The VMAs are back in a major way!
Full story below…
After years of shaky ratings, the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards came, saw, and snatched.
Hosted by Hip-Hop legend LL Cool J, the spectacle not only served jaw-dropping performances but also delivered a monster 5.5 million viewers.
The lift comes after the show made its debut on CBS for the first time.
That’s a whopping 42% leap from last year’s Megan Thee Stallion–fronted ceremony (3.91M), making it the most-watched VMAs since 2019 – aka, the last “pre-pandemic” show – most-watched day of VMAs in 6 years.
- Most-watched CBS entertainment special since the Grammys.
- 3rd-most streamed event on Paramount+ this year (only the Grammys & Golden Globes outdid it).
- 2.5 BILLION fan votes — up 121% from 2024.
- 1 BILLION video views
- 81.1M engagements (up 6%)
- #VMAs held the #1 trend in the U.S. for 3 hours straight and dominated globally in 12 countries.
Performances were just as headline-grabbing as the stats. Critics singled out Tate McRae, Sabrina Carpenter, Lady Gaga, and Doja Cat as the it girls of the night, while Mariah Carey’s Vanguard showing (introduced by Ariana Grande) had fans buzzing. The VMAs may have had a few shaky seasons, but 2025? Consider it a full-on ratings resurrection. It’s clear the CBS simulcast was a savvy step and one in the right direction.
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Mimi’s POWER
I agree the CBS move was pivotal. People who normally don’t even know the show is on caught it by their usual channel flipping, looking for something to watch. Who flips through MTV? I would guess not many, but many check CBS. I had no plans to watch it, but my husband flips through the channels a lot so we caught some of it.
Celebrating this viewership “win” is LAUGHABLE. You can’t highjacked a time slot on MULTIPLE NETWORKS and not get an increase lol. Oh and they got their votes and engagement from the die hard K-POP community, who they used for viewership and engagement. People stayed up in other countries to watch THEIR K-POP group win. And, they never aired it. I hope the Kpop fandom wises up and they never get to use them again for ratings boosts. The show was mid.
If this is true then O wow smh cuz I thought that Kasey’s group everyone was talking about won a award
Superstar Mariah Carey gets her flowers 🌹🌹🌹🌹