The ceremony was shown on multiple Viacom cable networks and through smart TV and mobile devices which allow access to MTV's TV Everywhere-authenticated live stream within their app (dependent upon provider), along with MTV's website.
Performances
List of musical performances Artist(s) Song(s) Pre-show Alessia Cara
Troye Sivan "Wild Things"
"Wild"
"Scars to Your Beautiful" Jidenna "Little Bit More" Lukas Graham "Mama Said" Main show Rihanna
(Part 1) "Don't Stop the Music"
"Only Girl (In the World)"
"We Found Love"
"Where Have You Been" Ariana Grande
Nicki Minaj "Side to Side" Future "Fuck Up Some Commas" Rihanna
(Part 2) "Rude Boy"
"What's My Name?"
"Work" Nick Jonas
Ty Dolla $ign "Bacon"
(performed in Tick Tock Diner) Beyoncé "Pray You Catch Me"
"Hold Up"
"Sorry"
"Don't Hurt Yourself"
"Formation" Britney Spears
G-Eazy "Make Me..."
"Me, Myself & I" Rihanna
(Part 3) "Needed Me"
"Pour It Up"
"Bitch Better Have My Money" The Chainsmokers
Halsey "Closer" Rihanna
(Part 4) "Stay"
"Diamonds"
"Love on the Brain"
Presenters
Pre-show
- DJ Khaled – host
- Charlamagne Tha God and Lizzo – co-hosts
- Sean "Diddy" Combs — presented Best Hip-Hop Video
- Hailee Steinfeld — spoke about Best New Artist voting procedures
- Chance the Rapper — introduced Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj
- Alicia Keys — presented Best Male Video
- Michael Phelps — introduced Future
- Kanye West — premiered "Fade" music video
- Naomi Campbell — introduced Rihanna's second performance
- Rita Ora and Ansel Elgort — introduced Nick Jonas and Ty Dolla $ign
- Serena Williams — introduced Beyoncé
- Bebe Rexha and Tove Lo — presented the winners of professional categories
- Jaden Smith and Shameik Moore — presented Best Collaboration Video
- Kim Kardashian West — introduced Britney Spears and G-Eazy
- Olympic gymnasts Simone Biles, Laurie Hernandez, Madison Kocian and Aly Raisman — presented Best Female Video
- Tracee Ellis Ross — introduced Rihanna's third performance
- Fifth Harmony — presented Best New Artist
- Alessia Cara and Troye Sivan — introduced The Chainsmokers and Halsey
- Jimmy Fallon — presented Video of the Year
- Mary J. Blige — introduced Rihanna's final performance
- Drake — presented Video Vanguard Award
- Keegan-Michael Key & Jordan Peele, Jay Pharoah, Nicole Byer, and DJ Khaled provided commentary and reports throughout the show.
This year's nominees were presented on July 26, 2016, on MTV's Facebook page live.
Video of the Year
Beyoncé — "Formation"
- Adele — "Hello"
- Drake — "Hotline Bling"
- Justin Bieber — "Sorry"
- Kanye West — "Famous"
Calvin Harris (featuring Rihanna) — "This Is What You Came For"
- Drake — "Hotline Bling"
- Bryson Tiller — "Don't"
- The Weeknd — "Can't Feel My Face"
- Kanye West — "Famous"
Beyoncé — "Hold Up"
- Adele — "Hello"
- Ariana Grande — "Into You"
- Rihanna (featuring Drake) — "Work"
- Sia — "Cheap Thrills"
DNCE Best Pop Video
Beyoncé — "Formation"
- Adele — "Hello"
- Justin Bieber — "Sorry"
- Alessia Cara — "Wild Things"
- Ariana Grande — "Into You"
Twenty One Pilots — "Heathens"
- All Time Low — "Missing You"
- Coldplay — "Adventure of a Lifetime"
- Fall Out Boy (featuring Demi Lovato) — "Irresistible"
- Panic! at the Disco — "Victorious"
Drake — "Hotline Bling"
- 2 Chainz — "Watch Out"
- Chance the Rapper (featuring Saba) — "Angels"
- Desiigner — "Panda"
- Bryson Tiller — "Don't"
Calvin Harris and Disciples — "How Deep Is Your Love"
- 99 Souls (featuring Destiny's Child and Brandy) — "The Girl Is Mine"
- Afrojack — "SummerThing!"
