MTV VMAs ready to host and honor some of music’s biggest acts

LL Cool J hosting the iHeartRadio Music Awards in Los Angeles on March 22, 2022, left, and Nicki Minaj at The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute benefit gala in New York on May 6, 2019 at the MTV Video Music Awards in New York on Sept. 12, 2021.

AP

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LL Cool J hosting the iHeartRadio Music Awards in Los Angeles on March 22, 2022, left, and Nicki Minaj at The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute benefit gala in New York on May 6, 2019 at the MTV Video Music Awards in New York on Sept. 12, 2021.

AP

NEW YORK — The MTV Video Music Awards are back Sunday with some of the biggest names in music vying for the network’s fabled Moon Person statue.

Lil Nas X, Jack Harlow and Kendrick Lamar are tied for leading nominees with seven apiece. Harlow and Lil Nas X’s collaboration “Industry Baby” propelled their nominations, landing them in competition for artist of the year along with Drake, Bad Bunny, Ed Sheeran, Harry Styles and Lizzo.

Closely behind are Harry Styles and Doja Cat, who received six nominations apiece, while Sheeran, Billie Eilish, Drake, Dua Lipa, Tayler Swift and The Weeknd each have five.

Harlow is pulling double duty, joining LL Cool J and Nicki Minaj as the show’s emcees. The VMAs are being being held at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, and will air beginning at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Minaj will perform hits from throughout her career and accept the show’s video vanguard award, which MTV has said she’s receiving for her artistry, barrier-breaking hip-hop and status as a global superstar. The honor is named after Michael Jackson.

Eminem, Snoop Dogg, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bad Bunny are also set to perform

Madonna, who is the most awarded artist in MTV history with 20 wins, becomes the only artist to receive a nomination in each of the VMAs five decades. She earned her 69th nomination for her 14th studio album “Madame X.”

Lamar returns to the VMAs as a nominee for the first time since 2018, with nods for best hip-hop, direction, visual effects, editing, and a category known as video for good, while his songs “family ties” and “N95” are competing for best cinematography.