Gov. Tim Walz has responded to Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris as she runs for the office of President of the United States – and as a “fellow cat owner,” he’s happy.

Walz, the Minnesota governor who is Harris’ VP pick on the Democratic ticket for the President of the United States, was on MSNBC speaking to Rachel Maddow on Tuesday (Sept. 10) night, shortly after the 2024 presidential debate wrapped, when news broke that Taylor Swift had endorsed Harris.

“I am incredibly grateful to Taylor Swift and I say that as a fellow cat owner,” Walz said after Maddow read him part of Swift’s lengthy, heartfelt Instagram statement. “That was eloquent and that was clear and that’s the type of courage we need in America to stand up. We’ve seen it out of those Republicans who were at the DNC. We’ve seen it out of women who would like to have their personal lives kept personal but are forced to go out there because they nearly died because they can’t get abortion services in a pregnancy. And now you have somebody like Taylor Swift coming out making that very clear. This would be the opportunity, Swifties: KamalaHarris.com, get on over there, get things going.”

Swift’s statement was both a rebuke of fake AI content that falsely claimed she endorsed Trump and an explanation of her political priorities in the upcoming election.

“Recently I was made aware that AI of ‘me’ falsely endorsing Donald Trump’s presidential run was posted to his site,” Swift posted on her Instagram immediately after the 2024 Presidential Debate wrapped. “It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation. It brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter. The simplest way to combat misinformation is with the truth.

“I will be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz in the 2024 Presidential Election. I’m voting for @kamalaharris because she fights for the rights and causes I believe need a warrior to champion them. I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos. I was so heartened and impressed by her selection of running mate @timwalz, who has been standing up for LGBTQ+ rights, IVF, and a woman’s right to her own body for decades.”

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

The MTV VMAs are back with a star-studded lineup of presenters, performers and honorees. The ceremony will air live from New York’s USB Arena on MTV on Wednesday (Sept. 11).

Megan Thee Stallion will emcee in addition to performing on the show.

Taylor Swift leads this year’s nominees race with 12 nods, followed by Post Malone with 11 nominations. Eminem, Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, SZA and Megan Thee Stallion are tied with seven nominations each. LISA, Billie Eilish, GloRilla, Charli XCX, Chappell Roan, Olivia Rodrigo, Benson Boone and Teddy Swims landed four nods each.

Anitta, Beyoncé, Coldplay, Bleachers, Dua Lipa, Kendrick Lamar, Rauw Alejandro and Tyla earned three nominations. Rounding out the list with two nominations apiece are Bad Bunny, Camila Cabello, Drake, Hozier, Imagine Dragons, Jelly Roll, Jesse Murph, Jung Kook, NCT Dream, NewJeans, Sexxy Redd, Tate McRae, TOMORROW X TOGETHER, Usher and Victoria Monét.

Katy Perry will receive the Video Vanguard Award during the ceremony and will perform a medley of her hits.

See below for everything you need to know about the 2024 VMAs, including broadcast information, how to watch online, performers and more.

When Are the 2024 MTV VMAs?

The VMAs returns to UBS Arena on Wednesday, Sept. 11, airing at 8 p.m. ET/PT on MTV.

The show will also be simulcast on CMT, Comedy Central, Logo, BET, BET Her, MTV2, VH1, Nickelodeon and Paramount Network. Additionally, the VMAs will stream live on UniMás and air on Univision at 11:30 p.m. ET.

How to Watch the 2024 MTV VMAs on Paramount+

If you don’t have access to MTV through cable, satellite or a streaming service, you can watch the 2024 VMAs for free on Paramount+. The streamer offers a free trial for the first week, plus a 50% discount on its annual plans. The limited deal means you can subscribe to the Essential plan for just $30, or $60 for Paramount+ with Showtime.

Paramount+ offers monthly subscriptions starting at $8 a month for ad-supported streaming and $13 a month to access Paramount+ and Showtime (commercial free), and a free trial for the first week. But you’ll save more with the annual plan because the 50% off promo slices that monthly price down to $2.50-$5 per month for a year.

