The MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) is considered one of the biggest and most influential music award shows in the U.S., particularly known for its impact on music videos and pop culture. This year’s ceremony is scheduled to take place on September 27 at the Peacock Theater, part of the L.A. LIVE complex in Los Angeles. With just one month to go before the event, the 2026 VMAs recently officially announced its list of nominees, revealing the stars competing across various categories.
However, the nominations quickly sparked major backlash from ARMYs. BTS received only two nominations: Song of the Year for “SWIM” and Best K-Pop — significantly fewer than many fans had expected. In particular, the group was absent from major categories such as Artist of the Year and Video of the Year. Fans’ disappointment and suspicions became even more apparent after they noticed that all of the artists nominated for Album of the Year were αмєяι¢αn.
This has led fans to question whether the VMAs is following in the footsteps of the Grammys — allegedly keeping BTS out of its most prestigious categories to preserve an advantage for domestic artists. One fan expressed: “It's not based on chart or numbers or any critical score but MTV chooses wtv tf they want FOR CLOUT & juicy gossip for those who PAY THEM.” Another frustrated fan said: “No artist of the year or album or the year?? they were robbed already. I hope BTS do not attend this rigged awards show. They have better things to do!”
Against this backdrop, BIGHIT Music’s latest move regarding the VMAs immediately caught the attention of fans and netizens!
Specifically, on August 19, BTS’ official account, managed by BigHit Music, posted a congratulatory poster celebrating the group’s two nominations along with the message: “So excited to be nominated for ‘Song of the Year’ & ‘Best K-Pop’ at the 2026 #VMAs! #BTSARMY, thank you for all your endless love and support”. The account also directly called on fans to vote for BTS on the award show’s official website.
What caught ARMYs’ attention was how differently BIGHIT handled the VMAs compared to the AMAs. Some fans noticed that the company actively promoted the VMAs and called for votes, while there had previously been no similar move for the AMAs — even though BTS directly attended the ceremony and won the “Artist Of The Year” award there in May.
This difference has led to a theory: could BTS’ appearance at the AMAs have actually been a last-minute decision? Some ARMYs believe that BIGHIT’s original promotional schedule did not appear to account for the AMAs, while the fact that the tracking period lasted only around six days further fueled suspicions that the company had not expected BTS to receive a nomination. Therefore, BTS’ appearance at the AMAs may have been decided rather hastily, rather than being part of a promotional plan prepared well in advance.
Looking at BigHit Music’s latest move regarding BTS’ VMAs nominations from the opposite perspective, this could mean that the event has already been part of the company’s plans. If so, there is a strong possibility that BTS will attend this year’s VMAs — and may even be preparing a performance for the event!
Meanwhile, fans have also noticed that BTS’ schedule looks rather suspicious. In September, BTS will also be in Los Angeles for four concert nights at the beginning of the month. Notably, their concert schedule is then left completely open for nearly 20 days, with their next scheduled performances not taking place until early October in Bogotá, Colombia. The fact that there are no concerts scheduled around the time of the award ceremony has only further fueled fans’ suspicions.
As speculation began to grow, some fans expressed their excitement: "They might attend who knows", "I guess they will be attending and performing", "What's happening? We need Namjoon or Hobi go live now", "The way they didn’t do this for #AMAs. OMG, soмєтнing big is coming", "OMG, are we getting BTS at the VMAs?!", "Hold on, is a VMAs appearance coming after a long time?", "This gonna be huge. Nice watching BTS on award show",...
However, others were not nearly as enthusiastic, especially given the current accusations that the VMAs has treated BTS unfairly by giving them only two nominations. Some fans were even unimpressed by BigHit Music’s latest move to support the VMAs while seemingly “ignoring” the AMAs. One fan questioned: “I don't understand why they would acknowledge the VMAs, which is known to be dodgy at best, and not the AMAs, which is one of the big 3 music award shows. What are they thinking?”
Some fans also shared similar opinions, saying: "I hope BTS don't attend as they have now moved beyond needing such a questionable award", "What if they won't attend and this is already their interaction with the award show?", "I really hope they don’t attend VMAS. They snubbed BTS. If they go it’s their wish but I hope they won’t attend", "Honestly, I really don’t want BTS to attend the VMAs after the way they were treated with these nominations", "Please let BTS stay away from the VMAs. They have nothing to prove to an award show that keeps putting them in a box",...
