Mariah Carey will accept MTV’s 2025 Video Vanguard award and perform a medley of her greatest hits at the MTV Video Music Awards Sunday, the network announced. The ceremony airs live at 8 p.m. on CBS. Carey, 56, was cited for her “outstanding contributions” and “profound impact” on the music industry and pop culture.
Carey has remained a prominent figure since the early 1990s for her vocal range and chart-topping singles, and the Video Vanguard honor recognizes both her recordings and her influence on music-video visual style. The forthcoming medley is billed as a survey of the singer’s most memorable songs and stage moments designed to take longtime fans through highlights of her career.
Carey’s impact extends beyond sound to a widely noted sense of glamour and fashion that has been repeatedly spotlighted across decades. Critics and stylists point to a string of signature looks — including butterfly-inspired costumes and figure-defining ensembles — as part of the artist’s cultural imprint. "She’s the ultimate glam diva," Samantha Brown, a New York City-based celebrity stylist, told The Post, citing Carey’s showmanship and wardrobe as central to her lasting appeal.
The Video Vanguard award, given to recording artists and music-video directors for career-spanning achievements, has often been presented as a recognition of artists whose work reshaped popular music and visuals. Carey’s selection this year underscores her combination of commercial success, a catalog of high-profile singles, and memorable stage imagery that has influenced subsequent performers and fashion trends.
In promotional materials and reporting around the ceremony, MTV and outlets covering the awards highlighted both Carey’s vocal accomplishments and her stylistic signatures. The medley is expected to feature selections from across her career, though organizers have not released a full set list. The performance will be part of the evening’s broader programming, which includes awards across video categories.
Observers note Carey’s longevity in an industry marked by rapid change. From chart hits and multi-platinum albums to widely circulated fashion moments, her career has spanned more than three decades. Coverage leading up to the VMAs also emphasized how certain looks — frequently referenced in retrospectives of her career — have been evoked by contemporary artists and fashion designers.
The Video Vanguard presentation will be a centerpiece of the VMAs broadcast and part of a trend in which the awards program highlights legacy artists with career achievement honors. MTV has framed Carey’s recognition as a celebration of both her recorded music and the visual elements that have accompanied it, emphasizing the dual role artists now play as musical performers and cultural style figures.
Carey’s appearance and acceptance of the Video Vanguard award will mark the latest public milestone in a career that continues to draw attention for both sound and spectacle. The live telecast will provide the first full public airing of the medley and the formal presentation of the honor.