Madonna sparked concern among fans as she appeared to forget why she was onstage as she scooped the MTV VMA for Best Dance at the 2026 ceremony on Sunday.
The Queen of Pop, 68, who was earlier derided online for her ‘utterly unfocused’ opening performance of hits Bring Your Love and Danceteria Afterhours Remix, took home seven honors on the night, yet seemed confused as she took to the stage.
Madonna joined Charli XCX and Troye Sivan to accept the prize for Confessions II – The Film – yet her acceptance speech took an awkward turn when she quipped: ‘I’m kind of unclear as to what this award is for?’
The awkward moment unfolded as Madonna took to the stage and declared, ‘First of all, I want to get this thing out of my a**. It’s been there all night’, before reaching behind her.
‘My microphone is too short!’, she then cried out.
She pulled Sivan and Charli into her, saying, ‘Safety in numbers. I’m kind of unclear as to what this award is for. I guess it’s for the short film?’ before Charli opened the announcement card to jog her memory.
Madonna continued, ‘I feel, like, good surrounded by people who like to dance, Charli, Troye’, before adding, ‘You guys didn’t get the joke about the laser up my a**, did you?
‘It was up there all night before I took it out.’
The singer added: ‘Dance is where everything happened for me in my life. If you love to dance, stand up… we’re all equal on the dance floor.’ Madonna then left the stage.
