Celebrities including Sabrina Carpenter and Zara Larsson embraced a "visible underwear" trend on the red carpet at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, appearing in sheer and nearly naked ensembles despite a pre-show admonition against overtly raunchy attire.
As guests arrived at UBS Arena on Long Island, a number of A-list attendees leaned into lingerie-style dressing and sheer fabrics that displayed underwear lines or undergarments. Zara Larsson wore a completely see-through mini dress with blue underwear and decorative tassels and flowers; Sabrina Carpenter appeared in a bright red, lacy design that suggested she had forgone underwear; Tate McRae presented two monochrome looks during the night, each revealing undergarments; and Jessica Simpson made a markedly different return to the VMAs in a goth-glam, sheer outfit that teased her silhouette.
The fashion choices came after organizers reportedly asked attendees to avoid "raunchy" looks. An insider told The Sun that the move to broadcast the show on CBS after two decades on MTV introduced stricter guidelines: "CBS and MTV have significantly different rules and guidelines that they each have to abide by. The content and language on MTV is much more lenient, making this an interesting year for the VMAs," the source said, adding that the Federal Communications Commission's standards limit what a broadcast network can air and that "revealing outfits" and "unplanned profanity" are prohibited.
Style professionals framed the outfits as part of a larger runway-to-red-carpet shift. Lisa Talbot, a style expert cited by the Daily Mail, called the looks "more artistic" than purely provocative, saying lingerie and sheer fabrics have migrated into eveningwear and are being "styled with purpose." Talbot described the trend as "underwear as outerwear" shaped by a Y2K revival and an appetite for nearly naked dressing, but said structure and styling made the appearances feel "sensual but polished, not shocking."
The VMAs have long been associated with provocative moments. Organizers and artists have pushed boundaries in past years, from Britney Spears' 2001 performance that featured a live python to earlier red-carpet appearances by Doja Cat, Rose McGowan and Megan Fox. This year's red carpet again drew attention for its embrace of sheer fabrics, corsetry and visible bras.
Onstage, the ceremony produced several notable surprises. Ariana Grande won Video of the Year and Best Pop for "Brighter Days Ahead," defeating nominees that included Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars, Rosé and Bruno Mars, Sabrina Carpenter and The Weeknd & Playboi Carti. Grande used her acceptance speech to thank fans and collaborators and to deliver a message of optimism: "If you're on their journey please continue because I promise there are brighter days ahead," she said.
Lady Gaga won Artist of the Year, upsetting Taylor Swift in a category that had been heavily contested. Other winners included Sabrina Carpenter, who took Best Album for Short N Sweet and Best Pop Artist, Rosé and Bruno Mars for Song of the Year with "Apt.," Alex Warren as Best New Artist and Mariah Carey, Ricky Martin and Busta Rhymes receiving special honors.
Tate McRae, who won Best Editing and Song of the Summer, changed outfits during the night and continued the underwear-as-outerwear motif with a second look that also showed undergarments. FKA Twigs, Taylor Momsen, Olandria Carthen and Gabby Windey were among other attendees whose red-carpet choices echoed the near-nude trend.
Producers and network executives have said broadcast standards shape what can air live, but they also noted that fashion statements on the red carpet are often negotiated between stylists, designers and publicists. The 2025 ceremony's move from a cable channel to a major broadcast network heightened scrutiny over what would be permitted on live television, and some industry observers flagged the contrasting regulatory environments as a complicating factor for the event's presentation.
Fashion commentators and attendees suggested the visible-underwear trend is not confined to one awards show. Designers and celebrities have increasingly blurred the lines between lingerie and outerwear across runways and red carpets, presenting garments that prioritize silhouette and exposed underpinnings as part of a deliberate aesthetic rather than an accidental wardrobe malfunction. Whether the look will remain prominent on future broadcast red carpets, given federal decency rules and network standards, will likely depend on how stylists continue to balance daring design with the limitations of live television.