The Real Reason Taylor Swift Is Mysteriously Skipping the VMAs Weeks After Her Surprise Engagement to Travis Kelce

She’s tied for the most Moon Person awards in history, but will Taylor Swift attend the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards? Don’t hold your breath.

Is Taylor Swift attending the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards?

E! News confirmed on September 5 that Swift will not be attending the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, where she’s nominated for Artist of the Year against performers like Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar, The Weeknd, and Morgan Wallen. The 2025 VMAs are set to be held at UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, on September 7, 2025.

While it hasn’t been confirmed, as of writing, why Swift will miss the VMAs, fans speculate that she’s skipping the event because she’ll be in Brazil for her fiancé Travis Kelce‘s first NFL game of the 2025-2026 season. Kelce’s team, the Kansas City Chiefs, for which he plays as a tight end, is set to compete against the Los Angeles Chargers at Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo. Karol G is set to perform the halftime show.

If Swift does win Artist of the Year at the 2025 VMAs, she’ll make history as the most awarded performer of all time with 31 awards. Both she and Beyonce are currently tied with 30 awards each.

Swift is also busy on both the personal and professional fronts. In August 2025, she announced her 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl, on Travis and his brother Jason Kelce’s podcast, “New Heights.” Swift also announced her engagement to Kelce in an Instagram post. “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married 🧨,” she captioned a series of photos from her and Kelce’s engagement.

“Taylor and Travis’ friends are thrilled for them, and a lot of them found out about the engagement right after it happened,” a source told People of Kelce and Swift’s engagement in September 2025. “Keeping it quiet wasn’t easy but now that it’s out, everyone’s just excited.”

The insider continued, “It has been a relief not having to keep it a secret anymore and they are glad it is out in the open. Both families are overjoyed. There were toasts, happy tears and everyone is thrilled for them. Friends have been stopping by and sending little gifts. It has all been intimate, nothing over the top.”

Another source told People in August 2025 that Swift and Kelce aren’t currently wedding planning. “Taylor and Travis have been in celebration mode ever since the engagement,” the source said. “They are not in the wedding planning phase yet.” The insider continued, “Right now they just want to enjoy being engaged and they are going to take their time with it. It has been a relief not having to keep it a secret anymore, and they are glad it is out in the open.”

Kelce’s dad, Ed Kelce, also detailed how the proposal happened in an interview on the radio show, “The Jimmy & Nath Show with Emma.” “They were going out to dinner and she was ready to go and he said, ‘Let’s go out in the garden on the patio and have a glass of wine before we go,’” he said. “I think she knew something was up because as they walked out there, she could see, suddenly, there were a lot more flowers out there.” He continued, “These are two young people madly in love with each other, and I think this is great.”