The 17 Best- and Worst-Dressed Celebs at the 2025 VMAs

The “Tears” singer and Best Album winner didn’t have to show up all sophisticated and slinky, but it was pretty smart of her to do so in light of all the criticism she’s received for the cover of her “Man’s Best Friend” album. Like a lot of Sabrina’s red carpet choices, it owes quite a bit to Madonna and gives off that same “you guys better take me seriously as an artist because I’m not going anywhere” vibe that she used to deploy so well. It’s a grown-up sort of sexy but it still has that crayon-colored pop girlie feel to it.

See more of Sabrina’s look

The “Back to Friends” singer and Best New Artist nominee showed a pretty impressive sense of relaxed style from the minute he hit the scene, so it wasn’t a surprise to us that he’d show up to the VMAs sporting one of the best menswear looks of the night. The embroidery on the suit is gorgeous, but our one critique is that the shirt is pulling focus from it. We’d have recommended a shirt that provided some contrast or even no shirt at all. Love the jewelry choices and the shoes.

The “Whatchu Kno About Me” singer and Best Hip-Hop nominee came ready to serve a lot of look packed into a little tiny garment. We actually love the color, pattern and style here. It’s incredibly eye-catching and extremely well-suited to her. We’re less in love with the molded cups of the bust and, from a strictly proportions perspective, we think the skirt should be a little longer, if only to coordinate better with the jacket length. But honestly, if she just ditched the anklets, the whole thing would improve. Satin bags always give “comes with purchase.”

Did we burst out laughing at this? Okay, yes. But only because we think it’s so delightful and so incredibly well-suited to the “Vodka Cranberry” singer. We’ll always applaud a classic flamboyant turn on the red carpet, and we figure this corset/sailor/glam rock hybrid may just be one of the most original takes on this style on the VMAs red carpet in many years.

See more of Conan’s look

Because sometimes, all a lady needs is a tiny little dress and 10 pounds of gold. It’s classic, it’s sexy, it’s playful, and on top of all that, if gives off a total luxury feel. It’s not complicated—it’s just a well-styled, classically cute look.

See more of Tyla’s look

The “Sports Car” singer and Song of the Summer winner has always been the kind of girl to keep things simple, and as gowns go, this sheer number can’t possibly be any simpler. It’s sexy, unfussy, and direct in its approach. We like that the styling was kept so low-key. A lot of jewelry or complicated hair would’ve worked against the vibe. The point is to look ready for a breeze to catch your hair at any moment—and also to look hot. We’d say she nailed it.

See more of Tate’s look

We wanted to like this. We tend to pay a little more attention whenever a celebrity pulls from an archive or sports a vintage piece. So when the “Gyatt” singer mentioned that this look was from the Ralph Lauren Spring 2003 collection, we leaned forward. It’s a great style for her, but the problem is that the bust looks painfully tight. And the more we look at it, the less we like the patchwork skirt. Love the hair though!

We figure if your song “Eusexua” is nominated for a Best Choreography VMA, you’re gonna feel like you need to show up all sexy. But Twigs never goes the simple or conventional route, so her version of hot is futuristic, aggressive, and honestly looks a little uncomfortable. In other words, it’s sexy with tension, sexy as a form of self-expression. The result, as always, is that she looks amazing and also looks like nobody else in attendance.

The “Gyatt” singer may just have worn the most conventionally glam look of the night. This vintage Versace certainly has the kind of flash and glam we’d expect from a VMAs red carpet look, but it’s also got the kind of elegance you might see at a more traditional awards ceremony. In other words, it’s a Grammys dress, but there’s nothing wrong with wearing a great frock to the VMAs if you want to. The shimmer coordinates really well with her hair and gives her that “goddess/superstar” feel.

The legend himself came to perform (which he did, spectacularly) so we don’t blame him for keeping the red carpet choice simple and easy to ditch later for a stage costume. He’s been in the business a long time so he knows this sort of thing, just as he knows to give the public what they want to see from Ricky Martin, which is a laid-back, uncomplicated sexiness.

The star of Too Much always does her best to live up to that title and this time, she opted to do so by dressing in…a salute to coffee cups or something? We confess, we were a little confused by it. The funny thing is, this might be the best she’s ever looked on a red carpet. It’s goofy and also very polished. Sort of like good drag.

We love a good red carpet homage and this one, from “Heart of a Woman” and Best R&B nominee is both fun and a little poignant, as it’s an homage to the over-the-top ensemble Pamela Anderson wore to the 1999 VMAs. That wasn’t a great time for Pamela, according to her, but we think Summer’s just reclaiming a fun look and paying homage to an icon who survived a lot. It’s also just plain cute on her.

We’ve been saying for years that Lenny Kravitz, despite never aging and remaining supernaturally hot, should seriously consider changing up his never-changed style. We like to think his daughter Zoë used her Saint Laurent brand ambassador bona fides to convince him to try this gorgeous suit she snagged for him. Regardless, he’s given up none of his sexiness, but this feels more modern and chic.

You probably couldn’t find a better match for Paris Hilton than downtown club and drag-inspired The Blonds, who gave her exactly the kind of almost-costume this icon deserves. Our only issue with it is that all that leather tends to look unworkably stiff in anything but a stand-and-pose situation and there’s something kind of serious about the black tights and pumps. Surely you can find hotter footwear than that, girl.

See more of Paris’s look