin Bieber – "Stay"

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

BTS – "Permission to Dance"
WINNER: Doja Cat – "Woman"FKA Twigs ft. The Weeknd – "Tears in the Club"Harry Styles – "As It Was"Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow – "Industry Baby"

Normani ft. Cardi B – "Wild Side"

BEST EDITING

Baby Keem & Kendrick Lamar – "Family Ties"Doja Cat – "Get Into It (Yuh)"Olivia Rodrigo – "Brutal"

WINNER: Rosalía – "Saoko"

Taylor Swift – "All Too Well" (10-minute version) (Taylor's version)

The Weeknd – "Take My Breath"

GROUP OF THE YEAR

Blackpink
WINNER: BTSCity GirlsFoo FightersImagine DragonsMåneskinRed Hot Chili Peppers

Silk Sonic

SONG OF THE SUMMER

Bad Bunny & Chencho Corleone – "Me Porto Bonito"Beyoncé – "Break My Soul" Charlie Puth - "Left and Right (feat. Jung Kook of BTS)"

Doja Cat – "Vegas (from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack Elvis)"

Future ft. Drake, Tems – "Wait for U"Harry Styles – "Late Night Talking"

WINNER: Jack Harlow – "First Class"

Kane Brown – "Grand" Latto x Mariah Carey – "Big Energy (Remix) ft. DJ Khaled" Lizzo – "About Damn Time" Marshmello x Khalid – "Numb" Nicki Minaj – "Super Freaky Girl" Nicky Youre & Dazy - "Sunroof" Post Malone with Doja Cat - "I Like You (a Happier Song)" ROSALÍA - "BIZCOCHITO"

Steve Lacy – "Bad Habit"