MTV Adds New VMAs for the Coronavirus Era

The MTV Video Music Awards will have two new categories this year, as fitting for the coronavirus era: "Best Music Video from Home" and "Best Quarantine Performance." Among the nominees for the latter is DJ D-Nice, who, back in March at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, performed for nine straight hours during his "Homeschool at Club Quarantine" Instagram Live show. EDM.com calls it "a prescient harbinger for the lockdown age, signaling the start of an inescapable and increasingly robust live music streaming landscape" that MTV will honor when the awards air live August 30 at 8pm Eastern.

The other nominees are Chloe & Halle ("'Do It' from MTV’s Prom-athon"), CNCO ("Unplugged At Home"), John Legend ("#togetherathome Concert Series"), Lady Gaga ("'Smile' from One World: Together At Home"), and Post Malone ("Nirvana Tribute"). Nominated for "Best Music Video From Home" are 5 Seconds of Summer (“Wildflower”), Ariana Grande & Justin Bieber (“Stuck with U”), blink-182 (“Happy Days"), Drake (“Toosie Slide”), John Legend (“Bigger Love”), and twenty one pilots (“Level of Concern”). Overall, Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga got the most nods (nine each); see the Hollywood Reporter for the full list of nominees. (This year's Emmys could take you into stars' bedrooms.)