BLACKPINK’s Rosé and Lisa walked away with two of the night’s biggest honors at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, held on September 11. Both artists picked up major wins—Rosé for Song of the Year with Bruno Mars, and Lisa for Best K-pop—but fans are now questioning whether the results were fair.
Standing on stage at UBS Arena in New York, Rosé delivered an emotional speech, holding a small set of notes. She spoke about her biggest fear, disappointing her 16-year-old self, explaining that as a teenager, she often felt like an outsider.
Rosé’s Song of the Year victory at the 2025 MTV VMAs was historic; she’s the first K-pop soloist to earn that honor. But while their wins were celebrated, social media quickly filled with uproar.
Many critics pointed out the VMAs’ unclear voting process. While Song of the Year is fan-voted, some argue that MTV and sponsors still control the results. One viral tweet said, “When sponsors pick winners, art loses. #VMAs sold out years ago.” Another user asked, “Fans voted for Billie, but Rosé won? How does that math work unless sponsors intervened?”
Soon after her win, fans of other artists accused MTV of letting sponsors influence the results, while others said the math simply didn’t add up.
Lisa’s win carried its own share of backlash. She won Best K-pop for “Born Again,” her collaboration with Doja Cat and Raye. The award marked her third victory in the category, tying BTS for the most wins.
Lisa didn’t attend the ceremony but appeared in a pre-recorded message, thanking her collaborators and fans. While her supporters celebrated, others weren’t happy—especially fans of BTS’s Jimin, who had also been nominated. They felt he was unfairly snubbed, with one fan posting, “I know it’s rigged, we all know.” Another wrote, “This just shows nepotism in the industry.”
The VMAs have faced rigging accusations for years. Back in 2016, Kanye West famously claimed the show is rigged, suggesting Beyoncé got Video of the Year in 2016 only because she threatened not to perform otherwise. The network’s own fine print has also fueled suspicions, as it states MTV can override fan votes if necessary.
An old interview excerpt of Ed Sheeran has resurfaced, too, where he admitted he was given a VMA only because Pharrell didn’t show up to collect his. “They said, ‘He’s not here, do you want it?’” Sheeran recalled.
On the other hand, fans have defended Rosé and Lisa’s wins at the VMAs were well-deserved. “APT”, the Rosé and Bruno Mars collaboration, has been charting on Billboard HOT 100 since November last year. The MV has close to 2 billion views on YouTube, which shows the song’s global popularity.
Similarly, “Born Again” was equally popular and Lisa’s highest-charting song on the HOT 100. BLINKs and individual fanbases of BLACKPINK members cast millions of votes to lead them to victory.
Meanwhile, BLACKPINK won the Best Group and KATSEYE took home Push Performance of the Year awards at VMAs 2025.
