BTS Wins in All Three VMA Categories: “SWIM” Is Song of the Year

BTS has plenty to celebrate after this year's MTV Video Music Awards. They were nominated in three categories and won all three, with “SWIM” named Song of the Year.

Alongside Song of the Year, “SWIM” also won Best K-Pop, while BTS took home Best Group. Three nominations turned into three new VMA awards.

The most significant of the three is certainly Song of the Year. BTS was first nominated in that category back in 2021 with “Dynamite,” but had to wait until this year for their first win. “SWIM” has now brought them an award that was still missing from their VMA collection, and BTS became the first K-pop act to win Song of the Year.

“SWIM” faced strong competition for the award. Nominees included songs by Madonna and Sabrina Carpenter, RAYE, Olivia Dean, PinkPantheress and Zara Larsson, Ella Langley, and HUNTR/X.

The Best Group win continues a story that began back in 2019. BTS won that award four years in a row, through 2022, and now returns to it after a few years away. This is their fifth win, and BTS remains the act with the most wins in that category.

BTS wasn't present at the ceremony in Los Angeles, so this time there was no group walk to the stage or acceptance speech. After the results were announced, BTS thanked ARMY through BIGHIT MUSIC for their love and support. They said ARIRANG represents a new beginning for them, which is why these awards carry special meaning, and that they'll keep making new music and performances together.

The wins come just over six months after the release of ARIRANG and BTS's return with new music. “SWIM” had already debuted at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 at the start of that new chapter, and has now added two more major awards to its story.

Although BTS already has a long list of accolades behind them, this year's VMAs brought something they hadn't had before: Song of the Year. With two more wins on the same night, it's hard to imagine a better result.