Madonna returns to VMAs stage after 23 years with star-studded performance

Read the original at ABC News (US) ↗
ABC News (US) · collected 2026-09-28 · by Shafiq Najib

Quick Summary

Madonna returned to perform at the MTV Video Music Awards after a 23-year absence, starting the show with a collaboration featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx. The performance also included appearances by Seth Rogen, Sombr, and Julia Garner. The event was delayed due to NFL coverage of the Baltimore Ravens-Dallas Cowboys game, leading to an extended wait for viewers before Madonna's high-energy opening set began the ceremony.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-28, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

Taylor Swift will receive the inaugural MTV Video Music Awards Artist Director Honor at the 43rd annual ceremony on September 27, making it her 31st Moon Person trophy and officially breaking the tie with Beyoncé for most awards in VMA history. The event, hosted by Snoop Dogg, will also see the premiere of Swift's new music video for "Patient Zero" at Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. Madonna returns to perform after a 23-year hiatus and holds 11 nominations, followed closely by Taylor Swift with 11 nods herself. The ceremony will be broadcast on CBS alongside MTV. DIRECTV offers a five-day free trial to watch the VMAs live for free. This year’s show celebrates the best music videos of 2026, marking a significant milestone for both Madonna and Taylor Swift in terms of recognition and impact on the award show's legacy. Other notable performances include Sabrina Carpenter with nine nominations and Ariana Grande with eight. MTV also honors Nirvana with this year's Video Vanguard Award. The event features various categories such as Best Direction, Best Editing, and Best Choreography, among others, recognizing excellence in music video artistry and innovation. Madonna's appearance is set to open the show on September 27 at Peacock Theater. Madonna’s comeback performance is anticipated with special guests including Charli XCX and Sabrina Carpenter. MTV VMAs continue to celebrate iconic moments, performances, and innovations in music videos throughout the years. Swift's contribution includes a deluxe edition release titled "The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore," which debuted alongside “Patient Zero,” further cementing her creative influence on modern pop culture. DIRECTV provides a free trial for VMAs viewership starting September 27, ensuring widespread accessibility and engagement with the event. Overall, this year's MTV Video Music Awards are set to be a memorable celebration of music video artistry and fan community interactions. Madonna’s presence is marked by her historic contributions since the inaugural ceremony in 1984, signaling an era of continued innovation and cultural significance for the VMAs. Snoop Dogg, as host, brings his unique blend of entertainment, comedy, and musical prowess to the stage, promising a dynamic and engaging evening for all music lovers. The combination of Madonna’s comeback performance and Swift's historical award acceptance promises to make this year’s MTV Video Music Awards an unforgettable event in the annals of pop culture history. DirectTV's free trial offer enhances viewer accessibility, ensuring that fans can enjoy the full spectrum of performances, awards, and fan interactions live from Peacock Theater on CBS. The VMAs continue to celebrate creativity, innovation, and community engagement in music video artistry, making September 27 a highly anticipated date for music enthusiasts worldwide.

Written for “MTV Video Music Awards 2026” on 2026-10-05, grounded in this article and the 50 other(s) covering the same event.

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
10
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
0%
0 of 10 hedged
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Correction & hedging signals
58.7
corrections and hedging in what we collected; not a measure of accuracy
Outlets on this story
51
Entertainment
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Analyzed 2026-09-28 · how these are computed

Story

📰 MTV Video Music Awards 2026
Entertainment · 51 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
New York Post · 0.92 cosine similarity
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 19 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe Madonna's opening performance at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards, featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX.”
CBS News · 0.91 cosine similarity
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 14 📰 publisher trust 66
“Both articles describe Madonna's return to the VMAs stage after 23 years with a star-studded performance featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX on the same date.”
CBS News
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 3% hedged 1 of 32 📰 publisher trust 66
“Both articles describe Madonna's return to the VMAs stage after 23 years, with a star-studded performance featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 32 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe Madonna's return to the VMAs stage in 2026 after a 23-year absence, featuring performances with Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 9% hedged 1 of 11 📰 publisher trust 61
“Both articles describe Madonna's return to perform at the VMAs after 23 years, including details about Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx joining her.”
The Sydney Morning Herald
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 18% hedged 2 of 11 📰 publisher trust 61
“Both articles describe Madonna's return to perform at the VMAs after 23 years, including details about Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx joining her on stage.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 16 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe Madonna's opening performance at the VMAs 2026, featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli XCX.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 13 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe Madonna's VMAs performance in 2026, featuring Sabrina Carpenter and including their song 'Bring Your Love'.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 3 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe Madonna's return to the VMAs stage in 2026 with a star-studded performance, featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx.”
New York Post
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 6% hedged 2 of 34 📰 publisher trust 64
“Both articles describe Madonna's performance at the 2026 MTV VMAs on September 28, which is a clear reference to the same specific event.”

Publisher

ABC News (US) · 641 article(s) · 2 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 2 correction(s)
2026-10-04
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2026-09-25
'Like a horror movie': Ukraine's Oleshky faces 'catastrophe' under Russian occupation

Who wrote this

Shafiq Najib
5 article(s) here · 0 carrying a prediction
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Also by Shafiq Najib
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

Topics

Baltimore Ravens Dallas Cowboys MTV VMAs MTV Video Music Awards VMAs

Subjects

Madonna PERSON · 7× Charli xcx PERSON · 2× Baltimore Ravens ORG · 1× Carpenter PERSON · 1× Dallas Cowboys ORG · 1× Julia Garner PERSON · 1× Sabrina Carpenter PERSON · 1× Seth Rogen PERSON · 1× Sombr PERSON · 1× The Queen of Pop PERSON · 1×

Narrative

Madonna's opening number also featured appearances from Seth Rogen, Sombr and Julia Garner, who had previously been linked to playing Madonna in a biopic about the singer's life and career.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-28
2026-09-28 · ABC News (US)
Madonna returns to VMAs stage after 23 years with star-studded performance · assertive framing

Claims (10 extracted, 0 hedged)

Madonna kicked off the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards with a star-studded performance featuring Sabrina Carpenter and Charli xcx. asserted
Madonna → kick → Carpenter
The Queen of Pop opened Sunday night’s show with her first VMAs performance in 23 years, taking the stage after the ceremony was delayed by the Baltimore Ravens-Dallas Cowboys game. asserted
ceremony → open → game
Carpenter joined Madonna early in the performance for "Bring Your Love," their house-pop collaboration from Madonna’s latest album, "Confessions II." asserted
Carpenter → join → album
The pair got the crowd on its feet with the dancefloor anthem before Charli xcx made a surprise appearance for a performance of her remix of Madonna's "Danceteria." asserted
xcx → get → Danceteria
Madonna's opening number also featured appearances from Seth Rogen, Sombr and Julia Garner, who had previously been linked to playing Madonna in a biopic about the singer's life and career. asserted
who → feature → life
The performance marked a major return to the VMAs stage for Madonna, who has delivered some of the awards show's most memorable moments over the decades. asserted
who → mark → decades
Her high-energy opening set officially got the night underway after viewers had to wait longer than expected for the broadcast to begin. asserted
broadcast → get → ?
Snoop Dogg is hosting this year's VMAs, which returned to the West Coast for the first time in nearly a decade. asserted
which → host → decade
Ahead of the show, Taylor Swift was among the final stars to arrive on the red carpet, stepping out in a black halter bodysuit paired with a sparkling silver draped skirt. asserted
Swift → arrive → skirt
The 2026 MTV VMAs are airing live Sunday night on CBS, simulcast on MTV and streaming on Paramount+. asserted
VMAs → air → Paramount+
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