You can also subscribe to Paramount+ through Prime Video.

Paramount+ features exclusive TV series, movies, CBS shows, live news, NFL games and more.

Read on for other ways to watch the VMAs from anywhere.

How to Watch the MTV VMAs on Philo, DirecTV & More:

Music lovers can also stream MTV on Sling TV, DirecTV Stream, Philo, fuboTV and Hulu + Live TV. The streaming platforms offer free trials and discounted pricing, and instant access to MTV, so you can watch the 2024 VMAs live or on-demand from your TV or stream the VMAs from your laptop, tablet or phone.

Interested in streaming deals? There are a bunch of discounts to take advantage of. For example, you can join Hulu + Live TV and save $30 off the first month under a limited promo. The web-only offer ends on Sept. 11. Hulu + Live’s streaming plans start at $76.99/month after a three-day free trial.

DirecTV Stream is discounted $80 over three months (reg. $98/month) and Sling TV starts as low as $20/month for a limited time only. There are also streaming packages available for Spanish speakers, including DirecTV’s Óptimo Más, Fubo Latino and Sling Latino.

If you’re streaming from outside of the U.S., use ExpressVPN or NordVPN to watch the VMAs internationally.

Who Is Performing and Presenting at the 2024 MTV VMAs?

Anitta, Carpenter, Boone, Perry, Cabello, Roan, Eminem, GloRilla, Halsey, KAROL G, LISA, Lenny Kravitz, LL Cool J, Megan Thee Stallion and Shawn Mendes are all set to perform at the VMAs.

The list presenters for the 2024 VMAs include Addison Rae, Alessandra Ambrosio, Amelia Dimoldenberg, Big Sean, Busta Rhymes, Carson Daly, Cyndi Lauper, Damiano David (Måneskin), DANNA, DJ Khaled, Fat Joe, Flavor Flav, French Montana, Halle Bailey, Jordan Chiles, Lil Nas X, Miranda Lambert, Naomi Scott, Paris Hilton, Suki Waterhouse, Thalía and Tinashe.

The recorded music market in Europe is at risk of falling behind other global regions unless regulators enforce tougher protections for artists, creators and rightsholders, according to a new report from international labels trade body IFPI.

In Europe, music sales grew to over $8 billion in 2023, representing more than a quarter of global revenues (28.1%) and maintaining the continent’s long-held status as the second largest region in the world for recorded music sales behind the U.S. and Canada, according to IFPI data.

Europe’s prominent position is coming under threat, however, from other music markets that are growing at faster rates, states IFPI’s first-ever report focused specifically on recorded music in the European Union, published Tuesday (Sept. 10).

Last year, music sales among the 27 members of the European Union trading block — which the U.K. exited in 2020 — grew by 8.7% to 5.2 billion euros ($5.7 billion), says IFPI. While that places the EU below only the U.S. in total revenue terms, several other international markets are significantly outpacing its growth rate thanks to the widespread global adoption of music streaming services.

Examples cited by IFPI include China, which grew music sales by more than 25% to 1.3 billion euro ($1.4 billion) in 2023; Sub-Saharan Africa, up 25% to 85 million euros ($93 million); Mexico, up 18% to 454 million euros ($500 million); and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), which climbed 14% to 102 million euro ($112 million).

Although all of those territories are developing from far lower bases than mature EU markets such as France and Germany — and all have some way to go before they come close to surpassing EU music sales — IFPI said their rapid growth represents “warning signs” that the region is facing strong competition from its global competitors. Notably, some of those fast-growing music markets were virtually non-existent just over a decade ago.

The report, which is titled “Music in the EU: A Global Opportunity,” comes three months after European Parliament elections and ahead of the unveiling of the new European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, which is expected to take place later this month.

