Why Noah Kahan Wasn't at VMAs 2026

By Olivia Evans Sep 28, 2026 3:09 PM

| Updated 48 minutes ago

“So easy to get bogged down in silly bulls—t,” the 29-year-old wrote in a separate post on X. “I don’t care at all. You guys know how this started and how lucky I am to be here!! Thank you for that.”

And later, the “Stick Season” singer joked that he did come away from the evening with a win after all. 

“Omg I won Most Deviated Septum !!!” Kahan joked in another post. “Thank you so much to the academy and to all my fellow nominees. Every single one of you has SUCH a sore throat in the morning and you all deserve to be up here giving this nasally speech. I’m in shock.”

Meanwhile, the VMAs ceremony went off without a hitch—seeing Madonna walk away as the most decorated artist of the evening with seven awards, including Artist of the Year for her comeback album Confessions II. 

“I want you to know that I spent the last year finding myself, believing in myself and really making the music that I wanted to make,” Madonna said while accepting the award. “To me, that really is the definition of being an artist.”

Swift, for her part, also celebrated a truly enchanting evening, taking home three awards to become the most decorated musician in VMAs history. The “Opalite” singer also took home the ceremony’s inaugural Artist Director Award for her contribution in directing her own videos. 

“I really love writing and directing music videos,” Swift mused while accepting the golden Moon Person. “I’ve got to tell you, though, the main reason why I love writing and directing music videos so much is because you, the fans, make it so much fun. You make it so rewarding because you actually care about what we’re making so I want to say thank you to everyone who ever worked on a music video that I got to be a part of.”

For more stars who stepped out at the VMAs ceremony, keep reading…