Taylor Swift’s inaugural Artist Director Honors

Taylor Swift's inaugural award at the VMAs was created because of 'external' influences. (Instagram)

A few days ago, it was confirmed that Taylor Swift will receive the inaugural Artist Director Honors award. Now, one of the producers behind the VMA award shows revealed how the title and the brand-new award came to be in the first place.

VMA producer confirms that the inaugural award for Taylor Swift was created using outside influence

While talking to AP Entertainment, Bruce Gillmer opened up about the inaugural Artist Director Honors award, further revealing that “The Artist Director Honor really is an extension of the [Video] Vanguard [Award]. And in many ways, even larger in stature because it was an idea that, quite frankly, the kernel of the idea came from external. I’ll leave it at that.”He continued sharing and added that a lot of work went into creating the award and understanding who the first recipient would be.

He added that he took his time “crafting and thinking about what this could be, the importance of it, [and] launching something as big or bigger than Vanguard. Right away, you see Taylor. Multiple nominations for director.”The official description of the new award read that it was meant for “groundbreaking music artists whose work behind the camera has expanded the possibilities of music video."

Taylor Swift creates history at the MTV VMAs

With this win, Swift has yet again created a historical legacy.

After receiving the award in a few hours, Swift will be the most awarded artist in VMA history. The singer was previously tied with Beyoncé, as both of them had 30 wins each. However, with her inaugural award, that will bring the count to a total of eight people.

When will the MTV VMA awards start?

The 2026 MTV Video Music Awards are happening today, September 27, 2026. The award show will start live at 7:30 PM ET and 4:30 PM PT. In India, the award show will start live on Monday, September 28, at 5 AM in the morning. The awards can be watched on CBS and MTV, or they can also be streamed on Paramount+.For this year’s VMAs, the singer has also become the second most nominated person with 10 nominations. She follows closely behind Madonna, who received 11 nominations this year.