The new cohort of Brussels politicians will be responsible for monitoring and enforcing already passed EU legislation such as the Digital Services Act, Digital Markets Act and the AI Act, which all impact the music business to varying degrees, in some instances significantly.

“The EU is a vitally important place for music,” said IFPI CEO Victoria Oakley in a statement. “However, the data in this report shows us that other parts of the world are developing and growing rapidly and the EU risks falling behind.”

To ensure that the EU’s music market stays competitive, Oakley called on European policymakers to provide “legal certainty and protection for music rightsholders, supporting the development of responsible and ethical AI and creating a competitive playing field on which today’s dynamic music sector can evolve.”

“Today, European music faces great risk but also great opportunity,” Oakley continued. “How policymakers address these issues will help determine its future.”

An accompanying press release from IFPI said its research sets out how policymakers can help “secure a positive future for music at what is a pivotal time for music in Europe” amidst rising global competition.
The report notes that when adjusted for inflation, recorded music revenue in the EU last year was only 61% of where they were in 2001, the music industry’s revenue peak.

Specific areas in which IFPI says policymakers can support creators and rightsholders include effective implementation of the EU’s AI Act, which passed earlier this year, and upholding existing EU copyright laws preventing the use of copyright-protected works and music from being used for training AI systems without prior consent. AI developers must also maintain and provide records of the materials used in training and developing generative AI models that enable rightsholders to exercise and enforce their rights, says IFPI.

When it comes to individual EU markets, the report highlights the continued strong performance of domestic acts in their home countries. In the 22 EU markets where IFPI collects yearly chart data, on average, 60% of the Top 10s were tracks by domestic artists in 2023, compared to only 47% in non-EU markets.

EU markets fared less well in terms of top 10 global chart exports, which were once again dominated by U.S. artists like Miley Cyrus, SZA and Taylor Swift last year, though Latin and Central American artists, most notably from Columbia and Puerto Rico, also performed well.

The MTV VMAs are looking pretty good for 40. They have a red-hot host, Megan Thee Stallion; a highly credible show-opener, Eminem; and a cast of performers that includes two of the buzziest artists of the year, Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan.

The 2024 VMAs are set to air live on Wednesday (Sept. 11) at 8 p.m. ET/PT from New York’s UBS Arena. Katy Perry, who won video of the year for “Firework” in 2011 and hosted the show in 2017, is set to receive the Video Vanguard Award and also perform a hit medley. (She’s the first person in VMA history to host, win video of the year and get the Vanguard – the MTV trifecta.)

Presenters include Cyndi Lauper, who won a Moon Man for best female video at the very first VMAs on Sept. 14, 1984. (The show is now more woke: The award is now referred to as a Moon Person all categories are gender-neutral.) Carson Daly is also set to present. Daly hosted MTV’s popular TRL from 1998 to 2003, back when the channel still played music videos instead of endless reruns of Ridiculousness and Catfish.

Eminem will open the show just weeks after his latest album, The Death of Slim Shady (Coup de Grace), became his 11th album to enter the Billboard 200 at No. 1. Just this week, his 2005 hits compilation Curtain Call: The Hits became the first hip-hop album ever to log 700 weeks on the Billboard 200.

Eminem landed eight nominations this year. His smash “Houdini,” which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, is up for six awards, including video of the year and song of the summer. In addition, Eminem is nominated for artist of the year and VMAs most iconic performance for his 2000 performance (joined by 100+ Eminem lookalikes) of “The Real Slim Shady” and “The Way I Am.”

If Eminem wins in just one of the eight categories, he will break out of a tie with Peter Gabriel for the most wins by a male artist in the show’s history (13).

Taylor Swift leads all artists with 12 nods this year. If she wins five or more, she’ll pull ahead of Beyoncé as the artist with the most VMAs in history. Bey currently has 27, followed by Swift (23), Madonna (20) and Lady Gaga (18).

Teddy Swims and Jessie Murph are set to make their VMA debuts by performing on the Extended Play Stage. Le Sserafim will make their U.S. award show debut by performing on the VMAs pre-show. 

