From feathered tailoring to Western-inspired leather, the 2026 MTV VMAs red carpet offered a study in menswear that favored theatricality, individuality and a willingness to push familiar codes
The MTV Video Music Awards returned to Los Angeles’ Peacock Theater on September 27, bringing with them the event’s longstanding appetite for fashion that extends beyond conventional red-carpet dressing. This year, that spirit was particularly evident among the night’s male arrivals, who approached formalwear with varying degrees of theatricality.
Troye Sivan led the charge in an Erdem Spring/Summer 2027 ensemble that paired a structured black jacket and trousers with an extravagant white ostrich-feather bustle. The unexpected silhouette transformed traditional tailoring into something far more performative, blurring the line between eveningwear and stage costume.
Shaboozey, meanwhile, brought his signature Western influence to the carpet in Chrome Hearts, wearing an all-leather look layered over a white shirt and slim black tie. A substantial silver belt buckle and pointed boots completed the cowboy-inspired silhouette without straying from his established visual language.
Orville Peck stayed within his own Western vocabulary, pairing leather with a graphic Keith Haring T-shirt. Rising artist Magnus Ferrell took a different route, arriving in a baby-blue, 1970s-inspired ensemble reminiscent of the era’s embellished “nudie” suits.
Taken together, the looks underscored a recurring quality of the VMAs: when the occasion is rooted in music and performance, menswear has little reason to stay within the lines.
