Madonna Opened the 2026 MTV VMAs With a Sultry Performance Featuring Sabrina Carpenter, Charli XCX and More - VICE
The 2026 MTV VMAs just kicked off with a bang. To open the show, legendary pop queen Madonna delivered a sexy, star-studded performance.
First, Madonna and Sabrina Carpenter launched into “Bring Your Love”, a collab featured on Madonna’s 2026 album Confessions II. Then, Charli XCX tagged in and the pair performed “Danceteria Afterhours”, a collaborative reimagining of Madonna’s “Danceteria”, also from her 2026 album.
In addition to the two pop divas, Madonna also had a few other famous faces on stage, like singer Sombr and actor/comedian Seth Rogen.
Madonna & Charli pic.twitter.com/H5ZIEC3JGk
In addition to her performance, Madonna was nominated for a total of 13 Moonmen at this year’s MTV VMAs. Notably, the only other artist to be nominated that many times in a single year was Lady Gaga, back in 2010.
Among her nominations was one for Best Collab, for her and Carpenter’s aforementioned track. During their acceptance speech, Madonna joked that she had to “DM” Carpenter on social media after not initially hearing back from her on plans to work together.
Notably, Carpenter and Madonna had another big live collab this year. The legendary pop star joined Carpenter on stage at Coachella back in April.
Afterwards, Carpenter took to Instagram to share her excitement. “Coachella weekend 2 might take the damn cake. Madonna,” she wrote. “I’ve got something I wanna talk about!”
Carpenter continued, “Thank you for coming out, bringing your love, and gracing the audience with everything you are + astrology knowledge + the greatest songs of all time. Last night was straight out of a dream. Spending so much time laughing with you and then, above all, sharing the stage with you is a privilege I’ll never forget. x.”
Madonna repied in a separate post, according to Elle. “Still flying high since Friday night at Coachella!” she wrote. “Thank you to Sabrina and everyone who made it possible To Bring Confessions II back to where it began -was such a thrill! A moment in history, I will never forget! I FEEL SO FREE.”