General fan voting closed Friday (Sept. 6) on MTV’s website. Voting for best new artist remains active through the show.

With the addition of social categories, Swift still leads in terms of most nominations (12), followed by Post Malone (11), Eminem (eight), Ariana Grande, Megan Thee Stallion, Sabrina Carpenter + SZA (seven each); Benson Boone, Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, Charli XCX, GloRilla, LISA, Olivia Rodrigo + Teddy Swims (four each).

Swift and Malone are not scheduled to perform, nor are such other heavily-nominated artists as Grande, SZA, Boone and Eilish.

The 2024 VMAs will air live on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET/PT across MTV’s global footprint, including BET, BET Her, CMT, Comedy Central, Logo, MTV, MTV2, Nick at Nite, Paramount Network, Pop, TV Land, VH1 and Univision.

Hosted by Nessa, Dometi Pongo and Kevan Kenney, the 90-minute live VMAs pre-show special airs from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on MTV, MTV2, CMT and Logo.

Bruce Gillmer and Den of Thieves co-founder Jesse Ignjatovic are executive producers. Barb Bialkowski is co-executive producer. Alicia Portugal and Jackie Barba are executives in charge of production. Wendy Plaut is executive in charge of celebrity talent. Lisa Lauricella is music talent executive.

Here are all the performers and presenters for the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards.

Performers

Anitta (feat. Fat Joe, DJ Khaled + Tiago PZK)

Benson Boone

Camila Cabello

Chappell Roan

Eminem

GloRilla

Halsey

Jessie Murph (Extended Play stage) 

KAROL G

Katy Perry (Video Vanguard Award)

Le Sserafim (pre-show)

Lenny Kravitz

LISA

LL COOL J

Megan Thee Stallion (also host)

Rauw Alejandro

Sabrina Carpenter

Shawn Mendes

Teddy Swims (Extended Play stage)

Presenters

Addison Rae

Alessandra Ambrosio

Amelia Dimoldenberg

Big Sean

Busta Rhymes

Cyndi Lauper

Damiano David (Måneskin)

DANNA

DJ Khaled

Fat Joe

Flavor Flav

French Montana

Halle Bailey

Jordan Chiles

Lil Nas X

Miranda Lambert

Naomi Scott

Paris Hilton

Suki Waterhouse

Thalía

Tinashe

SiriusXM’s stock rose 2.6% on Tuesday (Sept. 10), the first full day of trading since it merged with Liberty Media’s tracking stock to create a single, streamlined public stock.

SiriusXM said last December that it would merge its stock with Liberty SiriusXM Holdings to simplify and eliminate confusion around its multiple share classes and create one entity with greater trading liquidity. In June, the company announced a 1-for-10 reverse stock split that ultimately reduced SiriusXM’s outstanding common stock by about 12% in a bid to give the single stock an additional boost.

The company said Tuesday that the simplified capital structure will support its strategy for growth. It also announced a $1.166 billion stock buyback program funded by cash on hand.

“Today SiriusXM embarks on a new phase in our journey as an independent public company, building on our leading position in audio entertainment,” Jennifer Witz, SiriusXM CEO, said in a statement. “We’ve created a strong and profitable business, anchored by a subscription service that fosters deep and loyal connections with our listeners and a growing digital audio advertising platform which extends our reach to fans around the world, and we are excited about the future as we look to expand and strengthen both platforms.”

Last week, SiriusXM’s stock fell 17.0% to $2.73 after it and Liberty Media announced the final exchange ratio for the merger with Liberty Media redeeming each outstanding share of Liberty SiriusXM common stock for 0.8375 shares of the new SiriusXM stock. That meant SiriusXM shareholders received 0.1 shares of the new SiriusXM stock, which is trading under the same SIRI ticker as the original SiriusXM stock.

Following Tuesday’s merger, the former holders of Liberty SiriusXM stock own roughly 81% of the new shares.