Taylor Swift took home the top prize at the 2023 MTV Video Music Awards for her Anti-Hero music video on a night full of surprises.

“This is unbelievable. The fact that this is a fan-voted award means so much to me,” Swift said in her acceptance speech. “I can’t believe it was a year ago that I announced the Midnights album.”

The show, held at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, was Swift’s from nearly the beginning. The night’s first presenters were none other than NSYNC, who reunited to hand the best pop video award to Swift.

In coordinating suits, Justin Timberlake, Joey Fatone, Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick, and JC Chasez shared the stage with Swift. Bass handed her a friendship bracelet, just as fans do at the superstar’s shows. “You’re pop personified,” she told the group.

The night’s top nominee later returned to the stage to pick up the song of the year trophy for Anti-Hero and also the best direction award.

Swift took home nine of the 11 awards she was up for, including artist of the year in a category made up entirely of women nominees for the first time in VMA history.

Her Karma (Remix) collaborator, Ice Spice, won best new artist. “Oh, my God, this is so cool,” she said. “I just want to thank my munchkins.”

New music was abundant throughout the show. Host Nicki Minaj performed her latest single, the dreamy Last Time I Saw You before jumping into a brand-new tease of a fiery new trap cut from her highly-anticipated Pink Friday 2 album.

“I ain’t nothing like you,” she raps, “I’m on a whole other level.”

As much as Swift dominated, the VMAs centred on music’s global power. K-pop boy band Tomorrow X Together and Brazilian superstar Anitta premièred their new collaboration, the glossy retro-pop of Back for More.

Comedian Tiffany Haddish presented the award for Best Afrobeats in the category’s inaugural year, given to Rema and Selena Gomez for their massive hit Calm Down.

“Africa in the house!” Rema started his acceptance speech. “Shout out to Fela (Kuti) who started Afrobeats in the first place…and I want to give a big shout out to the next generation of Afrobeats.”

Gomez stood a few feet from the microphone but jumped in when Rema asked her to, telling the crowd: “I want to send all of my love to Nigeria, thank you.”

Diddy received the Global Icon Award from Mary J Blige and his daughter Chance Combs. He is third recipient of the award, following the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 2022 and the Foo Fighters in 2021.

The legendary rapper also performed at the VMAs for the first time since 2005. It was an incredible collection of some of his biggest hits like Bad Boy for Life and Mo Money Mo Problems, joined by some of his greatest collaborators: Yung Miami, Keyshia Cole, and sweetest of all, his son, King Combs.

“Love wins, y’all, love wins,” he started his speech. “I started out as a paper boy, I didn’t know I was going to be here.” He then led the audience with a chant of “bad boy”.

“This is for 30 years,” he continued. “I pray to God that you get to do what you love for 30 years.”

Lil Wayne opened the show with a performance of his new single Kat Food. Immediately afterward, Olivia Rodrigo brought her Vampire music video set to the stage, before launching into her cheeky pop-punk single Get Him Back!

French Montana used his position as best R&B presenter alongside Ashanti to draw attention to Morocco earthquake relief, spotlighting a relief fund that he said he would personally donate to. Montana grew up in Morocco.

Near the end of the show, the MTV Video Music Awards celebrated 50 years of hip hop with a star-studded finale performance. Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five started with The Message, which led to Doug E Fresh and Slick Rick’s The Show. Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne, LL Cool J and DMC of Run-DMC closed it out — an energetic celebration of a multigenerational culture.