September 11, 2021 | 4:45pm | Updated
Lady Gaga is nominated for Best Cinematography and Best Art Direction at the 2021 VMAs, both for her stunning “911” music video. And while we hope she’ll take home a Moon Person or two, we’re especially excited to see what she’ll wear. Since making her VMAs debut back in 2009, Mother Monster has graced us with a series of an unforgettable red carpet and on-stage fashions, from 2010’s infamous meat dress to 2020’s parade of fashionable face masks. Here, take a look back at her wildest and most iconic VMAs outfits over the years.
Gaga graced the VMAs red carpet for the very first time in 2009 — one year after the release of her debut album, “The Fame” — wearing a black lace Jean Paul Gaultier gown paired with a feathered Keko Hainswheeler neckpiece and “Phantom Of the Opera”-Esque gold mask.
Her “Poker Face”/”Paparazzi” mashup performance featured a belly-baring, bejeweled white lace costume and buckets of fake blood.
But it was the red lace archival Alexander McQueen dress and matching crowned mask she wore to accept her Best New Artist award that really turned heads.
Backstage, the pop star celebrated in another Gaultier look, this time a futuristic couture corseted bodysuit paired with glittering black boots.
2010 was a big year for Gaga at the VMAs; she was up for a whopping 13 awards and arrived on the red carpet looking like royalty in a voluminous Alexander McQueen gown, along with the designer’s towering “Armadillo” boots and a gold feathered Philip Treacy headdress.
Meet Jo Calderone. In 2011, Gaga showed up and performed at the show in drag as her male alter ego, complete with sharp suiting and facial hair.
Gaga’s look for the 2013 VMAs red carpet, a black satin Prabal Gurung gown with a tulle train, was a surprisingly subdued choice for the star.
But she was back to her usual ways by the time she hit the stage, opening the show in a white nun-like look and pearls, her face framed by a blank canvas.
Gaga then burst into “Applause,” baring it all in a teeny-tiny seashell bikini and waist-length, mermaid-worthy waves.
And the 2020 VMAs might as well have been called the GMAs. Gaga reigned supreme over the entire evening, taking home four Moon People — along with MTV’s first-ever Tricon Award — and performing a “Chromatica” medley onstage. She also made quite the splash on the red carpet, showing up in a futuristic silver Area ensemble accessorized with a space helmet.”I was wearing face shields before it was a thing,” Gaga quipped on Instagram of her pandemic-appropriate headgear.
Her series of over-the-top face coverings continued with this hot pink muzzle mask by Cecilio Castrillo, which she paired with a wild Iris Van Herpen dress to accept the Best Collaboration award for “Rain On Me.”
Next up? This apple green Christopher John Rogers gown was teamed with a horned mask by Lance Victor Moore to collect her Song of the Year award.
To perform “Rain On Me” with Ariana Grande, Gaga buckled herself into a bright latex look from Vex, adding a digital “Chromatica”-themed mask by Smooth Technology.
To accept Artist of the Year, the pop phenom sported a sparkling silver catsuit and over-the-top white feather coat from Valentino Haute Couture, along with a sequined Maison Met face mask.
And to transform her metallic catsuit to take home the Tricon Award, Gaga layered on a silver Candace Cuoco jacket and Manuel Albarran bra. “I might sound like a broken record, but wear a mask. It’s a sign of respect,” she said during her acceptance speech.