- The Chainsmokers (featuring Daya) — "Don't Let Me Down"
- Mike Posner — "I Took a Pill in Ibiza"
Fifth Harmony (featuring Ty Dolla Sign) — "Work from Home"
- Beyoncé (featuring Kendrick Lamar) — "Freedom"
- Ariana Grande (featuring Lil Wayne) — "Let Me Love You"
- Calvin Harris (featuring Rihanna) — "This Is What You Came For"
- Rihanna (featuring Drake) — "Work"
Beyoncé — Lemonade
- Justin Bieber — Purpose: The Movement
- Chris Brown — Royalty
- Florence + The Machine — The Odyssey
- Troye Sivan — Blue Neighbourhood Trilogy
Beyoncé — "Formation" (Director: Melina Matsoukas)
- Adele — "Hello" (Director: Xavier Dolan)
- David Bowie — "Lazarus" (Director: Johan Renck)
- Coldplay — "Up&Up" (Directors: Vania Heymann and Gal Muggia)
- Tame Impala — "The Less I Know the Better" (Director: Canada)
Beyoncé — "Formation" (Choreographers: Chris Grant, JaQuel Knight and Dana Foglia)
- Beyoncé — "Sorry" (Choreographers: Chris Grant, JaQuel Knight, Dana Foglia, Anthony Burrell & Beyoncé Knowles Carter)
- Missy Elliott (featuring Pharrell) — "WTF (Where They From)" (Choreographer: Hi-Hat)
- FKA Twigs — M3LL155X (Choreographer: Aaron Sillis, Benjamin Milan, Kenrick Sandy and FKA Twigs)
- Florence + The Machine — "Delilah" (Choreographer: Holly Blakey)
Coldplay — "Up&Up" (Visual Effects: Vania Heymann and GloriaFX)
- Adele — "Send My Love (To Your New Lover)" (Visual Effects: Jonathan Box and MPC)
- FKA Twigs — M3LL155X (Visual Effects: Lewis Saunders and Jihoon Yoo)
- The Weeknd — "Can't Feel My Face" (Visual Effects: Louis Mackall and T.J. Burke)
- Zayn — "Pillowtalk" (Visual Effects: David Smith)
David Bowie — "Blackstar" (Art Director: Jan Houllevigue)
- Adele — "Hello" (Art Director: Colombe Raby)
- Beyoncé — "Hold Up" (Art Director: Jason Hougaard)
- Drake — "Hotline Bling" (Art Director: Jeremy MacFarlane)
- Fergie — "M.I.L.F. $" (Art Director: Alexander Delgado)
Beyoncé — "Formation" (Editor: Jeff Selis)
- Adele — "Hello" (Editor: Xavier Dolan)
- David Bowie — "Lazarus" (Editor: Johan Söderberg)
- Fergie — "M.I.L.F. $" (Editor: Vinnie Hobbs)
- Ariana Grande — "Into You" (Editor: Hannah Lux Davis)
Beyoncé — "Formation" (Director of Photography: Malik Sayeed)
- Adele — "Hello" (Director of Photography: André Turpin)
- Alesso — "I Wanna Know" (Director of Photography: Corey Jennings)
- David Bowie — "Lazarus" (Director of Photography: Crille Forsberg)
- Ariana Grande — "Into You" (Director of Photography: Paul Laufer)
Fifth Harmony (featuring Fetty Wap) — "All in My Head (Flex)"
- The Chainsmokers (featuring Halsey) — "Closer"
- Drake (featuring Kyla and Wizkid) — "One Dance"
- Selena Gomez — "Kill Em with Kindness"
- Calvin Harris (featuring Rihanna) — "This Is What You Came For"
- Nick Jonas (featuring Ty Dolla Sign) — "Bacon"
- Kent Jones — "Don't Mind"
- Major Lazer (featuring Justin Bieber and MØ) — "Cold Water"
- Sia — "Cheap Thrills"
- Justin Timberlake — "Can't Stop the Feeling!"
Rihanna